Creatives Rebuild New York is a new initiative that will provide monthly, no-strings-attached payments for up to 2,400 artists with financial need. A second component of the program will fund and facilitate employment for 300 artists at dozens of small-to-mid-size community arts organizations statewide. - Albany Times-Union
The mercantile/community gatherings date back to at least the 14th century, and though they've since spread through much of the world, they're especially dear to Germany (where pandemic-induced cancellations hit very hard). Here's the story of the markets, from prune Zwetschgenmännle to hot Glühwein. - Quartz
On Monday, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced that £30 million ($40 million) was being added to Arts Council England's Culture Recovery Fund. On Thursday, that amount was raised to £60 million ($80 million), including £1.5 million ($2 million) earmarked for freelancers. - Artnet
Mass entertainment events are no longer a novelty in the once austere kingdom, but there have been reports by local and foreign women that they have faced harassment at them - some of it documented on video. - BBC
Following the lead of the Netherlands and Denmark as the Omicron coronavirus spreads, Belgium is ordering theatres, concert halls, and cinemas to close beginning Monday, Dec. 26. - Variety
The number of performances had the largest upside effect on ticket sales in September, with a 20% increase producing a 9% increase in ticket sales. The price effect also increased a bit, with a 20% price discount increasing ticket sales by 7%. We expect these trends to continue. - SMU Data Arts
It's a trend at professions offering noneconomic benefits, a sense of mission at a nonprofit or the cachet of working in book publishing or television production. They rely on young employees toiling for meager wages and a chance to make it in a prestigious field. - The New York Times
"U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak has … an additional £30 million in funding will be made available through the existing Culture Recovery Fund to support organizations such as theaters, orchestras and museums through the winter to March 2022." - Variety
Ballet companies count on the income from parents bringing the kids to Nutcracker; same with the Met Opera's English-language children's versions of classics; many museums have shows timed for school vacation. And, at last, the younger set can get vaccinated. Fingers are crossed. - The New York Times
Performance spaces and cinemas, bars and restaurants, and other non-essential businesses are closed until mid-January. This and a similar lockdown in Denmark are, so far, the strictest measures in Europe since the Omicron variant of the coronavirus arrived. - Variety
It’s clear that the rise of e-sports has come at the expense of traditional youth sports, with implications for their future and for the way children grow up. Lack of young players in the pipeline could be a problem for professional sports. - The New York Times
Especially in New York, where last-minute omicron-variant cancellations led to a very strange night. "The rigid format—with every sketch introduced by one of the performers reading a hastily written lead-in—yielded a disconcerting, even apocalyptic, atmosphere." - The Atlantic
