Dear Reader
How was your weekend? I learned that all this time I've been running marathons when all I really needed, to know that I'm truly capable of anything in life, was to make my own pizza from scratch. Yes, I waited more than 2 months into this quarantine / lockdown / shelter-in-place we’re in to try my hand at this quara-trend, but I truly believe everything happens when it needs to. And now I know how deeply fulfilling it is to make and eat your own pizza!
While I was making pizza, high-schoolers were graduating, and former president Barack Obama reminded them (and us) of the power of community and simple values.
At this time, different states here in the US are grappling with re-opening. New York itself needs to get 7 metrics right, Gov Cuomo says, before that can happen here and the “NY Pause” has been extended until June 13th. There are many repercussions to be sure, but I don’t know what that means for this here little newsletter. I may scale back to a weekly one from this week, or I may keep on going with the daily. If you have any strong opinions on the subject matter, please do let me know!
Here’s today’s selection of entertainment options for these times:
1. Jon Bon Jovi, Dolly Parton, Meryl Streep and other big names are set to perform for A Night Of Covenant House Stars, a live stream concert benefiting the Covenant House charity. The show kicks off at 5pm PST / 8pm EST on new streaming service Broadway On Demand.
2. The New Museum of Contemporary Art recently launched online series, Bedtime Stories — audio tales read by famous artists and musicians, like Iggy Pop, David Byrne and Jeff Koons. The program is the brainchild of artist Maurizio Cattelan, who was also behind the solid gold toilet that was installed at the Guggenheim.
3. The Met Opera’s slate of online performances this week features among it, French favourites Gounod’s Faust, with Jonas Kaufmann and Marina Poplavskaya, and Massenet's Manon, with Anna Netrebko, Piotr Beczała and Paulo Szot.
4. Black Ballet in the UK has released three performances online to add to its #BBonFilm initiative. You can see CLICK! (2019) and Cristaux (2016), which features South African dancer Mthuthuzeli November, now, while Depouillement (2009) is coming on 24 May. [Thank you to Jada Young for this tip]
5. If you’re still looking for something to do, may I also suggest reading through the 60 letters Bono wrote to the composers of 60 of his favourite songs, on the occasion of his 60th birthday last week.
Thank you for reading!
Stay safe, stay sane
Your neighbour
Nadia