From finding ways to help others cope to sheltering in place to canceling events, here’s a look at some of the ways the entertainment industry is reacting to the spread of the coronavirus, which most people recover from but can cause severe illness in the elderly and those with preexisting medical conditions.
ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER TURNS TO YOUTUBE
Iconic composer Andrew Lloyd Webber is making some of his filmed musicals available for free on YouTube.
On Friday, the 2000 West End adaption of “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” starring Donny Osmond will be streamable, followed a week later by the rock classic “Jesus Christ Superstar” from the 2012 arena show starring Tim Minchin.
Further shows will be announced later, all hosted by the YouTube channel The Show Must Go On. Each show will be available at 2 p.m. Eastern/11 a.m. Pacific for a 48-hour period online, with no charge or sign up required.
BROADWAY LEGEND SICK WITH VIRUS
Tony Award-winner Brian Stokes Mitchell has tested positive for COVID-19.
The actor and chairman of the board of The Actors Fund announced the news of his diagnosis in a Twitter video, reassuring fans that he was already beginning to feel better. He says his wife and son don’t have symptoms.
In a statement, The Actors Fund said Mitchell’s diagnosis is an example “of why it is vitally important that we each do everything we can to slow the spread of this virus.”
Mitchell won a Tony for his lead performance in the 1999 musical “Kiss Me, Kate.” Other Broadway figures who have tested positive include Gavin Creel, Aaron Tveit and Laura Bell Bundy as well as composer David Bryan. It has claimed the life of four-time Tony-winning playwright Terrence McNally.