Artists stepping up with online offerings
- Brett Hiner: A Work in Progress
- April 13, 2020
- 866
Like most in the time of social distancing and self-quarantine, I have been forced to turn to the internet for entertainment.
It is not that I do not enjoy watching replays of “classic” Tribe games on STO, but how “classic” can they be when we all know the ultimate outcome? It is not as if Charles Nagy is not going to give up that hit to Èdgar Rentería in Game 7 of the ’97 World Series and change the dreams of Tribe fans forever (side note: like all good baseball fans, I believe the fault lies with Jose Mesa, not Charles Nagy).
No, like most Cleveland sports fans, aside from the brief respite provided by the Cavs in ’16, we might be doomed to watch those replays forever.
Thankfully, in a world craving live entertainment, those involved in the arts have genuinely stepped up their energies in providing some truly wonderful online moments.
For fans of the theater, www.playbill.com has everything from newly performed song snippets from Broadway’s blockbusters to never-before-seen show productions. Fans of “Les Miserables” will not be able to keep a dry eye as The Barricade Boys perform a version of “Bring Him Home,” which seems to now take on new meaning as they encourage people to support the National Health Service by staying home/saving lives.
James Corden’s heartfelt address to his audience at the end of one of his shows last week was filled with such vulnerability and sincerity one could not help but feel united afterward. His address was immediately followed by Ben Platt and other cast members of “Dear Evan Hansen” performing “You Will Be Found.”
There is comfort seeing these immensely talented folks singing in, what I assume, are their living rooms. Taking us off the stage and into their personal lives is a reminder we are all being impacted in some way by this virus but also have maybe never felt more connected.
Using the hashtag, HomeIsWhereTheMusicIs, Andrew Lloyd Webber has cleverly posted everything from fans/stars performing singalongs, to his show tunes, to answering a slew of questions on the creative process, to even providing hints to his forthcoming new musical, “Cinderella.”
And maybe that is where a sliver of the silver lining in all of this chaos lives: the creation of new art. One can only imagine what this sheltering is doing for the artistic types, folks much more talented than me who may now have the uninterrupted time to create. What kind of wonderful music, art, plays or books are we going to be blessed with in the months after the sheltering is lifted?
Aside from what the world of theater may bring, personally I am hoping for two gifts. As a fan of Billy Joel, I feel like he owes us a new album. I have seen Mr. Joel so many times in concert that I might be personally responsible for sending his eldest daughter through college. I do recall thinking the last time seeing him live (Progressive Field in 2017) his show felt “old.” He was using the same introduction, telling the same jokes and doing the same set list he was doing on his “River of Dreams” tour back in ’93, which also was the last time he recorded an album of new material. Think about this: It has been 26 years since he has released one new song, yet he is still selling out venues across the globe.
My other wish would be for George R.R. Martin to finally finish the next book, “The Winds of Winter,” in his “A Song of Ice and Fire” series. I get that the story, and actual weight of the books, is massive, but “A Dance with Dragons” came out in 2011. Nine years (or more) to write the next book? And all the while “Game of Thrones” exploded onto HBO, making his fan base even more massive. The kicker to this wish is “The Winds of Winter” is not even the final book in the series, which begs the question: how long will we have to wait for the seventh and final book?
While I am not advocating for, or hoping that, the shelter in place remains in effect for a long time, am I asking too much of Billy and George to use the quarantine time productively? One can only hope they are following the hard work being done in living rooms across the country by artists of all sorts.
My selfish desires aside, the other day Stephen King tweeted, “If you think the arts are useless, try to spend your quarantine without music, books, poems, movies and paintings.” Truer words have never been spoken, especially for those doomed to watch reruns of Cleveland’s sports teams.