Coronavirus and culture – a list of major cancellations
Latest• Shakespeare’s Globe theatre in London closes until further notice. • Noel Gallagher postpones Manchester shows (24-25 March), new dates TBA.• Glastonbury festival, which would have taken place 25-28 June, has been cancelled.• The Eurovision Song Contest, due to take place in Rotterdam on 16 May, will not take place this year. • Opera North suspends all performances and public-facing activity until the end of April.• July’s Buxton International festival is cancelled.• Brighton Festival is cancelled for the first time in its 53year history. • Olivier awards (5 April) cancelled.• Design Museum in London to close from 18 March. • The Edinburgh international film festival, due to start on 17 June, won’t now go ahead. Organisers are “are looking at which elements of the festival can be delivered later in the year”.• Filming on all BBC Studios’ soaps - Casualty, Doctors, EastEnders, Holby City, Pobol y Cwm and River City – cancelled until further notice. EastEnders will now be broadcast two nights a week.• English Heritage closes all its staffed sites including Stonehenge.• Norfolk & Norwich festival (8-24 May) cancelled.• The National Trust announces all its pay-forentry properties will close to visitors by Friday 20 March.• The British Museum is to close from 18 March. No re-opening date has yet been given.• National Gallery, London, will close from 19 March, aiming to reopen on 4 May.• London’s National Portrait Gallery closed until further notice.• Photo London, due to take place at Somerset House 14– 17 May, postponed to early autumn. • Tron theatre, Glasgow, closed until further notice.• Peer Gallery, London, closes until further notice; digital platforms stay open.• Release of Disney/ Marvel superhero film Black Widow (1 May) postponed.• London’s O2 Arena, the second-largest concert venue in the UK, is postponing all events in March.• London’s Southbank Centre closes including the Hayward Gallery, Royal Festival Hall and Queen Elizabeth Hall. • Hepworth Wakefield closes until further notice. • Glasgow International festival (24 April-10 May) postponed. • Pitchfork festival Berlin (8-9 May) cancelled.• Royal Albert Hall in London closed until further notice.• Teenage Cancer Trust gigs postponed, new dates TBA.• Tate announces that its four galleries – Tate Modern and Tate Britain in London, Tate Liverpool and Tate St Ives – will close at 6pm on 17 March and reopen on 1 May. • Serpentine Gallery in London closes until further notice. • Barbican Centre in London – an arts complex including theatre, concert hall and gallery – closes until further notice. • Kettle’s Yard in Cambridge closes until further notice. • Cheltenham Jazz Festival is cancelled. It will now take place on 28 April-3 May 2021. • All major West End and UK theatres to close and remain closed until further notice. • Sadler’s Wells cancels all performances with immediate effect for up to 12 weeks.• The Royal Opera House, London has been closed to the public and all performances cancelled with immediate effect.• The Coliseum, home to English National Opera, has closed until further notice.• London’s
Wigmore Hall has closed until Tuesday 14 April.• Camden Arts Centre, London, closes galleries, cafe, garden, bookshop and studios, reopening date TBA.• Watford Palace Theatre cancels Talking Heads and postpones Abigail’s Party until 2021.• Royal Court theatre cancels Shoe Lady and upcoming productions• Fabric and Ministry of Sound nightclubs in London have closed until further notice.• Elton John postpones North American tour dates (26 March to 2 May), new dates TBA.• Foo Fighters postpone North American tour dates (12-20 April), new dates TBA.• Strand bookstore in New York closed until further notice.• Oxford Literary festival, due to run 27 March-5 April, cancelled.• Sydney Writers festival, due to run 27 April-3 May, cancelled.• The ICA in London closes its whole building, including galleries, cinemas and restaurant, for the foreseeable future. • Royal Academy in London stays open but cancels its Festival of Ideas, due to have taken place 29 April-3 May. • London Original Print Fair, due to take place 1-3 May, cancelled. • The International Opera Awards, due to take place in London on 4 May, have been postponed until 21 September.• BFI Flare: London LGBTIQ+ film festival, due to start on 18 March, is cancelled• National Gallery in London announces that its exhibition on the life and work of Artemisia Gentileschi is postponed• Stoke Newington Literary festival, due to run 5-7 June, has been cancelled.• Wellcome Collection in London announces it will close from 6pm 16 March. • Photographers Gallery in London reduces its opening hours from 11am to 5pm with staggered entry to reduce the risk of infection. • Endgame at the Old Vic theatre cancels last two weeks of its run.• Arcola theatre suspends all public performances until further notice.• South London Gallery closes at 6pm on 14 March and announces that it will not reopen until further notice – the first British publicly funded art gallery to take this step.
Film
18 March: Release of Les Misérables (24 April) postponed.18 March: Onenight cinema screening of David Attenborough: A Life On Our Planet (16 April) postponed till later this year, along with Netflix launch.18 March: Release of County Lines (17 April) postponed.18 March: Release of Radioactive (20 March) postponed.18 March: The Edinburgh international film festival (17-28 June) won’t now go ahead. Organisers are “are looking at which elements of the festival can be delivered later in the year”.18 March: Release of Koko-Di Koko-Da (27 March) postponed “until further notice.17 March: Release of The Great Buster – A Celebration (20 March) postponed.17 March: Release of Black Widow (1 May) postponed.17 March: Release of Rocks (10 April) postponed, a new date announced “in due course”.17 March: Bafta in Piccadilly is closing its doors.17 March: BFI Southbank is closing.17 March: Release of The Australian Dream (27 March) delayed until later in the year17 March: Release of The Painted Bird (27 March) delayed until later this year.17 March: Release of Amber and Me (21 March) delayed until later in the year17 March: Most major cinema chains, including Cineworld, Odeon, Vue, Picturehouse and Everyman, close their doors until further notice.16 March: BFI Flare: London LGBTIQ+ film festival, due to run 18-29 March, is cancelled.14 March:
Ceremony for the Golden Raspberry awards, AKA the Razzies, won’t go ahead, TBC if it will be rearranged for later in the year.14 March: Release of Recorder: The Marion Stokes Project (17 April) postponed until September.14 March: Human Rights Watch film festival (due to run until 20 March) cancelled.13 March: Belfast film festival (1-9 April) postponed until autumn.13 March: Disney postpones indefinitely release of Mulan, The New Mutants and Antlers.12 March: Release of A Quiet Place 2 (20 March) cancelled indefinitely. Fast 9 postponed from May 2020 to April 2021.12 March: Tribeca film festival (15-26 April) postponed.12 March: Disney announces closure of Disneyland Paris and Disneyworld in US; Universal Studios theme park also announces closure.12 March: WonderCon (10-12 April) cancelled.12 March: The Lovebirds (3 April) cancelled. US release of Blue Story (20 March) cancelled.12 March: Release of Sooryavanshi (27 March) postponed indefinitely.11 March: Largescale cinema closures in India, Poland, Lebanon and Kuwait11 March: Miami film festival (6-15 March) cancelled mid-run.11 March: All Italian cinemas closed.10 March: UK release of A Secret Garden postponed from 3 April to 13 August.10 March: Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway postponed from early April until 7 August.10 March: Release of Polish slasher film W lesie dzis nie zasnie nikt postponed.10 March: David Di Donatello Awards – Italy’s Oscars – postponed from 3April to 8 May10 March: Prague international film festival (19-27 March) postponed until later in the year.9 March: Beverly Hills film festival (1-5 April) postponed until further notice.9 March: AFI’s lifetime achievement ceremony to honour Julie Andrews postponed from April until the summer.9 March: Beijing international film festival (April) postposed indefinitely.8 March: All Italian cinemas closed.8 March: Restrictions imposed on French cinemas to run at 50% capacity; some cinemas closed. 6 March: SXSW festival (13-22 March) cancelled.6 March: International Indian Film Academy Awards - Bollywood’s Oscars – postponed from 27 March.4 March: Bond film No Time to Diepostponed from early April to late November.3 March: Red Sea international film festival (due to start 12 March) cancelled.1 March: Most South Korean cinemas closed.28 February: Disneyland Tokyo closed.22 February: Iran closes most cinemas.13 February: Hong Kong film festival (24 March to 6 April) cancelled.31 January: Chinese film Enter the Fat Dragon cancels all cinema plans and debuts online.24 January: China closes most of its 70,000 screens.23 January: Chinese New Year releases of seven major titles cancelled.22 January: Cinema release of Chinese blockbuster Lost in Russia cancelled; film is fasttracked to streaming services.
Music
18 March: Noel Gallagher postpones Manchester shows (24-25 March), new dates TBA.18 March: Glastonbury festival, which would have taken place 25-28 June, has been cancelled.18 March: The Eurovision Song Contest, due to take place in Rotterdam on 16 May, will not take place this year. 17 March: London’s O2 Arena, the second-largest concert venue in the UK, is postponing all events in March.17 March: Pitchfork festival Berlin (8-9 May) cancelled.17 March: Royal Albert Hall in London closed until further notice.17 March: Teenage Cancer Trust gigs postponed, new dates TBA.17
March: Phonox nightclub closed until further notice.17 March: Cheltenham Jazz Festival is cancelled. It will now take place on 28 April-3 May 2021. 16 March: Fabric and Ministry of Sound nightclubs in London have closed until further notice.16 March: Re-Textured festival (London, 2-5 April) postponed until 2021.16 March: Bristol International Jazz and Blues festival postponed from 26–29 March, intending to reschedule in autumn.16 March: Elton John postpones North American tour dates (26 March to 2 May), new dates TBA.16 March: Foo Fighters postpone North American tour dates (12-20 April), new dates TBA.16 March: iHeartRadio awards (29 March) postponed, new date TBA.16 March: Bluesfest (Byron Bay, Australia, 9-13 April) cancelled.16 March: All NYC entertainment venues to close.15 March: Academy of Country Music awards postponed to September, new date TBA.13 March: Lightning in a Bottle festival (California, 20-25 May) cancelled.13 March: Kelly Clarkson Las Vegas residency (1-11 April) postponed until July, new dates TBA.13 March: Sturgill Simpson postpones March North American tour, dates resume 20 April – 31 May.13 March: Prince Royce postpones North American tour (19 March – 16 May), new dates TBA.13 March: Pharrell’s Something in the Water festival (Virginia Beach, 24-26 April) cancelled.13 March: White Denim and Chris Forsyth postpone North American tour (27 March – 18 April) postponed, new dates TBA.13 March: Country Music Hall of Fame (Nashville) to close until 31 March.13 March: Jonas Brothers cancel Las Vegas residency (1-18 April).13 March: Japanese Breakfast postpones March tour, new dates 16-21 June.13 March: Shopping North American tour (13 March to 10 April) postponed, new dates TBA.13 March: Celine Dion postpones North American tour (24 March to 27 April), new dates TBA.13 March: J Cole postpones Dreamville festival (4 April) to 29 August.13 March: Radio 1’s Big Weekend (22-24 May) Dundee cancelled.13 March: Jens Lekman cancels US tour (14 April to 21 May).13 March: Record Store Day postponed until June.13 March: BPM festival (Miami, 22 March) postponed, new dates TBA.13 March: Under the Southern Stars Australia tour (3-19 April) cancelled.13 March: Rage Against the Machine postpone North American tour (26 March to 20 May), new dates TBA.12 March: Snowbombing festival (Mayrhofen, Austria, 13-18 April) cancelled.12 March: Pixies postpone remaining Australian tour dates (12-17 March), new dates TBA.12 March: Avril Lavigne cancels world tour (13 March to 24 May).12 March: Bikini Kill cancel US and Canada tour (13-23 March), new dates TBA.12 March: Underworld postpone Norway and Denmark dates (13-15 March), new dates TBA.12 March: Big Ears festival (Knoxville, Tennessee, 26-29 March) cancelled.12 March: Rock’n’Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony (Cleveland, Ohio, 2 May) postponed, new date TBA.12 March: Juno awards (Saskatoon, 15 March) cancelled.12 March: LOVR Benefit ft Chris Martin (Los Angeles, 21 March) postponed, new date TBA.12 March: Bob Weir postpones US tour (13-25 March), new dates from 7 October.12 March: C2C festival (London, Dublin and Glasgow, 13-15 March) postponed, new dates TBA.12 March: Lollapalooza Brazil (Sao Paolo, 3-5 April) postponed, new dates TBA.12 March: Tool postpone 16 March concert in West Valley City, Utah; remaining tour dates proceeding.12 March: Dan + Shay postpone US arena tour, new dates from 30 July.12 March: The Who postpone UK tour (16 March to 8 April), new dates TBA.12 March: Iggy Pop reschedules French tour, new dates from 10 September.12 March: Capital One JamFest (Atlanta, 5 April) cancelled.12 March: Billie Eilish postpones North American tour (13-28 March), new dates TBA.12 March: Chelsea Wolfe postpones European tour (13 March to 1 April), new dates TBA.12 March: My Chemical Romance postpone Australia and Japan tour (20-29 March), new dates TBA.12 March: Mumford and Sons Teenage Cancer Trust show (23 March) postponed, new date TBA.12 March: Days of Summer Cruise festival (Miami) postponed to 1-15 July 2021.12 March: Cher postpones US tour, new dates from 8 September.12 March: Mount Eerie postpones North American tour (12-19 April), new dates TBA.12 March: Bonnie “Prince” Billy cancels US tour (12-15 March).12 March: Willie Nelson cancels Luck Reunion festival (19 March).12 March: Best Coast postpones North American tour (14 March to 2 April), new dates TBA.12 March: Pussy Riot postpone North American tour (13 March to 19 May), new dates TBA.12 March: Blood Orange postpone North American tour (12-20 March), new dates TBA.12 March: Wilco postpone certain US tour dates (18 March to 5 April).12 March: TNGHT postpone European tour (16-22 March) to July, new dates TBA.12 March: Maluma postpones European tour (13 March to 4 April), new dates TBA.12 March: Action Bronson cancels US tour (25 March to 21 May).12 March: Kenny Chesney postpones US tour (18 April to 28 May), new dates TBA.12 March: Chris Stapleton postpones US tour (12-21 March), new dates TBA.12 March: Blake Shelton postpones tour (12-21 March), new dates TBA.12 March: Jay Som postpones UK and European tour (17 March to 8 April), new dates TBA.11 March: Pearl Jam postpone first leg of North American tour (18 March to 19 April), new dates TBA.11 March: Berlin club Berghain cancels all self-produced events until 20 April.11 March: They Might Be Giants postpone US tour, new dates starting 8 September.11 March: Poppy postpones European tour (13-30 March), new dates TBA.11 March: Treeford Music festival (Boise, Idaho) postponed until 23-27 September.11 March: Stagecoach festival (Indio, CA) postponed to 23-25 October.10 March: World Tour Bushfire Relief Concert (Melbourne, 13 March) cancelled.10 March: Zac Brown Band postpone US tour (12 March to 25 April).10 March: Coachella festival (Indio, California) postponed to 9-11 October and 16-18 October.10 March: Bans Off My Body benefit with Courtney Love and Melissa Auf Der Maur (New York City, 14 March) postponed, new date TBA.9 March: Madonnacancels Paris dates (10-11 March).9 March: Carlos Santana cancels European tour (14 March to 5 April).9 March: Pearl Jampostpone North American tour (19 March to 19 April), new dates TBA.7 March: SXSW festivalcancelled (Austin, 13-22 March).6 March: Ultra festival (Miami, 20-22 March) cancelled.5 March: Tomorrowland Winter festival (Alpe d’Huez, France, 14-21 March) cancelled.28 February: BTS cancel South Korea tour (11-19 April); US dates (from 4 May) still proceeding.28 February: Green Day postpone East Asian tour (14-28 March).13 February: Stormzypostpones Asian leg of world tour.
Classical
18 March: Opera North closes until the end of April. 18 March: July’s
Buxton International festival has been cancelled.17 March: OperaGlass Works’ production of The Turn of the Screw, due to run at Wilton’s Music Hall from 26 March to 4 April, has been postponed to a later date, to be confirmed.17 March: Grange Park Opera announces the 2020 season, due to begin on 4 June, is “on ice”.17 March: St John’s Smith Square closes until 15 April 2020.17 March: London’s Southbank Centre closes including the Royal Festival Hall and Queen Elizabeth Hall. 16 March: The Coliseum, home to English National Opera, has closed until further notice.16 March: The Wigmore Hall is to close until Tuesday 14 April. 16 March: The Royal Opera House, London has cancelled all performances and closed its doors to the public with immediate effect. 16 March: The International Opera Awards, due to take place at Sadler’s Wells, London on 4 May, have been postponed until 21 September. 16 March: A day of celebrations that included a public concert in Leeds on 22 March in honour of the 100th birthday of Dame Fanny Waterman, the founder of the Leeds Piano Competition, has been cancelled.13 March: Paris Opera cancels the concert of Monteverdi, Rossi and Handel on 18 March, Don Giovanni from 21 March to 24 April.12 March: London Philharmonic Orchestra cancels tour of Luxembourg, Germany and Austria (13-19 March).12 March: Salzburg Easter festival cancelled.12 March: LA Philharmonic cancels all performances until end of March.12 March: New York Philharmonic cancels all performances until end of March.12 March: Washington Ballet reschedules Swan Lake to June 2020.12 March: Philadelphia Orchestra cancels all events and rehearsals until 23 March.12 March: LA Opera cancels Donizetti’s Roberto Devereux.12 March: Seattle Opera cancels all events until end March.12 March: Metropolitan Opera cancels all performances and rehearsals until end of March.12 March: André Rieu and Johann Strauss orchestra cancels remainder of US tour.11 March: Yuja Wang cancels European tour.11 March: Bavarian State Opera cancels all performances until 19 April.11 March: San José Opera cancels The Magic Flute.11 March: Lang Lang cancels Freiburg concert; new date TBA.10 March: San Diego Opera cancels March performances.10 March: Paris Philharmonic cancels March performances.10 March: Cleveland Orchestra cancels European and Abu Dhabi tour (16 March to 4 April).6 March: Edinburgh International Harp festival (3-8 April) cancelled.28 February: Venice Teatro la Fenice cancels all events until 5 April.28 February: Lausanne Chamber Orchestra cancels March concerts.27 February: National Symphony Orchestra cancels Japan tour.
Stage
18 March: Shakespeare’s Globe theatre in London closes until further notice. 18 March: Norfolk & Norwich festival (8-24 May) cancelled.17 March: Olivier awards (5 April) cancelled.17 March: Vault festival, London, cancels remaining performances.17 March: Birmingham Repertory theatre temporarily closes and cancels all March and April productions17 March: Theatr Clwyd postpone Milky Peaks, For the Grace of You Go I and The Contingency Plan.17 March: Kiln theatre cancels remaining performances of Pass Over.17 March: Theatre Royal Bath and the Egg, Bath, cancel shows up
to and including 11 April. The Ustinov in Bath is closed until 9 May.17 March: Candoco dance company cancel performances in Taiwan, Poland and Germany and postpone performances at BAM, New York.17 March: Traverse theatre, Edinburgh, suspends all productions until further notice.17 March: Machynlleth Comedy festival (due to run 1-3 May) cancelled.17 March: Donmar Warehouse cancels remaining performances of Far Away and postpones In the Blood and The Contingency Plan.16 March: Dozens of major West End and UK theatres (SOLT and UK Theatre member venues) to close and remain closed until further notice. 16 March: Royal Shakespeare Company closes all its productions for an undetermined period of time.16 March: Sadler’s Wells cancels all performances with immediate effect for up to 12 weeks.16 March: Royal Court theatre in London cancels Shoe Lady and upcoming productions.16 March: Indecent at the Menier Chocolate Factory – all performances suspended until 12 April.16 March: Festival theatre, Kings theatre and the Studio in Edinburgh cancel or postpone all performances until end of April.16 March: La Cage aux Folles cancels all remaining performances (until 21 March) at Park theatre, London16 March: Finborough theatre in London postpones Hockey Mom, Hockey Dad (originally scheduled for 31 March-25 April) until 2-27 February 2021, and Women Without Men (originally scheduled for 28 April-23 May) until 11 August-5 September 2020.15 March: Bunker theatre in London postpones Power Share week (scheduled for 16-21 March)15 March: Endgame at the Old Vic theatre, London, cancels last two weeks of its run.15 March: Arcola theatre in London suspends all public performances until further notice.15 March: Turbine theatre in
London cancels all performances until 18 April.14 March: The Glass Menagerie, starring Isabelle Huppert, at the Odeon in Paris cancelled until further notice. Other French theatres including the Moulin Rouge cabaret also closed.14 March: Seven Deadly Sins by Tanztheater Wuppertal at the Châtelet, Paris (24-29 March), cancelled.13 March: Jenna Friedman at Soho theatre (17-28 March) cancelled. To be rescheduled.13 March: Melbourne comedy festival cancelled.13 March: Odeon theatre in Paris cancels performances until further notice.13 March: Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike at Charing Cross Theatre. To be rescheduled.13 March: Steve Martin and Martin Short cancel shows in Dublin and London (13-15 March).13 March: Paris Opera cancels all performances of Manon until 3 April and George Balanchine until 10 April.13 March: Lifeboat (Catherine Wheels production) at East Linton Community Hall, Scotland, on 14 March is cancelled.12 March: Greek theatres closed until 28 March.12 March: Larger theatres in Ireland including the Abbey and Gate in Dublin closed until 29 March.12 March: Broadway theatresclosed until 12 April.11 March: Berlin’s larger theatres, operas and concert halls including Schaubuhne and Volksbuhne closed until 19 April.8 March: Italian theatres closed, including the Scala until 3 April.6 March: Chester Storyhouse postpones Brewster’s Millions and Antigone. New dates not yet announced.5 March: Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cinderella postponed from September 2020 to 9 October, now at Gillian Lynne theatre, London.
Books
16 March: Strand bookstore in New York closed until further notice.16 March: Huddersfield Literature Festival (19-29 March) cancelled.16 March: Sydney Writers Festival (27 April-3 May) cancelled.16 March: Oxford Literary Festival (27 March-5 April) cancelled.16 March: Stoke Newington Literary Festival (5-7 June) cancelled.16 March: Bristol Women’s Literature Festival (28-29 March) cancelled.13 March: Rathbones Folio prize ceremony cancelled, winner will be announced 23 March.13 March: International Booker prize shortlist ceremony cancelled (was 2 April).12 March: Jenny Offill’s UK book tour for Weather, scheduled 12-19 March, cancelled.11 March: John F Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston closed until further notice.11 March: rescheduled Bologna Children’s Book Fair cancelled.10 March: Windham-Campbell prize ceremony, scheduled for 19 March in London, cancelled.10 March: Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, scheduled for April, postponed to October.4 March: Abu Dhabi International Book Fair, scheduled for 15-21 April, cancelled.4 March: London Book Fair, scheduled for 10-12 March, cancelled.3 March: Leipzig’s book fair, scheduled for 12-15 March, cancelled.1 March: Paris Book Fair, scheduled for 20-23 March, cancelled.24 February: Bologna Children’s Book Fair, scheduled for 30 March to 2 April, postponed until May.
Art & Design
18 March: Design Museum in London to close until further notice. 17 March: National Gallery, London, will close from 19 March, aiming to reopen on 4 May.17 March: London’s National Portrait Gallery closed until further notice.17 March: Photo London, due to take place at Somerset House 14–17 May, postponed to early autumn. 17 March: Tate announces that its four galleries – Tate Modern and Tate Britain in London, Tate Liverpool and Tate St Ives – will close at 6pm on 17 March and reopen on 1 May. 17 March: Hepworth Wakefield closes until further notice. 17 March: Glasgow International Festival (24 April-10 May) postponed. 17 March: Barbican Centre in London closes until further notice.17 March:
Serpentine Gallery in London closes until further notice. 17 March: Whitechapel Gallery, London also closes. 17 March: Kettle’s Yard in Cambridge closes until further notice. 16 March: National Gallery in London announces that its exhibition on the life and work of Artemisia Gentileschi is postponed16 March: The Modern Institute, Glasgow, closes until further notice. 16 March: Royal Academy in London stays open but cancels its Festival of Ideas, due to have taken place 29 April–3 May16 March: The ICA in London closes its whole building, including galleries, cinemas and restaurant, for the forseeable future16 March: Wellcome Collection in London announces it will close from 6pm 16 March. 16 March: Photographers Gallery in London reduces its opening hours from 11am to 5pm with staggered entry to reduce the risk of infection. 16 March: London Original Print Fair, due to take place 1-3 May, cancelled. 14 March: South London Gallery closes at 6pm and announces that it will not reopen until further notice – the first British publicly funded art gallery to take this step. Others, including Tate, remain open13 March: San Francisco shuts the Asian Art Museum, the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) until the end of the month.13 March: Sadie Coles makes London galleries appointmentonly until further notice.13 March: BOZAR Centre for Fine Arts, Brussels closes until 3April.12 March: All major New York museums including the Whitney, the Metropolitan, SculptureCenter, Neue Museum, Guggenheim, Brooklyn Museum, the Shed, the Frick and MoMA close to the general public until further notice. 12 March: Gagosian closes all its galleries including London, New York, Los Angeles and Rome until further notice. Most private galleries also announce closure.12 March: The Broad and J Paul Getty
Museum in Los Angeles announces closure until further notice; LACMA stays open but cancels public events of more than 50 people.12 March: National Gallery of Art, Washington DC closed until at least 4 April.12 March: Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam closed until at least 31 March.12 March: All cultural institutions (including theatres and nightclubs) closed in Berlin, Germany until at least 20 April.12 March: Irish Museum of Modern Art in Dublin closes until at least 29 March.11 March: In Madrid, Spain, governmentrun museums including the Prado are closed indefinitely.11 March: La Sagrada Familia, Barcelona limits visitors to 1,000 people.10 March: Dark Mofo music and art festival in Tasmania, Australia, cancelled.9 March: In Paris, the Louvre announces that only visitors with pre-booked tickets will be admitted. Musee d’Orsay caps visitors at 1,000.9 March: The Photography Show, Birmingham moved from March 14–17 to September.8 March: Museums and heritage sites closed throughout Italy.4 March: Venice architecture biennale postponed, due to open 29 August.28 February: Japan closes all museums until 17 March.23 February: South Korea closes all museums until further notice.26 February: Milan Furniture Fair postponed until June.28 January: All museums in Hong Kong closed until further notice.23 January: Museums closed throughout China.
Games
28 February: Game Developer Conference in San Francisco, scheduled for March 16-20, cancelled11 March: E3 in Los Angeles, scheduled for June 9-11, cancelled13 March: Insomnia66 gaming festival in Birmingham, scheduled for April 10-13, cancelled13 March: EGX Rezzed in London, scheduled for 26-28 March, postponed until summer
four years after War Games, Stephanie was revealed to have faked her death and brought back into the batfamily. In one scene, Batman explains to Tim, who reclaimed the Robin mantle after Stephanie’s death, that he hadn’t made her a memorial because he had suspected she was alive. Tim seems unsatisfied with that excuse – as were many fans.
Why we’ve not had more female Robins – or better served ones – is a symptom of a much wider problem. Of the 11 writers announced as contributing to DC’s anniversary issue for Robin, only two are women: Devin Grayson and Amy Wolfram. Between January and March last year, women accounted for 16% of the credits on comics released by DC; of writers, only 13% were women. The studio celebrated 80 years of Batman last year, but in that time not a single woman has been at the helm of Batman or Detective Comics. Aside from Grayson’s work on Nightwing and Gotham Knights, no female writer has ever written a Batman series. Given how many women are working on Batgirl, Catwoman
had the opposite effect. CGI Buck sits in an uncanny valley between dog-like human and human-like dog. He is visually compelling, but I felt no emotional draw to him as a character, as I have in the past with dogs on screen. (The Adventures of Milo and Otis is the very first movie I cried in.)
Watching the film, I was reminded of Martin Scorsese’s recent critique of the CGI-laden Marvel franchise. They are theme parks, he said, not movies. They provide “audio visual entertainment” with no friction, no mystery, no emotional resonance. This, he went on, signifies a larger trend in the movie industry, where films are optimized to distract, entertain and generate maximum revenue, leaving little room for movies that “confront the unexpected on the screen”, which, for Scorsese, is the function of cinema.
Since it first bounded on to the screen in the 19th century, the dog actor has been a medium for precisely this unexpected aesthetic experience. They perform unselfconsciously, with a heightened sense of immediacy. CGI Buck, a strange cyborg composite whose animal instincts are contrived by humans, fails to preserve this legacy. Indeed, he appears to represent precisely what Scorsese laments: the technological domestication of cinema.