“English National Opera has announced plans for what are thought to be the world’s first drive-in opera performances,” writes Mark Brown in Friday’s (4/24) Guardian (U.K.). “Planned for the first three weeks of September, the idea is to stage live performances in the grounds of Alexandra Palace, north London, with musicians and singers spaced out to conform with physical distancing guidelines. If successful, ENO hopes to roll out the ‘Drive & Live’ concept to other parts of the UK. Stuart Murphy, ENO’s chief executive … said the company had been thinking about the concept before the coronavirus outbreak, but had accelerated the plans…. The audience would be in 300 cars…. People on motorbikes and pedal cycles would also be allowed…. The first 12 performances will be a shortened 90-minute version of Puccini’s La Bohème and a one-hour family-friendly version of Mozart’s The Magic Flute. The first show will be free for NHS and frontline workers.… Some countries have allowed drive-in cinemas to remain open during the lockdown…. Essen and Cologne [theaters] both have sold out for every screening since Germany’s lockdown was declared. Makeshift drive-ins are also popping up around the country.”
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