British Columbia officials plan to meet next week with arts organizations that felt excluded from talks about reopening plans during the pandemic.
Donna Spencer, Vancouver Artistic Producer at Firehall Arts Center, says she will meet with Melanie Mark, BC’s Minister for Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sports, and provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry, and / or her deputy, Dr. Brian Emerson.
The meeting is also open to members of a Spencer task force that includes more than 100 arts organizations across the province, including the BC Touring Council, the Arts Club Theater Company, and the Greater Vancouver Professional Theater Alliance.
Spencer and other art guides in parts of Canada expressed frustration at the lack of communication from officials who placed greater restrictions on cinemas and venues than other companies during the pandemic.
They say the restrictions in their sector are unfair, hypocritical and lack scientific evidence. And they have sent letters, protocol guidelines, and data showing their art venues are as safe, if not more secure, than some of the businesses that are allowed to run.
Next week’s meeting is “finally good news” after months of waiting for answers, says Spencer, who noted in a recent interview that it is “very frustrating for arts organizations that run venues to be left out of the conversation “.
Corinne Lea, CEO of the Rio Theater in Vancouver, said she tried everything she could to start a conversation with provincial officials.
In January, she sent a letter asking for exemption from the pandemic law, which keeps cinemas closed.
She also drafted a petition with around 10,000 signatures and scientific data proving that cinemas are a safe environment and that theaters should be treated the same as restaurants and bars.
But until the news of the next week’s meeting broke on Wednesday afternoon, there was no response.
“This year has been traumatic for the art scene. People have psychological problems, ”said Lea. “But every time one of us hears that we are all together, it is insulting. Because we are obviously not all together.
“In our industry, we feel like we’ve got someone down while everyone else carries on normally.”
Meanwhile, New York, Los Angeles and other cities around the world have started opening some movie theaters and art venues.
“The fact that they don’t want to entertain is really troubling and worrying,” said John Karastamatis, communications director for Toronto-based theater giant Mirvish Productions, which has been unable to stage a show during the entire Pandemic period.
“I don’t think anyone would want to host a performing arts event and endanger anyone’s health and safety. Nobody wants to do that. We’re just trying to find ways to still have the performing arts and not put anyone in danger. “
Henry was not made available for an interview with The Canadian Press. Instead, the British Columbia Department of Health sent a statement saying the provincial government has had discussions with members of the arts sector and will continue to listen to feedback from the community and stakeholders.
A statement from Ontario Secretary of State for Culture Lisa MacLeod noted the funding the government has allocated to support the arts over the past year, and the government looks forward to “bringing back all of our performing facilities when it is safe to do so so.”
In BC, cinemas and live performing arts venues were allowed to open in July under the COVID-19 protocols, but were closed again in November.
However, restaurants, bars, and other retail stores are allowed to operate under the COVID-19 protocols.
And on Monday, Henry said she was working with faith leaders to safely reopen personal services for Passover and Easter.
To get around the rules, Lea renamed the Rio Theater a sports bar almost two months ago, which has allowed the venue to be open to 125 people who are socially distant indoors, compared to the capacity of 50 people, when it was allowed to be open a cinema before November.
“Just because we have sports on our big screen doesn’t prevent COVID,” she said, pointing out the “obvious hypocrisy” of the situation. She also noted that the Rio had no coronavirus cases when it was open as a cinema and she doesn’t know of any theater that has had an outbreak.
In fact, her venue now feels even less safe for her staff, added Lea. That’s because provincial rules state that the venue must serve guests in their seats as a sports bar instead of selling tickets and snacks behind a glass barrier.
Lea would prefer to be open as a theater – even if it only has a 50-seat limit, which is just 12 percent of the Rio’s 420-seat capacity.
She also believes that speaking and cheering in a bar are more at risk of spreading the virus, compared to a movie theater where patrons are generally quiet.
“So I’m really offended when people say:” Cinemas have to be closed for science or safety, “said Lea.” You don’t have to be a scientist to see that a glass barrier is safer than personal contact. “
The British Columbia Department of Health said Rio has the ability to function as a sports bar “because catering services, including restaurants and other facilities that prepare and serve food, are considered essential services and require health and safety protocols.”
When cinemas were shown in Canada during the first and second waves, there were no reported cases of broadcasts or outbreaks related to the screenings, according to the Motion Theater Association of Canada, which represents exhibitors behind more than 3,000 movie screens across the country.
Nuria Bronfman, executive director of MTAC, said a handful of employees called and said they tested positive, but “it was caught outside of the work environment and never passed on to employees.”
The MTAC argues that movie theaters are safer than restaurants for many reasons, including the fact that visitors are looking ahead and not looking at each other or talking to other guests.
“Nobody can tell us why a movie theater is an unsafe environment, even after politicians have been in our rooms and said our rooms are the gold standard,” said Bronfman.
“It’s obviously not data-driven and it lowers public confidence.”
Karastamatis said Mirvish shared his COVID-19 guidelines with all levels of government in Toronto, where movie theaters and performing arts venues are also closed under current pandemic protocols, but “they are unwilling to have a conversation.”
“We have no idea if anyone even looked at them,” he said. “It is understandable that if there is a risk at gatherings, not all gatherings should be allowed. But why do you allow some gatherings and not others? “
In contrast, “Governments are ready to go to restaurants, they are ready to go to belief-based gatherings,” he said.
Film and television productions were also allowed to be shot in the province using COVID-19 protocols.
“What is the difference?” Karastamatis said. “These actors are performing together, technicians are all around them, they are filming them. And if the same thing were done with a theater company, that would not be allowed. “
Karastamatis said it seems that governments see the arts as “a bunch of bells and whistles that are allowed to a certain section of society just to keep them quiet, but that they really don’t matter, they don’t contribute to the economy, they do do not contribute to civil life. “
However, the arts create a great deal of employment and economic impact, particularly locally and in urban settings.
“The government will accept that a person’s sanity is important, but they don’t see what the arts do as something important or even spiritual, which I think,” Karastamatis said.
The collective experience of in-person art events is also critical to mental health at a time when people are stuck indoors and staring at screens, Lea said.
“I would argue that art is essential to our spirits,” she said. “All you have to do is imagine the last year with no art. And that just tells you how hard it would have been to get through. “
Get local stories you won’t find anywhere else straight to your inbox.
Login here
