Reuters Entertainment News Summary
Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.
At the movies: 'Ben Hur' and 'Wizard of Oz' as Japan reopens
The chariots of 1959 epic "Ben Hur" and the yellow brick road of 1939 fantasy "The Wizard of Oz" are back on the big screen in Japan as cinemas begin reopening from the coronavirus crisis with a slate heavy on Hollywood classics. James Dean starrer "East of Eden" (1955), crime drama "Bonnie and Clyde" (1969) and disaster film "The Towering Inferno" (1974) are among other titles playing, after Japanese chain Toho Cinemas reopened 10 of its 66 theatres in areas deemed relatively safe from the coronavirus.
South Korea's BTS boyband management apologises over bar visit
The manager of South Korea's popular boyband BTS has apologised on behalf of one of its members who went to a bar in April, contrary to government advice, just as the country is trying to contain a recent coronavirus outbreak around Seoul's club scene. Jungkook, the BTS' main vocalist, visited a restaurant and a bar in the Itaewon neighbourhood with friends on April 25, the boyband's management Big Hit Entertainment said on Monday.
Live music lifts spirits in Burkina Faso's coronavirus curfew
On stage in an empty auditorium, backed by starry lights, Patrick Kabre plucks his electric guitar and sings through a microphone to an audience many miles away. Kabre is contributing to COVID-Live, a series of sessions by musicians broadcast in real time on Facebook to people across Burkina Faso who have been under curfew for months.
Jazz singer Melody Gardot seeks digital orchestra to beat coronavirus blues
American jazz singer Melody Gardot is inviting musicians around the world to play along digitally on her new album to overcome the solitude and financial strain of coronavirus lockdowns. For the song "From Paris with Love" on her new album, Gardot is asking orchestra musicians worldwide - strings, woodwinds or harp - to contribute remotely by playing along to a score and a backing track.
Warsaw's open-air Chopin concerts move online due to coronavirus
Lovers of Frederic Chopin's music who usually flock to a central Warsaw park on Sundays for open-air concerts will have to go online this season to hear the weekly performances because of restrictions imposed to curb the spread of the coronavirus. The concerts are a key event in the Polish capital's summer cultural calendar, with performers serenading citizens in the elegant setting of the Royal Lazienki Park with concertos, nocturnes and other masterworks by the great romantic composer.
Police warn writer Gaiman over lockdown trip from New Zealand to Scotland
British writer Neil Gaiman has apologised for travelling from New Zealand to his home on the Scottish island of Skye in breach of coronavirus lockdown measures, saying "I did something stupid". Police spoke to Gaiman, author of "American Gods" and "Good Omens", about his actions after he revealed he had made the 11,000 mile trip to Britain, flying into London and then driving to his home on Skye at the start of the month.
Lockdown story time: Roald Dahl with Streep, Cumberbatch and more
Stuck at home with the kids? Meryl Streep, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Cate Blanchett may be able to help. Oscar-winning New Zealand filmmaker Taika Waititi has lined up some of his Hollywood friends by videolink from their living rooms for a coronavirus lockdown charity reading of Roald Dahl's classic "James and the Giant Peach".
U.S. guitar maker PRS resumes hand-building instruments - at a safe distance
Maryland's decision to reopen non-essential businesses came just in time for high-end guitar maker PRS Guitars, which kept 374 workers on its payroll during an eight-week shutdown that has gouged a deep hole in revenues, executives said. About 90 PRS employees came back to a very different workplace on Monday, their work stations spaced six feet apart, with one-way "traffic lanes" drawn on the factory floor and a 55-gallon drum of hand sanitizer on hand.
