“Edging towards 50 days in lockdown, we were given a small open window last week in the South African performing arts world. Our new Level 4 status allows productions for broadcast and live streaming, though on a restricted scale. Some arts facilities are allowed to open, others not, and thousands of artists remain out of work. The hundreds of primary and high school learners we work with are not yet back at school and will likely be only reachable via radio, WhatsApp, livestream and broadcast – like our audiences. Cape Town Opera’s (CTO) artistic and educational teams dug deep and, with African innovation, inspiration and training at the forefront, devised our first steps back with music and ways to help Cape Town communities in a new mid-COVID world. I’m very happy to share this news with you, our stalwart newsletter subscribers, and would enjoy hearing your thoughts, concerns, ideas and comments” CTO’s Managing Director, Elise Brunelle.