There is no live entertainment institution in New York better known than Saturday Night Live. It was at SNL that comedy was first reintroduced to television after the period of mourning following the September 11 attacks. This is where a particular sector of the population keeps abreast of current news and events. And, it has one of the fastest on-air responses to culture shifts or shifting political winds.

Tonight, December 17, 2021, Lorne Michaels called an audible, cut the annual Christmas show, and left live from New York City with just Tom Hanks, Tina Fey, Keenan Thompson, Michael Che and for the 5th^e both Paul Rudd as host. The house group has been reduced to two players. Tonight’s show, which was supposed to be the regular Christmas show, turned out to be a mix of pre-recorded videos, reruns of Christmas segments from the past, and a really sloppy read from Weekend Update in which Tina Fey, usually unfazed, stepped on him. perforated lines.

SNL’s return to extreme Covid protocols comes at the end of a week in New York City that saw Moulin Rouge audiences sent home from their seats in the theater minutes before curtain time due to a incidence of Covid in the show, while Hadestown, Hamilton, Tina, MJ The Musical, Ms Doubtfire and Jersey Boys also canceled shows, and both Radio City Rockettes and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater canceled the remaining shows in their series .

Covid infections are rising rapidly in New York City, with today a pandemic record of 21,027. The speed at which live events are canceled and postponed is astonishing and disappointing after the cautious manner in which events resumed after dark. overnight in March 2020 and are only slowly picking up in late 2021. No one yet understands what the Omicron variant means as a public health risk other than that it is surprisingly effective at spreading.

I was in New York at this time last week. This is what Times Square looked like on Saturday, December 11^e, just over a week ago.

There were swarms of people, few of them masked, and most of them having fun enjoying the holiday spirit. The city was full, there were decorations everywhere, and the world felt like it was back to what it was before the pandemic.

Saturday was also the day that Santa Con took place in New York City, with groups of partying Santa clad revelers scouring the island in search of love or bars.

Pedestrian traffic was so intense in the downtown area that cross traffic was blocked in and around Rockefeller Center between 5^e Avenue and Avenue of the Americas, creating a pedestrianized oasis in which thousands of people wandered between watching the sound and light show emanating from the facade of Saks 5^e avenue, took photos in front of the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree, or lined up to enter Radio City Music Hall to see the Rockette’s annual holiday show.

On Saturday I attended one of the last performances of the wonderful Lehman Brothers trilogy in a sold-out theater, before descending the island to the Katana Kitten, perhaps my favorite bar in Manhattan and currently elected. 10th best bar in the world. Katana Kitten is where Masa Urushido creates her magic which includes her Amaretto Sour, their favorite drink of the house. Today Katana Kitten announced that it will also remain closed for the foreseeable future due to the wave of Covid.

My trip to New York was quick, late Friday, then Tuesday. I was there to support Steve Earle’s 7^e Friends of John Henry annual benefit event for the Keswell School for Children with Autism. The three days I spent moving around the city were a wonderful step back in time. The restaurants were open, the stores were full, and the streets were filled with people happy to see the city in the holiday light.

I remember being a little surprised at how crowded people were everywhere. However, it seemed the world had adjusted to Covid and normalcy was on the rise. This is why the speed at which the pendulum reverses is so amazing. On Monday night, an audience of mostly XY seniors packed a hall at City Hall to watch Bruce Springsteen play rock and roll exuberantly. His third song was Glory Days, and as he started playing, the audience simply sang the first verse. Springsteen is one of the best front men in the business. He smiled, cheered on the audience, and stayed off his mic until the chorus.

Meanwhile, in just two more days, Omicron picked up speed and the shows began to cancel each other. I clearly remember in early March 2020 how obvious it was that Live Entertainment should shut down. What was less predictable was the leadership courage displayed by Michael Rapino, Dan Beckerman and others who simply decided to shut it all down. Within days, live events around the world were postponed or canceled and the scenes went off for over a year.

This time around, vaccines are available for those who are more interested in self-preservation and political posture – remember all of your favorite talking heads on Fox News have been vaccinated as you watch and then discuss the science against freedom. We’re all waiting to see if Omicron is as dangerous as the previous variants. And, as our neighbors in Canada are already reducing capacity to 50% in their arenas, we are tiptoeing to another decision on how to contain this spread. Adele may be in front of everyone, with her demand to be fully vaccinated and have a negative Covid test within 48 hours of entering her show.

Ultimately, maybe that’s how the live entertainment stays open as the variants continue to mutate and spread. You will only be able to go if you have followed the protocol. Your choice of whether or not to get vaccinated. One option gives you access to everything, while the other condemns you to watch life through your home TV screen.

I really hope the performing arts world doesn’t have to darken again. It would be really great if we could all do our part to help. George Santayana said that “those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it. »Springsteen singing Promised land this week said “erase the lies that leave you lost and heartbroken”. Now it’s up to you all. We are back at the fork in the road. What is our choice – to walk together on the path to defeat this pandemic or to divide by tribes and walk towards perpetual chaos?

Maybe the answer lies here: each group has a drummer to keep all the players in sync. Somehow, one way or another, we have to replace the pontifiers and prognosticators with someone who has common sense and the ability to keep a beat. Each performance reaches its climax when the audience dances together. It cannot happen when we are all confined at home. Maybe the political icon for 2022 should be David Bowie. He, better than anyone, understood the power of dance.

For me, the trip to New York was nostalgic in that for a sweet moment in time the world appeared as it once was. He did that until I got home and quickly tested positive for Covid.