Stuck here waiting for the Roaring Twenties

The year without much of a nightlife

CBC Toronto @CBCToronto

It's been a year, almost to the day, that The Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto was packed with fans to see a popular Ukrainian singer-songwriter called Monatik. The venue’s last booking was on March 13, 2020 and since then has been sitting mostly empty.

bit.ly$45K rent and no fans: Toronto’s Phoenix Concert Theatre survives Covid but for how long? | CBC RadioLisa Zbitnew is the co-owner, operator and president of The Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto. Like other live performance venue owners across the country, she’s spent the year trying to keep the lights on in an empty building.

The wait for audiences being allowed to gather in nightclubs will continue this spring, as Canadian Music Week in Toronto is going exclusively virtual. But the Opera House venue has been further retooled as a studio for online influencers. And while Ontario added new supports for the music industry, the overall arts scene is feeling left behind.

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True tales from the third wave

680 NEWS Toronto @680NEWS

Outdoor haircuts? Dr. David Williams wouldn't commit to the idea but health officials in Toronto say they aren't ruling out allowing haircuts and other such services to resume outdoors.

680news.comToronto won’t rule out outdoor haircuts, but some salons say it would be difficult - 680 NEWSToronto and Peel Region’s top doctors confirmed Wednesday they’re in active discussions with the province about keeping the public health units in lockdownT

The uncertainty about where pandemic restrictions head next for Toronto coincides with the province expanding vaccine eligibility, but also varied views on renewed lockdowns. Ontario confirmed a third wave of COVID-19 amid MPP Roman Baber’s lawsuit over restrictions on outdoor gatherings, and a sex shop fighting the fines.

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“I told him he has to be very mindful.” Doug Ford explained his attitude toward Ontario PC MPP Sam Oosterhoff speaking at an online event whose organizer compared abortions to the Holocaust, which proceeded as originally planned. Meanwhile, the provincial government is getting more progressive about ditching fax machines.

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The antenna exports scorecard

American networks plugging schedule holes with Canadian series worked well for Transplant on NBC, if not so much for the infamous Nurses. The CW adding Burden of Truth didn’t stop CBC from cancelling it, and a similar deal ended along with Trickster. But despite lousy premiere ratings, Fox has placed its faith in a future for this handyman:

TheWrap @TheWrap

Why @FOXTV's content strategy boss doesn't want more #HolmesFamilyEffect - but will take more Mike Holmes (@Make_It_Right)

thewrap.comWhy Fox Content Boss Doesn’t Want More ‘Holmes Family Effect’“Holmes Family Effect” premieres Tuesday on Fox. Here’s why Fox EVP Dan Harrison wanted the show, and why he doesn’t want any more of it

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Malcolm Gladwell has a few questions for Condé Nast HR. The New Yorker’s most famous Canadian awoke to ask if Alexi McCammond parting ways with the company that hired her to run Teen Vogue means they don’t distinguish between adolescence and adulthood. Gladwell also thinks the situation symbolizes the state of racism in America.

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Finally, it’s Justice vs. Justin

Justin Bieber unveiling a pandemic album called Justice was preceded by French dance music duo Justice sending a cease-and-desist over rendering the lower-case “t” as a cross similar to their own logo. The songwriting credits include one for Martin Luther King Jr., while Toronto singer Daniel Caesar shares a spotlight on the single: