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"Bailing Out the Titanic" - French Arts Struggle Amid Coronavirus

Reuters

   PARIS - Dancer and choreographer NicolasMaloufihas not worked since
   France went into lockdown in mid-March, and his daily yoga sessions in
   a borrowed Paris apartment are his only form of training.

   Although France will begin easing its unprecedented curbs on public
   life from Monday, with shops re-opening and some pupils returning to
   primary school, the doors to the country's cinemas, theaters and
   concert halls will remain closed.

   ForMaloufi, 49, who has collaborated with venues including
   thePhilharmoniede Paris and the Etoile du Nord theater, that means his
   productions are on hold. Nor is it easy to line up any more projects.

   "I'm waiting for responses from about 20 bookers who are not available.
   I don't dare chase them, it's almost indecent given how many things
   they have to handle," he told Reuters.

   Maloufiis among those in France's creative industry known as
   "intermittents" -- the dancers, singers, comedians and technicians who
   work from gig to gig and receive state stipends to help cover costs
   between jobs if they work at least 507 hours per year.

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