Public museums shut down, cancel performances due to coronavirus
Culture minister Park Yang-woo, right, visits a small theater in Daehangno, central Seoul, to check up disinfection measures against COVID-19, last Friday. Yonhap
By Kwon Mee-yoo
On Sunday Korea raised its alert for COVID-19 (nCoV-2019) to its highest level, forcing public museums to temporarily close down and major theaters to look for more strategic measures to prevent further spreading.
Museums and theaters have been hit hard by the outbreak as both are considered coronavirus hotbeds, bringing crowds of unspecified individuals together.
According to the Korean Performing Arts Box Office Information system (KOPIS), the weekly reservation counts showed a sharp decrease from 440,000 in the fourth week of January to 310,000 cases in the second week of February.
Major theaters are equipped with thermal cameras and hand sanitizers and require audiences to wear masks during the performance, but stronger measures are coming as the COVID-19 situation worsens.
The first to step up their practices were state-funded public facilities. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) said its affiliated museums will close to prevent further spreading of the novel coronavirus.
The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art closed down its Gwacheon and Cheongju branch Monday and its largest building Seoul branch Tuesday. MMCA Deoksugung was closed as of Feb. 10. The National Museum of Korea and 12 other national museums in each region will also be closed until further notice. The National Library of Korea announced its closure Monday.
Theaters which mainly rent spaces to other production companies are mediating with borrowers.
The Seoul Arts Center announced Monday that it will temporarily halt performances and exhibitions produced by the center.
The Sejong Center for the Performing Arts will continue its program of existing performances and take extra measures to prevent coronavirus.
Culture minister Park Yang-woo visited Daehangno, Seoul's small theater district, last Friday to check up on disinfection procedures at theaters.
The MCST said it will set up a special loan for artists and performers who suffer damage from the COVID-19 outbreak and provide them with disinfection equipment and thermal cameras to small theaters.
However, the National Theater Association of Korea (NTAK) held a press conference Monday and urged the government to better support thespians who are hurt by the nationwide coronavirus outbreaks.
The year 2020 was designated as the Year of Play, but the association asked organizers to reconsider the event and reallocate the budget to support actors and crews suffering from the COVID-19 outbreak.
"As the number of coronavirus cases spike across the nation, thespians complain of dramatic drop in the number of audiences and unexpected early closure of performances. We asked the MCST to compensate those who suffer from the consequences of COVID-19 spread," Oh Tae-geun, president of the NTAK, said at the press conference.
According to the association, some 40 troupes have suffered from cancellation or postponement as of Feb. 19.
Oh said the association anticipates further cancellation or postponement from Monday due to the country's recent raising of its alert level.
"We consider current situation to be more serious than the 2015 Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) outbreak, which also severely damaged the theater industry," Oh said.