Today marks the centenary of the birth of Charles M. Schulz, the most influential comic strip artist of the second half of the 20th century. Some 100 cartoonists pay tribute today in their strips. Here's Garry Trudeau in “Doonesbury.” I have felt a profound connection to “Peanuts” since I was very small, when I began obsessively cutting the strip out of the newspaper every day and pasting them, chronologically, into notebooks. Here’s “The Wizard of Id.”

Last night, The Door McAllen Church in McAllen TX committed a blatant copyright violation by performing and live-streaming their own production of @HamiltonMusical, which is not licensed for any productions. They changed text and tacked on a sermon including anti-LGBTQ message. “Jesus gives me the strength to pull through when I needed him most he was right on time” is not part of @HamiltonMusical but The Door McAllen put those words in Eliza's mouth last night and they plan to do it again tonight. Tacked on sermon talks about sin. This is illegal.

I had a profoundly emotional response to #InTheHeights last night – in tears of grief while simultaneously experiencing great joy, coming out happy and emotionally spent. I keep thinking about why.

https://twitter.com/HESherman/status/1406430167447261186

The first was simply the act of being out and in audience. While not the first time, and not at a live performance, the movie approximated what I experience at the best of theatre. It was a release that has been pent up for 16 months.

The essential @AapacNyc report on who appears and whose stories are being told on NYC stages has been released. A must read for the theatre community. aapacnyc.org From @AapacNyc, who is telling the stories on NYC stages?

I'm pissed off this morning and I'll tell you why. It's because of headlines in the entertainment press saying that the opening weekend of IN THE HEIGHTS had disappointing sales of $11.4 million. The problem is that the metrics in use are no longer valid. Yes, articles note that the $11.4 million is box office sales, and that the film's availability on HBO Max can't be measured. But there's no question that subscribers to the service, with the option of watching for no additional cost at home stayed home.

I WON'T SHOUT AGAAIN, but consider everything that follows to be in an emphatic tone bordering on anger: Do you know how much the UK government provided in arts and culture grants today? £257 million. That's $331 million here. How much special funding for the live performing arts has the U.S. government provided in this time of crisis, considering that the population of the US is five times that of the UK? $75 million, less than 25% of UK support.

I had planned to follow yesterday's tweetstorm by exploring other aspects of the pandemic's effect on the arts. But first I should speak to some of the responses I've received. No shouting today. First, my heart goes out to everyone affected. I heard both from people who have lost jobs and those training to enter the field. My message also embraces those who teach and those whose livelihoods are contingent upon the arts functioning, even if they don't work in the arts themselves.

I think I need to put this as plainly as I can, and I apologize for shouting: PEOPLE WHO WORK IN THE LIVE PERFORMING ARTS AREN'T JUST 'NOT WORKING' – THEY ARE *PREVENTED* FROM ENGAGING IN THE WORK AND CAREERS FOR WHICH THEY WERE TRAINED. YES, THERE IS ONLINE CREATIVITY, BUT MUCH OF THAT IS VOLUNTEER, CREATIVE ARTISTS LITERALLY BURSTING TO SHARE THEIR WORK WITH YOU AS BEST THEY CAN, MOSTLY FOR FREE. UNTIL SUMMER 2021, THEY HAVE TO TRY TO GET WORK IN OTHER FIELDS TO PAY BILLS AND FEED THEIR FAMILIES.

The rumors of last night were absolutely accurate. Broadway is now matching what so many regional theatres decided a while ago. There will be little to no 2020-2021 theatre season. nytimes.com/2020/10/09/the… But let's remember: what's happening to live performance isn't just about Broadway and the Met Opera. The extended Broadway closure is representative of what is happening to live performance everywhere in the country. It grabs the attention, but doesn't show the national scope.

In my last words in connection with @laraspencer and @GMA, in case people find me here for the first time: I believe in the power, value, and joy of the arts. They teach discipline, empathy, teamwork — and can be fun for those creating work and those consuming work. (1/4) I have and always will speak on behalf of the arts whenever there’s an opportunity, whether on social media in response to negative views or in person by invitation. We all have multiple and varied interests. I won’t insult yours and hope you’ll respect mine. (2/4)