The Cleveland Orchestra has canceled all performances scheduled for this summer, due to COVID-19 health concerns for both audience members and musicians.
The 2020 Blossom Music Festival, plus a series of summer concerts at Severance Hall and the annual Star Spangled Spectacular downtown are the latest cancellations as the pandemic continues. Orchestra CEO Andre Gremillet said he’s “cautiously optimistic” about returning in the fall, but even then the audience will probably be limited.
"The concept of having 2,000 people in one space I think is very unlikely. So, we're looking at ways to hopefully perform for limited audiences," Gremillet said. "But also to livestream some of our performances so that we can reach our audience at home as well."
The orchestra is due to launch its fall season on September 17th. But that will not only depend on the state of the pandemic, but also the ability of some key artists to fly to Cleveland, including conductor Franz Welser Most, currently working out of his home office in Austria.
