Simon Schama on Rembrandt's The Night Watch, can the performing arts survive coronavirus?

How serious is coronavirus for the survival for the performing arts long term? As a government inquiry begins this week, it’s expected that the performing arts that serve an audience in a confined space, such as theatre, music and dance, will take the longest to return to normal, and even then some of the damage may be irreversible. Caroline Norbury, chief executive of the Creative Industries Federation, Deborah Annetts, chief executive of the Incorporated Society of Musicians and Julian Bird, chief executive of UK Theatre and the Society of London Theatre, discuss the ramifications of the current crisis on the performing arts.

The Night Watch is arguably Rembrandt’s most famous painting. The imposing canvas from 1642, is housed in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam and has been undergoing a major restoration since July last year, but work is currently on hold because of the lockdown. The museum recently posted online a ‘hyper-resolution’ photograph of the masterpiece, allowing the viewer unprecedented access to the painting’s finest details. Historian Simon Schama discusses what the image reveals about the painting and the artist.

Presenter: John Wilson Producer: Hannah Robins