Disney during COVID-19: The tourist and the actor’s nightmare

In this essay, we argue that the experience of being at Disney theme parks in COVID times was a waking version of what is sometimes called “The Actor’s Nightmare.” Due to safety regulations, theme parks either dropped live entertainment that structures the day as a show with a clear beginning and end (e.g. park-opening rope drop performances, and the fireworks), attempted to include references to COVID in live entertainment (like in the Frozen Ever After singalong, which added some COVID jokes), or to ignore it (like the Festival of the Lion King). In any case, due to these measures the narrative story of a theme park visit crumbles and the often-cited difference between a “theme park” and an “amusement park” disintegrates: the dissolution of structure provokes anxiety and unease in guests, especially those with previous park experience; the silencing of audiences that had previously been scripted to participate similarly creates a form of narrative anxiety, as both park and tourist no longer knew what story they were telling, or how best to tell it. Disney’s dramaturgical choices in COVID times reveal the extent to which the narrative structure of a theme park visit, the participation of the theme park visitors, and the distinction between “theme park” and “amusement park” rely on live entertainment

Review: The Journal of Dramaturgy, volume 25, issue 1

Contents include: Editors\u27 Note: Dramaturgical Snapshots of the Americas; Breaks in the Common Good: Dramaturging MayDay within the Heart of the Beast; I Fight With My Blood // Battle With My Tongue: A Dramaturgy of Survival in the Southwest; More Makes More: Indigenous Theatre in Canada; The Impact of Involvement: Peoplmovr\u27s Creative Director; Three Confessions of a Dramaturg: Staging Marguerite Duran\u27s India Song; Thebes in Utah: Translating in Ali Salim\u27s Egyptian The Comedy of Oedipushttps://soundideas.pugetsound.edu/lmdareview/1053/thumbnail.jp

Bone tissue engineering by using a combination of polymer/Bioglass composites with human adipose-derived stem cells.

Translational research in bone tissue engineering is essential for “bench to bedside” patient benefit. However, the ideal combination of stem cells and biomaterial scaffolds for bone repair/regeneration is still unclear. The aim of this study is to investigate the osteogenic capacity of a combination of poly(DL-lactic acid) (PDLLA) porous foams containing 5 wt% and 40 wt% of Bioglass particles with human adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) in vitro and in vivo. Live/dead fluorescent markers, confocal microscopy and scanning electron microscopy showed that PDLLA/Bioglass porous scaffolds supported ADSC attachment, growth and osteogenic differentiation, as confirmed by enhanced alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity. Higher Bioglass content of the PDLLA foams increased ALP activity compared with the PDLLA only group. Extracellular matrix deposition after 8 weeks in the in vitro cultures was evident by Alcian blue/Sirius red staining. In vivo bone formation was assessed by using scaffold/ADSC constructs in diffusion chambers transplanted intraperitoneally into nude mice and recovered after 8 weeks. Histological and immunohistochemical assays indicated significant new bone formation in the 40 wt% and 5 wt% Bioglass constructs compared with the PDLLA only group. Thus, the combination of a well-developed biodegradable bioactive porous PDLLA/Bioglass composite scaffold with a high-potential stem cell source (human ADSCs) could be a promising approach for bone regeneration in a clinical setting