The NCPA, which opened in 2007 and was designed by the French architect Paul Andreu, had celebrated its 12th anniversary in December. More than 9,600 performances and events have been staged at the venue since 2007, more than 1,000 of those last year.

However, the NPCA is showing ballerina-like nimble-footedness in ensuring that those who draw pleasure from its activities are not cut adrift. Within a week of the cancellations announcement it had begun offering free online concerts and shows, a way of entertaining its patrons and millions of others beginning to suffer from one of the coronavirus' side-effects: the boredom of being quarantined at home.

On Jan 30 a two-hour performance of Alexandrov Ensemble, who performed at the NCPA on Jan 4,2018, was screened on the center's online classical music channel. By Feb 4 the online screening had received more than 25,000 views. On Feb 3 the center's production of Giuseppe Verdi's opera Aida was screened on the channel and was viewed nearly 20,000 times. In addition to large stage productions, the online channel also screened recitals, concerts of symphony orchestras and choirs free of charge.