7 Amazing Livestreams to Watch Right Now

Thanks to the new coronavirus, which causes the disease COVID-19, people around the world are spending a lot more time confined to their homes. To help ease the struggles of social distancing, institutions and individuals have started offering special livestreamed events and performances. Here are seven livestreams to watch while you're cooped up in quarantine.

1. The Cincinnati Zoo's Home Safari

Fiona the Hippo’s home is on a mission to bring the zoo to you. The institution will host a Home Safari Facebook Live every day at 3 p.m. EST. Of course, the zoo’s first broadcast starred Fiona herself.

2. The Cleveland Metroparks Zoo's Virtual Classroom

Need to entertain—and educate—your homebound, animal-loving kids? On Monday through Friday, the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo is hosting a virtual classroom on Facebook Live. The zoo promises “new animals and adventures” each weekday.

3. Josh Gad's Story Time

Here’s another one for the children. The actor who voiced Olaf in Disney’s Frozen is reading bedtime stories to kids (and any interested kids-at-heart) via Twitter. You can use the hashtag #GadBookClub to follow along.

4. The Metropolitan Opera's Performances

Like many other New York City cultural giants, the Metropolitan Opera is closed to the public until at least the end of March. But that doesn’t mean the curtain has entirely come down. While it remains shuttered, the Met will stream a performance from its Live in HD archives at 7:30 p.m. EST every evening.

5. The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra's Concerts

Though the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra is closed until April 13, it’s still bringing its music to the public. Rather than crowd the orchestra’s performance hall, listeners can head to YouTube for live performances.

6. The Budapest Festival Orchestra's Musical Soirées

The Budapest Festival Orchestra is hosting special “quarantine soirées” to broadcast its music to people stuck at home. You can tune into the livestreams for free, or make a donation to support the organization.

7. Massimo Bottura's Cooking Show

Massimo Bottura, a Michelin-starred celebrity chef, has launched a live cooking show—which he insists isn’t a traditional cooking show—on Instagram’s IGTV. On Kitchen Quarantine, he prepares a full dinner using ingredients he has in his fridge, and also does a follow-up Q&A session. He isn’t so much teaching his audience how to cook; rather, it’s his way of using food to connect with people—even if they're hunkered down in their own kitchens.