New West End comedy The Comeback now has to close
Credit: Marc Brenner
The Government’s decision to move London and most of the rest of the country first into Tier 3, and as of December 31, Tier 4, is devastating for the capital’s theatres. Around 30 venues had reopened, with producers taking a major financial risk – only to be forced to close again, with ticket-holders losing out on their Christmas cheer. There is no official word on when venues can reopen.
If you had booked, or were thinking of booking, for a show, here is the latest status on London’s productions, plus some of the online entertainment that is going ahead. In some form, at least, the show will go on.
West End theatres to close as London enters Tier 3
Tuesday, 15 December 2020
West End venues told to close again
UK - West End theatres must once again close their doors as London moves into the highest tier of COVID-19 restrictions from midnight tonight (Tuesday 15/12). Many shows – including
Pantoland at the Palladium, Six and
Les Miserables: The Staged Concert – had only just opened and were following strict COVID-safe measures. The Society of London Theatre (SOLT) said the move would cause “catastrophic financial difficulties for venues, producers and thousands of workers.”
Andrew Lloyd Webber issued a statement saying: “I feel devastated for all those in theatre who have tried so hard to provide entertainment for the Christmas season. Theatres have worked tirelessly to make themselves as COVID-safe as possible. It does seem arbitrary and unfair that people can jostle uncontrolled in crowded shops yet orderly socially-distanced theatre-going is banned. Ho
‘Bah humbug’: Theatre producer Cameron Mackintosh hits out at London Tier 3 move
PA
14 December 2020, 5:55 pm
Sir Cameron Mackintosh has said the Government’s decision to put London into Tier 3 of coronavirus restrictions is “devastating” and “smacks of panic”.
The theatre producer said the “volte-face” by the Government damages theatre and the wider economy.
Under the new restrictions, which also apply to parts of Essex and Hertfordshire, entertainment venues including theatres, concert halls, art galleries, cinemas and museums must close from Wednesday.
In a statement, Sir Cameron added that the move “makes all our considerable and costly efforts to ensure the safety of both performers and audiences alike, widely praised by the health authorities, seem worthless”.
The theatre producer said the “volte-face” by the Government damages theatre and the wider economy.
Under the new restrictions, which also apply to parts of Essex and Hertfordshire, entertainment venues including theatres, concert halls, art galleries, cinemas and museums must close from Wednesday.
In a statement, Sir Cameron added that the move “makes all our considerable and costly efforts to ensure the safety of both performers and audiences alike, widely praised by the health authorities, seem worthless”.
The Sondheim Theatre, which usually shows the Les Miserables musical (Victoria Jones/PA)
He said it breaks “any sense of trust between us as an industry and the Government departments we’ve been trying to build a rapport with”.
Fellow producer Sonia Friedman, whose hit shows include Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, said the move “both could and should have been avoided”.
She said: This latest closure under Tier 3 underlines – unequivocally – the urgent need for a government-backed insurance scheme, as already provided to film and television, for meaningful compensation to mitigate impending losses incurred by productions forced to close, and for targeted support for freelance workers unable to take advantage of the furlough scheme. This feels like a final straw: proof that this government does not understand theatre and the existential crisis it is facing. Its short-sightedness is starting to look like serial mismanagement.”