Six to reopen at the Lyric in May

The Queens will return to their West End thrones when hit show Six reopens at the Lyric Theatre in Shaftesbury Avenue on 21 May 2021.

With social distancing at indoor venues due to remain in place until 21 June at the earliest the theatre will initially operate at the same 50% capacity as it did in December last year before the current national lockdown.

Originally due to temporarily move from its Arts Theatre home to the Lyric from 14 November 2020 until 31 January 2021, the Lyric Theatre run of the rock-flavoured show is now due to run from 21 May until 22 August. The revised dates are based on the ‘roadmap’ out of lockdown and are subject to change if the Government is forced to delay any re-opening dates.

If indoor venues are allowed to reopen on 17 May Six will return to perform nine shows a week at the Lyric with Covid-19 secure guidelines in place. Customers already booked into cancelled dates will be contacted by Nimax Theatres from 5 March with offers of new dates.

Face coverings will be required, hand cleansers will be widely available and track and trace will be in operation. Other safety measures will include contactless tickets, temperature testing and the deep cleaning of the theatre. The producers also hope to announce the return of the touring production of the rock-flavoured show soon.

Written by university friends Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss, the musical which was nominated in 2017 for our inaugural Best Musical Award, puts the spotlight on the wives of Henry VIII as they form a 21st century girl band. The show’s first Arts Theatre run followed a successful return visit to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and a well-received four-date London run in January 2018.

Presented by Kenny Wax and Global Musicals, the show which features tracks including ‘Ex Wives’, ‘Haus of Holbein’ and ‘Don’t Lose Ur Head’, is directed by co-creator Moss and Jamie Armitage. The creative team also includes choreographer Carrie-Anne Ingrouille and musical supervisor Joe Beighton, with set design by Emma Bailey, costume design by Gabriella Slade, lighting design by Tim Deiling, sound design by Paul Gatehouse and orchestrations by Tom Curran.

When the pandemic struck Six was playing to sold out houses in the West End, and across the UK and Australia. The show’s opening night in New York on 11 March 2020 was cancelled just three hours before curtain-up when the New York Governor Andrew Cuomo shut down all Broadway theatres.

Angela Thomas