After a period of enforced closure, the world premiere of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cinderella will be on 25 August 2021. With music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, written by Academy Award winning Emerald Fennell (Best Original Screenplay Oscar in April 2021) and with lyrics from David Zippel, the brand new musical will resume performances at the Gillian […]
Tag Archives | coronavirus
Andrew Lloyd Webber’s anger as Covid rules stop Cinderella’s West End opening night
Andrew Lloyd Webber has hit out at the Government’s isolation rules after he was forced to make the “heart-breaking decision not to open my Cinderella” after a single cast member tested positive for Covid. In a statement announcing the cancellation of performances at the Gillian Lynne Theatre including the planned fundraising Freedom Day and Gala […]
Lloyd Webber rejects Government pilot event scheme slot for Cinderella
Andrew Lloyd Webber has claimed the Government is treating the theatre industry and its audience as an ‘after-thought’ in its post-Covid reopening plans. The composer and impresario made his claim in a statement confirming he had turned down the chance to open his new musical Cinderella as one of the Events Research Programme’s pilot events. […]
Theatre pilot events hope as Stage 4 of unlocking is paused
The industry was offered a small glimmer of hope among the gloom of yesterday’s announcement of a delay to step four of the ‘roadmap’ when prime minister Boris Johnson suggested selected theatre productions could be included in a new batch of pilot events as part of the Events Research Programme. The prime minister’s comments on […]
PM gives go-ahead for 17 May reopening plans
Theatres and entertainment venues across England are preparing for the first stage in the reopening process following Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s confirmation that the next stage of the ‘roadmap’ out of lockdown will proceed as planned with the return of live socially distanced indoor performances from 17 May 2021. While noting that the third stage […]
Beauty And The Beast’s Leicester Curve premiere run cancelled and Dublin dates delayed
The Leicester Curve debut of the re-imagined and re-designed production of the Olivier Award-winning stage musical version of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast has been shelved due to the ongoing Coronavirus restrictions. Originally planned to open in Leicester in late May before heading for Dublin’s Bord Gáis Energy Theatre in July, the UK and Ireland […]
PM’s roadmap raises hopes for full theatre comeback this summer
The performing arts industry has given a cautious welcome to the Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s hopes for the return of live socially distanced indoor performances from 17 May 2021 followed by a return to full capacity operations from 21 June. Announced as part of the four-stage ‘roadmap’ for the phased lifting of lockdown restrictions, the […]
Doing, rather than waiting – An interview with acclaimed producer Katy Lipson (Part Two)
KATY LIPSON is the director of Aria Entertainment, a company which has been at the forefront of reimagining how theatre can operate given our current world of lockdowns and social distancing. Her Park Theatre production of Rags (originally at Manchester’s Hope Mill Theatre) and Southwark Playhouse production of The Last Five Years have been nominated for six Off-West End Awards […]
Chimp Management offers free day of expert mentoring and support for performers
Covid-19 and its public health response has had a devastating impact on the performing arts, from those on stage or screen to the numerous behind the scenes workers and organisations involved in every production. Over the past seven months, those employed in the industry have experienced huge uncertainty and loss and there is still a […]
Pandemic fears set to bring the curtain down on Theatreland again
After a few weeks in which theatres had started to reopen or announce imminent plans to kickstart new seasons the curtain looks set to come down on live entertainment once again as the Covid crisis continues. In the wake of a day of frenzied media speculation following a leaked report, the Government was forced to […]
Tony Awards to go online
The exact date and format are still uncertain, but it’s been decided that this year’s long-delayed Tony Awards will be presented online in the fall. Originally scheduled for 7 June 2020 with its customary presentation on network television, The Tonys, like everything in the realm of Broadway, were knocked askew by the Coronavirus pandemic. Government […]
Sky Arts to become free-to-air channel
After keeping theatre-loving Sky customers entertained during lockdown the broadcaster has unveiled plans to make its popular Sky Arts channel available to everyone from September. The change to a free-to-air channel forms part of Sky Arts’ ambitious plans to support and champion the arts as the industry attempts to re-build following the Covid crisis. Announcing […]
Special YouTube MAD Drag Night in aid of Covid-19 hardship fund
With this year’s MAD Drag Night shelved due to the Coronavirus-crisis, a number of former celebrity hosts have been enlisted for a special fundraising online show this weekend. Celebrating the glitz and glamour of one of the highlights of the Make A Difference Trust’s fundraising calendar, the Best of A MAD Drag Night will stream […]
Sleepless team to trial daily Covid testing
The producers of Sleepless, A Musical Romance will trial daily on-site Covid-19 test when the socially distanced indoor performances begin at the Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre next month. All cast members, musicians, crew and theatre staff will be tested during rehearsals with the results available within 30 minutes through the ID app Yoti as part […]
Graeae launches Beyond scheme to give a voice to disabled artists after Covid
Graeae, the UK’s leading disabled-led theatre company, has launched a major new initiative aiming to shape the role that disabled artists will play as UK theatre tries to rebuild following the Covid-crisis. Championed by Graeae patrons Harriet Walter and Mat Fraser, BEYOND aims to integrate disabled artists into the creative structures of theatres and to create […]
Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society reveals digital alternative to live event
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society has unveiled details of its alternative digital plans including a Crowdfunder partnership to help struggling creatives and venues fill the void left by the cancelled event. With no imminent signs of the Scottish devolved government following England’s tentative steps back to live performances, any hope of salvaging some outdoor content […]
Six drive-in shows cancelled due to local Covid outbreaks
The eagerly-anticipated drive-in performances of hit musical Six has been shelved amid fears of more localised lockdowns due to Covid-19. Just days after the Government used the show as an example of the type of live entertainment performance which could take place following the relaxation of some of the lockdown rules, Live Nation Entertainment has […]
Broadway luminary Nick Cordero dies of Covid complications
Nick Cordero, whose talent and macho charm added unexpected lustre to a series of Broadway musicals, died on 5 June 2020 of complications from Covid-19. He was 41 years old. His valiant and prolonged battle with the virus was chronicled on social media by his wife Amanda Kloots. Cordero was hospitalised for three months in […]
Theatre Support Fund raises £250,000 for charities
The team behind the Theatre Support Fund + has raised a quarter of a million pounds in just eight weeks thanks largely to the popularity of its The Show Must Go On T-shirts. Launched by friends and theatre industry workers Chris Marcus and Damien Staunton to raise funds for those hardest hit by the Covid-closedown, […]
Waitress stars to reunite for live-stream concert
With the successful West End run of Waitress cut short by the Covid-closedown, stars Lucie Jones and David Hunter are re-uniting for a special online concert next month. Presented by Lambert Jackson Productions, the two-hour concert will be streamed live from London’s Phoenix Arts Club 23 August 2020 from 5pm until 7pm BST. Lucie Jones […]
Theatre Support Fund launches The Show Must Go On face masks
The team behind the newly launched Theatre Support Fund has added a face mask to the merchandise available to raise funds for those in the industry hardest hit by the current crisis. Backed by the producers of 16 of the biggest musicals in the West End, the new mask boasts the same design as the […]
New designer group unites with theatres for ‘Missing Live Theatre’ ribbon campaign
Newly launched theatre creatives’ group #scenechange is joining forces with theatres across the UK and Ireland in a new campaign to focus attention on the industry’s continuing Covid-closedown as other parts of the entertainment and hospitality industries start to reopen. The #MissingLiveTheatre initiative will wrap theatre buildings with pink barrier tape reading ‘Missing Live Theatre’ […]
Stiles and Drewe Best New Song Prize
Stiles and Drewe Best New Song Prize 2020 – a virtual concert streamed online via YouTube. While the annual Sondheim Student Performer of the Year contest fell victim to Covid-19, the Stiles and Drewe Best New Song Prize which has run alongside it since 2008 was happily saved with the bonus of top musical theatre […]
Theatre industry welcomes Government’s £1.57 billion support package
Arts venues, organisations and high-profile industry figures have welcomed the Government’s announcement of a £1.57 billion rescue package for the arts, culture and heritage industries in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis. Commenting on the package which includes emergency loans and investments in infrastructure, Andrew Lloyd Webber said: “This news is truly welcome at a […]
Broadway stays shuttered until the end of 2020
The Broadway League announced on 29 June 2020 that the Great White Way will stay dark until the end of the year. This extends the closure that went into effect on 12 March, caused by the mounting Coronavirus pandemic. This hardly means, though, that Broadway will be ablaze again come the New Year. Rather it […]
Call for timescale following unveiling of Culture Secretary’s five-point plan
Industry professionals are calling on the Government to urgently confirm a timeline for the latter stages of the ‘road map’ to the reopening of theatres. While welcoming last week’s announcement by Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden of the basic five-stage route to restarting and rebuilding the industry, many have expressed disappointment about the lack of detail […]
Five Questions With: Nadim Naaman
Following the extraordinary events that have taken place at home and across the world in the last three months, we decided it was about time we revived our Five Questions With… series. The aim is to invite theatre people to have their say, starting off with the question, ‘How the hell are you?’ Our first […]
Clive Rowe launches fundraiser for Hackney Empire
Olivier Award-winning actor Clive Rowe has launched a crowdfunding campaign to help the Hackney Empire survive the devastating impact the Covid-19 crisis has had on its finances. A patron of the Grade II listed theatre and the star of over 14 of the venue’s prestigious pantomimes, Rowe hopes to raise over £50,000 through the campaign […]
Sleepless, A Musical Romance to open with social distancing in summer 2020
SLEEPLESS, A Musical Romance, based on the original screenplay Sleepless in Seattle, will premiere at the Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre, London on 1 September 2020, with previews from 25 August. The limited season will run until 27 September 2020. Performances will begin pending Government guidance. Audiences will be socially distanced and the producers and venue […]
Jermyn Street Theatre will remain closed until 2021
As the industry continues to face uncertainty about when and how theatres and venues will be able to re-open, London’s Jermyn Street Theatre has announced that it will remain closed until 2021. In a statement announcing the decision, the artistic director of the venue, Tom Littler, urges the general public to get involved in the […]
Theatres Trust joins calls for government support to save our local theatres
The Theatres Trust has warned that over half of the nation’s charity-run small theatres could close permanently within the next three months without government help. In response to the grim prediction, the national public advisory body for theatres set up to ensure everyone can access live performance where they live, is increasing its own support […]
Top designers launch new online support platform
A group of leading theatre designers have united to support fellow theatre creatives and ensure their voices are heard as the industry looks to ways to re-shape and re-build for life on the other side of the Covid-closedown. Aimed at providing a platform for all theatre set and costume designers, #scenechange offers a place for […]
Public join campaign for Government help for the arts
Members of the public have added their voices to the increasingly desperate pleas from the performing arts industries for Government help to survive and rebuild as the country tries to emerge from the Covid-19 crisis. The recently formed, volunteer-led Public Campaign for the Arts is showcasing a series of short videos featuring members of the […]
Over 3,000 view the first In The Wings episode
Three thousand, four hundred people tuned in to view the first episode in the In The Wings series of shows featuring the first live performances in a theatre with a live band since the Covid-closedown. Filmed from 3-6 June 2020 in strict accordance with social distancing rules, In The Wings, the four-part series of interviews […]
Acting For Others’ Covid-19 fund receives over £600,000
Over £600,000 has been raised through the lockdown fundraising efforts of the industry to help fellow professionals through the Covid-19 fund set up by leading theatrical charity Acting for Others. Paying tribute to the fundraising efforts of over 120 extraordinary organisations and initiatives, the umbrella group for 14 industry charities will distribute £290,000 next week […]
Richard Hadfield’s lockdown songs lead to plans for charity fundraising tour
Former Collabro singer Richard Hadfield has been entertaining home-bound fans during lockdown with the release of his ‘Song A Day Keeps Corona Away’ videos every day on Instagram and YouTube. After recovering from his own brush with the deadly virus, the singer has posted nearly 80 daily videos and attracted over 200,000 views with favourite […]
Flute Theatre creates online autism-friendly performances of Pericles
Flute Theatre will run a series online interactive performances of Shakespeare’s Pericles aimed at home-bound viewers with autism and their families from 22 June until 18 July. Originally due to be performed in UK theatres before the Covid-closedown, the production has been re-worked to allow the company to connect via Zoom to individual households. Announcing […]
Live theatre performances feature in new online series In The Wings
Olivier award-winning composer Richard Thomas will feature alongside West End stars for the first live performances in a theatre with a live band since the Covid-closedown. Filmed from 3-6 June 2020 in strict accordance with social distancing rules, In The Wings is a four-part series of interviews and live entertainment focusing on composers, writers and […]
Theatre Support Fund+ raises £125,000 for charities so far
Since the launch four weeks ago the Theatre Support Fund+ has reached its first milestone by raising £125,000 for charity. Organisers have received more than 7,500 orders for ‘The Show Must Go On’ t-shirt and related merchandise with packages shipped to 42 countries across the globe. The orders are being packed daily by a team […]
Gary Williams launches crowdfunding appeal for special lockdown album
Rat Pack star Gary Williams is following up his popular Kitchen Cabaret-lockdown shows by launching a crowdfunding appeal to pay for a new album of classic songs. Launching on Kickstarter on 28 May 2020, the singer who has been entertaining home-bound fans during lockdown with a daily performance of songs on request and interviews (‘Covid […]
The new UK and Ireland tour of The Phantom of the Opera is cancelled
Cameron Mackintosh and The Really Useful Group have announced that their new UK and Ireland tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera, which had only played its opening date prior to a 14-month tour, will not re-open due to the shutdown of British theatre by the Government because of Covid-19. The producers’ […]
Get involved in the development of new British musical Cautionary Tale
The creators of a new British musical which was due to be workshopped when the Covid-19 pandemic struck have come up with an inventive way to keep developing their project by getting the stay-at-home public involved. People across the country are being invited to get involved (virtually) as the writers of Cautionary Tale, Rebecca Atkinson-Lord […]
New Theatre Support Fund creates fundraising T-shirt
The producers of 16 of the biggest musicals in the West End have given their blessing to a new T-shirt aimed at raising funds for those in the industry hardest hit by the current crisis. Featuring a design that uses the distinctive branding of some of the world’s most famous shows, the T-shirts are the […]
Cameron Mackintosh warns theatre closedown could last until 2021
Cameron Mackintosh has voiced fears from theatre operators on both sides of the Atlantic that theatres will remain dark until early next year unless social distancing measures are lifted. Speaking to Michael Ball on BBC Radio 2, the leading producer and theatre owner: “For major producers both sides of the Atlantic, the truth is until […]
Park Theatre launches Park Life fund
London’s Park Theatre has launched a new fund aimed at securing the future of the venue while theatres remain closed during the COVID-19 crisis. Announced by artistic director Jez Bond, the setting up of the Park Life fund follows Bond’s own fundraising efforts which raised £300,000 from key donors in 48 hours. The money raised […]
Fund for freelance artists pairs donors with creatives in need of support
Bryony Kimmings and Brian Lobel (A Pacifist’s Guide to the War on Cancer) are the driving forces behind an emergency financial lifeline for creative artists whose projects were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Launched last month #GigAid raised and gave over £30,000 of support to artists with an average assistance of £300. Aimed at […]
Orange Tree Theatre’s Judi Dench In Conversation is made available online as fundraiser
A special 90-minute in-conversation with Dame Judi Dench and broadcaster Gyles Brandreth will be made available online from 3pm on 26 April 2020 to raise funds for the award-winning Orange Tree Theatre. Filmed live at the popular Richmond venue, and packed full of stories tracing Dench’s glittering career, the video-on-demand film will cost £4.99, with […]
Les Misérables – The Staged Concert digital download will raise money for arts charities and the NHS
Cameron Mackintosh has announced the planned debut of the hugely successful Les Misérables – The Staged Concert on digital download in the UK and Australia, which will also raise much needed funds for performers, musicians and the NHS. For every digital download, available from Monday 20 April 2020 RRP £9.99, The Mackintosh Foundation will separately […]
Sleepless team supports NHS heroes on the frontline
The producers of Sleepless, A Musical Romance and the show’s costume designer have joined the nationwide efforts to support the NHS workers on the frontline in the battle against COVID-19. Costume designer Sue Simmerling, the owner of design company Carry On Costumes, was initially contacted by fellow designer Dulcie Scott who had started a crowdfunding […]
Songwriter and musician Adam Schlesinger dies at the age of 52
Adam Schlesinger, the songwriter and musician whose award-winning career spanned Broadway, rock, film and television, died on 1 April 2020 of coronavirus complications in Poughkeepsie, New York. He was 52 years old. With an acclaimed reputation as a songwriter and performer with the rock bands Fountains of Wayne and Ivy, Schlesinger and frequent collaborator David […]
