There’s good and bad news
We have this week announced we are putting our calendar of shows on hold until next Spring, as uncertainty around coronavirus continues.
Our production of the The Full Monty, which was postponed in April, will now take place at roughly the same time next year (April 13 – April 17). We had hoped to stage the show at Strode Theatre in September, but ongoing concerns about coronavirus restrictions and the continued closure of the theatre meant this was impossible. Tickets for the show will go on sale once the theatre reopens.
However, the good news about our musical is somewhat overshadowed by news about our pantomime. We have made the tough decision to cancel this year’s Cinderella at Strode Theatre. This was set to be our last panto at Strode after 10 years of entertaining audiences. But with months of preparation needed, auditions in late summer and three-months of rehearsals, ongoing fears about how coronavirus restrictions might affect the show led to its cancellation.
And it’s been a tough decision for us, after we agreed with Strode Theatre to make this our last panto after theatre bosses announced earlier this year it was looking at a new approach to attract audiences during its Christmas and New Year slot in future years.
Mary Parker, who was due to produce this year’s panto, said: “We are all hugely disappointed that we’ve had to make this decision, but it is for the right reasons. Not only are we still in a rather unsettling period of time, but there is also some nervousness among our team about when it will be safe for us to get back to normal.
“We had been making some great progress on this year’s panto, and plans were in full swing, but after weeks of monitoring how things are developing we took the difficult decision this week. We’d like to thank the thousands of families who have enjoyed our pantomimes over the past decade, and for their continued support for our Society.”
But we live on; its Full Monty production in Spring next year will be followed by an Autumn show taking place at the Meyer Theatre at Millfield School in Street. The Wizard of Oz will be staged there from October 26, in what is expected to the be the first in an annual run of Autumn shows for us at the theatre. We will return to Strode Theatre in Spring 2022 with Follies, directed by West End Choreographer Andrew Wright, before we head back to Millfield’s Meyer Theatre in October with Avenue Q.
Our chairman, Laura Vernoum, who is also producing The Full Monty, said: “While it is shame that we’re having to take a year off staging shows while we battle through coronavirus, we’re really excited to be bringing The Full Monty to Strode next year. Our boys always promised they’d strip on that stage, and strip they will!
"And with our future plans now in the diary for a series of fab shows, the future of our Society is looking bright, however I know this isn’t the case for everyone, so on behalf of our Society I am sending our support and love to our arts community at this really devastating time.”
Despite not staging shows, we are planning a series of activities and social events over the next 12 months to keep the public entertained. Our first is a walking treasure hunt around Street. Teams are invited to take part, and more details can be found on our upcoming events page.