- Pilots underway ahead of opening up of indoor
performance venues
Audiences adhering to social distancing will be able to
return to indoor theatres, music and performance venues
from 1 August, Prime Minister has
announced today.
The announcement marks a major step in getting the arts and
cultural sectors fully back up and running, and follows the
government’s announcement of £1.57 billion of funding for
the arts, culture and heritage sector earlier this month,
the biggest ever one off investment in these industries.
The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport is
working with the sector on pilots of performances with
socially distanced audiences that will inform final
guidance for venues in the run up to August 1. These
include the London Symphony Orchestra at St Luke’s, London
with a variety of further events in the coming weeks.
This announcement marks the move to stage 4 of the
government’s 5-stage roadmap for the return of professional
performing arts. Under the new regime, audiences,
performers and venues will be expected to maintain social
distancing at all times.
Guidance for the performing arts, published earlier this
month, also sets out further measures to support the safe
return of audiences, including:
- Reduced venue capacity and limited ticket sales to
ensure social distancing can be maintained
- Tickets will be purchased online and venues encouraged
to use e-tickets to reduce contact and help with track and
trace
- Venues should have clearly communicated social
distancing marking in place in areas where queues form and
adopt a limited entry approach
- Increased deep cleaning of auditoriums
- Performances should be scheduled to allow sufficient
time to undertake deep cleaning before the next audience
arrives
- Performers, conductors, musicians must observe social
distancing wherever possible
Culture Secretary said:
The UK’s performing arts sector is renowned across the
world and I am pleased that we are making real progress
in getting its doors reopened to the public with social
distancing. From August indoor theatres, music venues and
performance spaces will safely welcome audiences back
across the country.
This is a welcome step in the path to a return to normal
and, coupled with our £1.57 billion rescue package, will
help secure the future of this important sector.
Notes to editors:
Read the full guidance
and further details of the £1.57 billion rescue
package.
Singing and the playing of brass and wind instruments in
groups or in front of an audience is still currently
limited to professionals only.
This guidance will be for organisations in England.
Organisations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
should adhere to the advice of the devolved administrations
at all times.
This guidance will be updated as the evidence develops
around singing, wind and brass instruments, and the wider
public health context. The five stages of the phased return
to professional performing arts is as follows:
- Stage One - Rehearsal and training (no audiences and
adhering to social distancing guidelines)
- Stage Two - Performances for broadcast and recording
purposes (adhering to social distancing guidelines)
- Stage Three - Performances outdoors with an audience
plus pilots for indoor performances with a limited distance
audience from July 11. We will now also work with the
sector to get small pilots started as soon as possible and
will set out further details in due course
- Stage Four - Performances allowed indoors / outdoors
(but with a limited distanced audience indoors)
- Stage Five - Performances allowed indoors / outdoors
(with a fuller audience indoors)
