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Birmingham Hippodrome closure extended until November 2

The closure of Birmingham Hippodrome has been extended until November 2 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

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The cast of Book of Mormon at Birmingham Hippodrome

The theatre has said it will be deciding whether to cancel its Christmas pantomime season in the coming weeks.

A statement from the theatre says: "It is with much sadness that Birmingham Hippodrome will currently remain closed until Monday 2 November, 2020.

"The impact of Covid-19 has been devastating for the theatre and live entertainment industry, especially for charitable organisations like Birmingham Hippodrome who do not receive any regular revenue subsidy. Almost all of our income comes from sales of tickets for our productions, so we currently have no revenue stream. At this point, the safety and health of our staff and visitors is paramount, and we cannot see a financially viable and safe way to reopen theatres while social distancing measures are still in place.

"Our artistic director and CEO, Fiona Allan, is now part of the events and entertainment group of the Cultural Renewal Taskforce announced by culture secretary Oliver Dowden and we hope we can rapidly work towards a time frame for a safe reopening.

"Having an active culture and tourism sector is vital in ensuring that our local economy can bounce back from this global crisis. The Hippodrome, like so many theatres around the country, will need to make a decision on whether our Christmas pantomime season is viable over the next four to six weeks, which is why it is so vital to be working towards a solution now.

"To survive this crisis, the theatre and live entertainment industry will need substantial relief from government as the loss of Christmas seasons will see many theatres permanently close.

"All ticket holders affected by the extended closure period will be contacted directly by the Birmingham Hippodrome sales team and we are working hard with producers to secure rescheduled dates where possible.

"For ways to support the Hippodrome during this time, we encourage our audiences to kindly consider an exchange, credit on account or a donation of some, or all, of the cost of the ticket to help secure Birmingham Hippodrome’s future. We wish to thank our audiences for their patience and on-going support at this time."

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