The 3Olympia Theatre has had to make the tough decision to cancel their pantomime Christmas season as scheduled.
It comes as new COVID 19 restrictions were announced by the government last Friday in the interest of public safety, which have come into effect this week. Under these guidelines, audiences sizes must be reduced by 50% with no more than 1000 people in attendance in any one venue, with a closing time of 8 pm.
This means that the annual Christmas pantomime which was set to run from 22nd of December to the 9th of January has been canceled.
Announcing the news on Twitter they said:
“Unfortunately Olly, Polly and The Beanstalk panto will not be going ahead as planned in 3Olympia Theatre this season”
— 3Olympia Theatre (@3olympiatheatre) December 20, 2021
Speaking about their decision and the impact it has had on the business and their employees, an organiser shared:
“We would be unable to withstand the current audience restrictions in place but, more importantly, our concern is first and foremost the safety of our cast, crew, and audiences, therefore we feel it’s the right thing to do in these circumstances,”
“Our cast are devastated as we felt that this year’s panto could be the tonic that everyone needed. We will hold on to that magic and reveal all at next year’s Olympia panto”
Ticketholders will be contacted by Ticketmaster in the coming days when they will be given further details.