Bristol returns to Tier 3 on Boxing Day but the venue’s digital offer is still going strong
As the government announced yesterday that Bristol would be going back into tier 3 from Boxing Day, all performances of Living Spit’s joyful Beauty and the Beast at Bristol Old Vic will be postponed until regulations relax in 2021.
Westcountry comedy duo Living Spit have been able to perform six uplifting live performances of their Christmas caper in front of an audience at the venue to date, with their final live performance now taking place on Christmas Eve at 2.30pm.
However, a digital recording of the show is now available to watch from the comfort of your own sofa here. The box office will contact everyone booked for a live performance to arrange an exchange to the filmed version or a full refund.
In addition, Bristol Old Vic are continuing to provide a range of streamed and on-demand productions, available until 28 February 2021, including The Grinning Man, Messiah, A Christmas Carol, The Night that Autumn Turned To Winter, and Swallows and Amazons.
Also available to watch for free is Angels In Bristol, a truly Bristolian version of the nativity and other miracles – providing nine short stories involving schools and communities across Bristol, which is available free of charge. Each story is delivered daily from 20 -28 December, and will be available to watch until the New Year as a gift to the city.
Bristol Old Vic Artistic Director Tom Morris said: “These are very strange and very unpredictable times. We were joyfully surprised to be allowed to reopen last Saturday, and it feels doubly strange to have to close again on Boxing Day. We haven’t seen the detail of the imminent dangers now faced in Bristol but control of the virus is all of our priority and we are committed to playing our part in that. Our promise to entertain you over Christmas will therefore have to be entirely online from Boxing Day – and we very much hope you will be able to find something to lighten an afternoon or an evening over the holiday period.
”It also seems fitting to end the year by saluting the unquenchable energy and inventiveness of Living Spit, and all of the artists and theatre professionals whose work has been seen in the theatre or online this year. And with them to thank you, the most passionate and generous audience a theatre could wish for, who have been so supportive of all of us as we’ve fought to rebuild our programme throughout the Summer and Autumn. Thanks to your help, theatre will return stronger than ever, changed, challenged and inspired by the experiences we have all shared this year. We can’t wait to rediscover what that work will be, with you, in a happier and safer 2021.”
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