The Hope Mill Theatre in Manchester has been forced to cancel its run of A Celebration of Musical Theatre this week after a cast member tested positive for Covid, meaning the entire cast and creative team now has to isolate for 10 days.

The concert, directed by Kirk Jameson, was to feature West End talent Gemma Sutton, Joel Harper-Jackson, Emma Kingston, Idriss Kargbo and Laura Harrison.

Marking the last week of Hope Fest, the theatre has put some new events in place including Joe McElderry Live in Concert, Jason Manford’s Comedy Club and An Evening of Burlesque.

William Whelton, executive director and producer, said: “This is truly devastating for our organisation…Every cancellation and forced closure has a major impact on our small organisation and has catastrophic consequences on our ability to continue to operate. But as always we will overcome and work hard to continue to bring back live arts and support freelancers. The creative team and cast of Celebration of Musicals have worked so hard over the past week to deliver a truly beautiful show and we thank them for their hard work and passion.”

To book for any of the remaining Hope Fest events, please click here.

What a shame, Besties.