Originally published in print September 2020.

 

August 2020. Live performances. Enclosed (or open) spaces. 

 

Following government restrictions, the theatre groups planning to perform live again have had to be cancelled or postponed once more. In the midst of all things happening now, theatre is embracing virtual realms as I pointed out in the previous article. But the question is, when will live events in communal physical spaces happen again, in safe conditions, in accordance with government guidelines? 

 

Some theatres such as The Gate announced that the theatre house will not be able to reopen until 2021; there is no news on The Gaiety Theatre since July and, for the moment, all theatre performances have been either cancelled or postponed, except for Panto which also might not happen according to Covid predictions for the near future. Bord Gáis Theatre gave its last update in April (…); The Smock Alley will be back with some limited capacity live performances on Sept. 3; The Abbey Theatre has been immersed with virtual audiences since Dear Ireland and will host live performances with limited audience members—there’s even Theatre for One which is literally “a mobile state-of-the-art performance space for one actor and one audience member at a time.” Now, that is a performer-audience relationship right there. Project Arts Centre published a very detailed guideline on opening spaces and hours, hygiene, and really clarified the conditions to attend the space there will also be some live events from Sept. 6. 

 

Aside from this news, live theatre performances will also be back in pubs, Glass Mask Theatre will open in the premises of the Bestseller and the International Bar will also host live theatre performances, amongst others. 

 

Hopefully the guidelines will remain somewhat stable. 

 

Ps: don’t forget your mask.