Birmingham's Hippodrome theatre to remain closed until Autumn

The venue have postponed a raft of big hitting shows and said they are working with other bodies to introduce social distancing. The ticket sales dependent theatre also has no other source of revenue

Birmingham’s Hippodrome theatre is to remain closed until the Autumn due to the impact of coronavirus.

Stage hits including Les Misérables, the Phantom of the Opera, Sister Act, Faulty Towers and Hairspray have all been postponed as bosses announced they will not be welcoming theatre goers until November 2 at the earliest.

The China-town based venue said they were working with the government and other bodies to implement social distancing measures.

The theatre, which has remained shuttered since March, is also out of pocket as their income was driven by ticket sales.

A statement on their website said: “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.

“We are working with the governing bodies and other UK venues to explore ways we can reopen safely, but whilst social distancing measures are still in place, we must remain closed for the foreseeable future.

“We know how disappointing it has been to not see your favourite shows and we are working hard with producers to secure rescheduled dates where possible.

“As we receive information for shows we will be contacting customers via email.”

The team are currently dealing with a high volume of bookings, so we kindly ask all ticket holders to avoid contacting Birmingham Hippodrome directly to minimise incoming enquiries.

They added: “We would therefore be hugely grateful if our affected customers would kindly consider an exchange, credit on account or a donation of some, or all, of the cost of your ticket to support Birmingham Hippodrome’s future.

“We understand that this is an extremely difficult time for many, and this option is not possible for everyone.”

Meanwhile, cinema chain Cineword, which has a branch on Broad Street, announced they will be reopening in July.

An update read: "Cineworld has put in place procedures to ensure a safe and enjoyable cinema experience for its employees and customers."