Following the news that theatres in Northern Ireland can reopen today from 6pm, Theatres Trust director Jon Morgan comments:
It is fantastic that theatres in Northern Ireland can open from today and will be looking forward to welcoming back audiences who will have missed the incomparable experience of live performances. This means that theatres are now permitted to open in all four nations.
While this is a very welcome step in the right direction, currently only theatres in England and, from 7 August, Wales can open at full capacity. With social distancing or capacity caps in place elsewhere this means there are still different rules in each of the nations. This is both confusing for audiences and an obstacle for touring productions. It is imperative that the rules align across all of the nations at the earliest opportunity. With the Edinburgh Festival Fringe starting on 6 August, it would be a huge boost if, as the First Minister announced last month, it was able to go ahead with full audiences from 9 August.