Excitement return for theater lovers as the show is back on.
After standing empty for months, indoor entertainment venues in England can now welcome back live audiences, though at 50% capacity to allow social distancing and with safety measures in place.
Describing itself as “the world’s longest-running play”, murder mystery “The Mousetrap”, is in its 69th year, and on Monday evening was showing its 28,200th performance.
Lockdown forced theatres to pull down their curtains in March 2020. A few briefly reopened during a temporary easing of lockdown late last year.
About a third of London theatres will reopen this week namely smaller productions with lesser costs. Major musicals, which cannot afford to run at 50% capacity, are awaiting the final phase of Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s roadmap out of lockdown – scheduled for June 21 – in order to reopen from the summer.
In New York, Broadway shows will return from mid-September.Â
In adapting to the new circumstances, “The Mousetrap” has two casts, ‘Marple’ and ‘Poirot – named after Christie’s famed characters – in case an actor should fall ill with COVID.
“The excitement is there,” actor Derek Griffiths said ahead of Monday’s opening. “The anxiousness is there and the hope that everything will go well.”
