'No way I would miss this' - Royal Albert Hall prepares to reopen at full capacity

Record ID: 1627761

  • Title: 'No way I would miss this' - Royal Albert Hall prepares to reopen at full capacity
  • Date: 19th July 2021
  • Summary: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (JULY 19, 2021) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF LONDON'S ROYAL ALBERT HALL SIGN WITH SAFETY MEASURES ON LONDON'S ROYAL ALBERT HALL CEO OF THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL, CRAIG HASSALL, WALKING DOWN THE STEPS OUTSIDE THE VENUE (SOUNDBITE) (English) CEO, ROYAL ALBERT HALL, CRAIG HASSALL, SAYING: ''Well, tonight, we open for the first time to full capacity since March the 13th last year, which was Bryan Ferry. So it's been the longest closure of the Royal Albert Hall since the Second World War. So as you can imagine, we're excited with some trepidation about opening tonight to full capacity.'' PEOPLE OUTSIDE VENUE EXTERIOR OF VENUE WORKER BEHIND SCREEN INSIDE FOYER VARIOUS OF ONE-WAY SIGNS INSIDE VENUE (SOUNDBITE) (English) CEO, ROYAL ALBERT HALL, CRAIG HASSALL, SAYING: ''So strictly speaking, tonight, we can open without any regulations at all, full capacity, no masks, no distancing, which is going to seem a bit odd. So we have put in place a code of conduct for audiences and also backstage for performers. So we're asking everyone wears masks in public places, that they just are aware of people's distance, not social distancing, but just be aware of people's personal space. And of course, we've undertaken a massive ventilation programme - about a million pounds are spent to make the air cleaner and fresher and all sorts, as well as cleaning regimes inside the hall itself. So all the public areas, all back of house are being cleaned regularly with hospital grade viruscide. So there's an awful lot being done beyond what the government says we should do to make sure the hall's a really safe place.'' SIGN FOR ROYAL ALBERT HALL VARIOUS OF SIGN WELCOMING PEOPLE BACK (SOUNDBITE) (English) CEO, ROYAL ALBERT HALL, CRAIG HASSALL, SAYING: ''Financially, COVID has been devastating not just for the Royal Albert Hall, but for the whole creative sector, for the whole world, it's been a terrible, terrible thing. So we're in about a 60 million pound hole. We've borrowed 20 million pounds from the government. We've had no government grants at all. And we never have. We generally just trade our way out of situations. This is the worst situation we've been in for an awfully long time. But I'm confident now that we're back on our feet and performing again, we can trade our way out of our deficit.'' AUDITORIUM IN ROYAL ALBERT HALL
  • Embargoed: 2nd August 2021 20:08
  • Keywords: 150th anniversary concert Royal Albert Hall concert coronavirus reopening at capacity ventilation project
  • Location: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM
  • City: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM
  • Country: United Kingdom
  • Topics: Arts/Culture/Entertainment,Europe,Music
  • Reuters ID: LVA001EMICAX9
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Prestigious London performance and events venue the Royal Albert Hall is set to open at full capacity on Monday (July 19) for the first time since March 2020, but said the pandemic has been financially devastating.
    From Monday the British government's main COVID-19 restrictions in England ended meaning concert venues and theatres no longer have social distancing rules to comply with and can sell all available seats.
    The Royal Albert Hall is an independent charity, making the majority of its money from ticket sales and donors. During the pandemic, CEO Craig Hassall said they lost 60 million GBP in income and took a 20 million GBP loan from the British government's Culture Recovery Fund.
    ''This is the worst situation we've been in for an awful long time. But I'm confident now that we're back on our feet and performing again, we can trade our way out of our deficits,' he said.
    Like many venues across the capital they have made changes to keep audiences safe, including a 900,000 GBP ventilation project and the introduction of a code of conduct for audiences and performers that includes wearing masks in public places.
    Nearly 300 performers are involved in Monday night's birthday concert ''A Circle of Sound'' celebrating the hall's 150th anniversary.
    ''I've locked myself away for two weeks because there is no way that I would ever miss this,'' the show's composer David Arnold told Reuters.
    The production, which also features star guests including actor Michael Sheen, musician Melaine C and sports star Nicola Adams sold about 80-85% of their tickets.
    The Royal Albert Hall was opened by Queen Victoria and named in memory of her husband, in March 1871, was forced to close its doors for the first time since World War Two due to the coronavirus pandemic.
    (Production: Sarah Mills, Lisa Keddie)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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