Birmingham Hippodrome has postponed its Christmas 2020 shows and says it is “saddened” that it will not be staging live theatre productions in its main auditorium until 1 February 2021 at the earliest.
The Hippodrome says it has spoken at length with both Qdos Entertainment and Birmingham Royal Ballet, exploring various scenarios for 2020’s pantomime Goldilocks and the Three Bears and annual performances of The Nutcracker. However, “it is still not financially viable to host full-scale productions on our main stage while social distancing remains in place.”
In a statement, the Hippodrome, a charity, said all its income came from ticket sales, “so we currently have no revenue stream”.
The theatre has confirmed that Jason Donovan and Matt Slack will still join the cast of Goldilocks and the Three Bears when it is staged at Christmas 2021.