Virtual panto is a possibility for Hurst Players

Chairman Annette Squire says it’s very early days in any kind of planning: “We are still looking at what it might be and how we might do it, but a virtual panto is one of the things we are talking about for this year.”

It’s all about trying to stay positive in difficult times.

The company is based at the Players Theatre in Hurstpierpoint and they have certainly been keeping busy.

“We have definitely been trying to keep up awareness of the theatre. We did a big painting project which gave us all something to do. We put out a request for members to help out, and they all had to do different bits so that we didn’t step on each other’s toes.”

The result is “we have got a stonkingly-good theatre at the moment. We just need the chance to be able to put something on there. But we have been using the time to do some repairs.

“But the good thing is that we have got such a lovely venue that we have had three people using it for filming performances that will be put out virtually, which means that we are going out to different people. The venue is available for hire for virtual performances. We have got full theatrical lighting, and we have got a beautiful stage. It’s not huge. It is a lovely intimate size… very easy to use for filming.”

Anyone interested in hiring should get in touch via [email protected]

As for their own performances, the virtual panto is under discussion: “We just need to work out if we can. We can’t have a live audience in there. Due to the spacing we would have to have, we would only be able to get a maximum of 12 people in there. Usually it would be just over 80, but you have got to be that far apart, and having an aisle down the middle, seats one side of the aisle and the other side of the aisle are too close, so you have to go further in.”

The result is a maximum socially-distanced audience which wouldn’t make for much of an atmosphere – and which certainly wouldn’t be economically viable.

Theatres are expecting to find out in November whether or not they can proceed without a social-distancing in their audiences, but theatres generally are saying that’s far too late for panto: “It usually takes ten to 12 weeks to get a performance ready. We have about eight weeks’ rehearsal and a couple of weeks before for casting and planning and any problems that might arise, so you couldn’t possibly do it with that amount of time.”

But the company’s members are coping with the frustrations: “A lot of them are turning up and helping with jobs like the painting and the taping which was very exciting.”

The taping – of the outside of the building – was part of a national campaign to highlight the plight of our closed theatres.

“I think everyone understands the situation. We just have to hope to be able to start again next year, and you have just got to stay positive. We are trying to make sure that everybody still feels part of it. We are currently in the throes of trying to organise a virtual AGM.

“So we do feel quite positive. Because we have got our own building – while other groups haven’t – we have got something to focus on, and that’s great. The one snagette is that it runs at a cost, and that’s why we are keen to do the hiring. And that’s why we did the painting ourselves. We had been looking at getting it done professionally, but with no money coming in, we just thought that lots of us have been using to doing set-building and painting, and it worked out well.”

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