I’d much prefer to watch a ballet than the news

Despite the pandemic, the appetite for live performance remains. Scaled-down versions of ‘The Nutcracker’ and 'Les Miserables’ are going ahead this season, writes Charlotte Cripps

Dancers of the English National Ballet perform The Nutcracker at the Coliseum (Getty Images)

It’s great news that some live performances are taking place despite the coronaviurs pandemic, but how different are they and do people want to go?

Surely nothing beats being encased in your own inflatable bubble? As audience and band members experienced this week at The Flaming Lips concert in Oklahoma City, as a way to control social distancing.

It looked fun, but for most of us when we talk about bubbles – we usually mean a support bubble.

That is exactly what the English National Ballet is using for dancers so they can return to the stage next month with a scaled-down version of their annual Nutcracker Christmas show, which has been cancelled in its original form.

Instead, the Nutcracker Delight is billed as a “whirlwind tour of the classic ballet’s most popular moments”.

Along with famous scenes with Clara and the Sugar Plum Fairy, rehearsing and performing in support bubbles means the pas de deux is still possible.

English National Ballet School’s artistic director, Tamara Rojo, said: “English National Ballet has performed a version of The Nutcracker every year since we were founded in 1950 and I’m so pleased that, despite the challenges faced, we have been able to find a way for the tradition to live on”.

Likewise, in the West End, Les Miserables: The Staged Concert is opening over the Christmas period with a reduced seating capacity of 750, plus Covid-19 safety measures and social distancing in place.

According to producer Cameron Mackintosh, who has just announced a two-week extension to the run, the “phenomenal speed” at which tickets have sold out in 24 hours “has astonished us all”.

“It is wonderful that the public are so enthusiastic to come back to see a great show safely in the West End,” he said.

Meanwhile, The Bridge Theatre’s season of monologues includes Alan Bennett’s Talking Heads until 31 October as well as David Hare’s Beat the Devil with Ralph Fiennes, which has had its run extended by two weeks until 7 November.

Next month two of the Talking Heads – Imelda Staunton in “A Lady of Letters” and Maxine Peake in “Miss Fozzard Finds Her Feet” – are due to visit Sheffield Theatres and Leeds Playhouse.

Nothing is clear-cut, of course, in a pandemic, with constantly evolving restrictions.

But for others, like The Royal Ballet who have just resumed live performances, it’s online only. Back On Stage sees the whole company reunite on their home stage to perform highlights from their repertory, with tickets at £16, until 8 November. 

At the Old Vic, Jack Thorne's adaptation of Charles Dickens’s Christmas Carol returns from 18 November following a successful run last Christmas – but this year, it’s live-streamed. 

It might not be perfect right now, but despite a pandemic, it shows the demand for shows is there. I’m happy about that. 

Yours

Charlotte Cripps

 Deputy culture editor