NEW VIC THEATRE ANNOUNCES ‘HOUSEWARMING’ SEASON TO REOPEN REFURBISHED AUDITORIUM THIS AUTUMN

15th September 2020

The New Vic Theatre announces an exciting autumn season that will reopen their newly refurbished auditorium, including a change to the previously announced Christmas show.

The New Vic’s Housewarming Season will celebrate the theatre’s reopening following a major refurbishment and invite audiences back to the theatre from this October for some innovative socially distanced productions. The season will include a new adaptation based on the story of Coppelia; Ghostlight – an evocative light and sound installation that will take audiences on a journey down memory lane; Hoard: Rediscovered will bring some of the highlights of the theatre’s 2015 Hoard Festival back to life and the theatre will welcome back David Graham Productions with two linked shows featuring comedy and music.

In a change to the theatre’s schedule, the previously announced Christmas production of Beauty and The Beast will be rescheduled to Christmas 2021. In its place, the theatre will stage an innovative socially distanced performance based on the story of Coppelia. Coppelia – A Mystery (Saturday 12 December 2020 to Saturday 9 January 2021) invites audiences into a world filled with love, mischief and mystery. Taking place in and around the theatre, audiences will be invited on a journey down wintry Victorian streets, into the mysterious toyshop of Doctor Coppelius, where there are curious secrets to be found…

Re-opening the newly refurbished auditorium in October will be Ghostlight, (Saturday 10 October to Saturday 31 October 2020) a light and sound installation that combines a collage of voices from favourite New Vic shows with a dynamic first look at the theatre’s newly refurbished auditorium. Audiences will walk through the auditorium to celebrate the ‘ghosts’ of shows past, and the thought of shows in the future, while also taking in the new surroundings of the theatre’s major refurbishment project, which has been carried out over the summer.

Following this, Hoard: Rediscovered (Saturday 7 November to Saturday 14 November 2020) will revisit and reimagine the theatre’s 2015 Staffordshire Hoard Festival, originally developed with the support of the National Theatre Studio during the New Vic’s time as an affiliate company. Hoard: Rediscovered will include a digital staging of New Vic Artistic Director Theresa Heskins’ documentary-drama Unearthed and a selection of mini plays from some of the country’s most talented writers.

Finally, David Graham Productions return to the New Vic to present two new live shows. Keep Calm and Carry On Eric (Monday 12 October to Saturday 24 October 2020) and Carry On at Christmas, Eric! (Monday 23 November to Saturday 5 December 2020) will both be packed with ’60s music, bringing cheer and a party spirit to the New Vic for socially-distanced audiences.

Theresa Heskins, Artistic Director of the New Vic Theatre said: “The New Vic hasn’t been closed over the summer: our education and outreach teams have been working hard to support our local communities during this challenging time.  It feels very special now to be welcoming those communities back into the extraordinary New Vic building.  Whether on stage, in the community, or online, we’ve embraced the opportunity to think differently about the way we make and present work; and whilst I’m disappointed that we won’t be able to bring the story of Beauty and The Beast to life on stage this year, the experience of Christmas at the New Vic will be just as magical. It’s been an unsettling year for everyone; with our Housewarming season, I’m hoping the New Vic can help spread a little joy this autumn.”

Tickets for the New Vic’s autumn Housewarming Season will be on sale from Tuesday 22 September at 12.00pm. Full performance schedules for shows in our autumn season will be available soon.

The New Vic Box Office team are already in touch with existing ticket holders for Beauty and The Beast, the David Graham Productions’ show and individual concerts that have been postponed.  Ticket holders who have not heard from the team yet will do very soon.