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Legendary composer Andrew Lloyd Webber closed his new musical a day before it opened in London’s West End – and he blames the UK government for its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
Andrew Lloyd Webber cancels the opening of “Cinderella”
July 19 – nicknamed ‘Freedom Day’ because it marked the day England lifted COVID-19 lockdown restrictions – Lloyd Webber announced he would not be opening his new ‘Cinderella’ production, which was scheduled to open July 20 in London.
The composer’s announcement came after an actor tested positive for COVID-19 over the weekend. In one declaration, Lloyd Webber said production has “used a rigorous testing system” for all cast and crew from the start, and after a few days of additional testing the rest of the staff have still been tested. negative for COVID-19.
- “Despite this, the impossible conditions created by the blunt instrument of the government’s isolation orientation mean that we cannot continue,” Lloyd Webber said in a statement on Twitter Monday. “We have been forced to make a devastating decision that will affect the lives and livelihoods of hundreds of people and disappoint the thousands of people who have booked to see the show.
- “Cinderella was ready to go” He continued. “My sadness for our cast and crew, our loyal audience and the industry I fight for is impossible to express. Freedom Day has become a closed day.
“Cinderella” would have been Lloyd Webber’s first new show in London’s West End in five years, Variety reported.
Andrew Lloyd Webber criticizes the British government
Lloyd Webber told The Telegraph in a recent interview that he is still determined to get “Cinderella” up and running in London.
- “There are voices that say ‘Come on, forget about Britain, do it on Broadway,’” Lloyd Webber said, according to Deadline. “I’m not going to do this, but who knows when we open here?” 2084? ”
- “What I fail to understand is that this government does not seem to understand that the theater is the lifeblood of our cities. He continued. “Every other country in the world seems to have done it – America has understood it perfectly. But this government doesn’t seem to understand. It’s not even just our actors – it’s all the people. who depend on us. It’s everyone from taxi drivers and restaurants to dry cleaners. It’s a long list, and they don’t seem to understand that the theater is a huge source of income for the country.
British actors’ union Equity recently called for a change in self-isolation rules within the entertainment industry, saying the current guidelines were creating a “devastating and costly impact”, according to the Belfast Telegraph.
But England has seen an increase in COVID-19 cases of late, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson also in isolation as he has recently been in contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19, NBC News reported.
Lloyd Webber remains adamant, however, that the theater industry has shown it to be safe and secure and has everything it needs to do so.
- “We can’t go on like this,” he said The telegraph. “The theater is now on its knees; there is no way forward. … just let us continue our work.
The 72-year-old composer behind “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” and “The Phantom of the Opera” has been pushing for the return of theater since the early days of the pandemic. In August 2020, he participated in a COVID-19 vaccine trial, saying he would “do anything to get theaters large and small to reopen and actors and musicians to get back to work,” reported the Deseret News.
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