AN ULVERSTON theatre will remain closed for hire and events for the remainder of 2020 due to the ongoing coronavirus crisis.

The Coronation Hall will remain closed to public performance and hire for the remainder of the year.

Director Beth Kennedy said: “The health and wellbeing of our audiences, our hirers and our staff and volunteers is our top priority.

"Whilst Covid-19 is still a public health risk, we feel we cannot in good conscience encourage large numbers of people to spend time together inside. It is also not financially viable to run the building and host a programme at the reduced capacity required for social distancing.”

The Coronation Hall closed its doors in March along with theatres and venues all over the country. This meant it lost most of its income overnight which comes mainly from room hires, ticket sales and bar.

The Coronation Hall team are, however, exploring possible ways to deliver a community based programme in the coming weeks and months.

Claire Williams, Head of Programming and Events said: “Arts and culture are fundamentally important to people, now more than ever. So we’re working on finding a way to do something for the community while the building remains closed to public performance and hire.”

Covid-19 has had a devastating impact on the arts and culture industry but the Coronation Hall team remains positive about the future.

Beth Kennedy said: “It’s been an enormously challenging time but this isn’t forever. The Coronation Hall is a much-loved and essential community asset and while we have to do things differently for a little while longer, we are very optimistic about the future of our venue. We welcome the news from the government about the rescue package for the arts and will be following that closely.”