Sites adjust shortened seasons following provincial restrictions
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The announced closure of concert halls for three weeks by the province will mean that a few shortened seasons will not start as originally planned.
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When the City of Kingston’s Performing Arts Director Jayson Duggan announced the Grand Theater mini-season lineup in November, he was hopeful things were going in the right direction. The number of COVID-19 cases has appeared under control and the province has lowered capacity limits on indoor sites, so it has scheduled the shortened season of the Grand OnStage based on the hope of a full house.
A few weeks earlier, The Grand hosted a reduced capacity concert with Steven Page – which Duggan had hoped would facilitate the return of clients to the Regina Rosen Auditorium – which was a resounding success, and many clients did. notice how good it was to come back to watch music. in person again. Alan Doyle and Barra MacNeils’ subsequent concerts, organized by outside promoters, were sold out.
But, shortly after unveiling the shortened season, the Omicron variant emerged and drove the number of COVID-19 cases to record highs and led to grim projections, resulting in the provincial government shutting down. At the end of the three weeks, Duggan, like other presenters, is unsure whether it will be extended or whether capacity limits will be reintroduced.
The first concert of the shortened season of Grand OnStage, featuring acclaimed jazz guitarist Pat Metheny, is scheduled for January 27, just as the provincial closure expires. Duggan, as he has done several times since the start of the pandemic, is now busy trying to reschedule the first few weeks of concerts, including this one.
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“I think it’s important to realize that we just can’t flip a switch on the 27th and be good to go,†Duggan said.
Staff need to be programmed, of course, and there are concerns that ticket holders will be reluctant to go inside, he said.
“I think we’ve all learned throughout this pandemic that we have to be careful and, I think, wait and see what the province’s next orders are regarding the restrictions and how we can move forward safely,” said Duggan.
Duggan asks those who have already purchased tickets to be ready for now. None of the concerts have been canceled or postponed yet.
“We ask people to keep their tickets for now. More information will come. All ticket holders will be contacted directly, â€he said. “We just need a few days to sort out the first shows.”
He suspects the province will likely introduce a step-up in capacity when the amended Stage 2 restrictions end in three weeks.
While Metheny was only scheduled to perform in Toronto and Ottawa, Ontario, many of the other shows scheduled are part of larger tours in Southeastern Ontario. Duggan is therefore working with his counterparts in other cities to reschedule the shows. They plan to move until mid-February at this time.
“I think all of these (shows) are going to have to face some tough choices regarding rescheduling and does that mean later in the season or do we just postpone until next year to try and get even more distance between the current challenges that we ‘face? †Duggan asked.
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Like Duggan, Tricia Baldwin of the Isabel Bader Center for the Performing Arts is also planning to postpone shows until the same time, in mid-February, in its shortened season. She postponed Sadaf Amini’s concert on January 16 and postponed pianist Sheng Cai’s February 1 concert for three months until May 2.
Meanwhile, Isabel’s director considered moving the ‘This is Evidence’ human rights art exhibit, which was due to open on Valentine’s Day, to a virtual offering, but was told “It’s more important that people see it†in person. So, from Thursday afternoon, it has been rescheduled to run from April 25 to May 3 instead.
Unlike the Grand Theater, the Isabel season is based on a half-capacity audience, what Baldwin calls a “checkerboard configuration†for the seats. And Isabel plans to continue offering live broadcasts of her performances, as she did last year.
While Baldwin has rescheduled the February concerts, she will wait before going any further.
“I don’t want to do anything at the March concerts at this point because Les Violons du Roy is coming with Jeremy Dank (March 20) and that’s too good,” she said Thursday.
Baldwin said she deliberately planned most of the season to be in April and May after seeing what happened with COVID-19 cases around this time last year, right after the holidays. .
While waiting to see what will happen at the end of January, Baldwin has been busy planning a ‘wild’ fall season in the hopes of bringing customers and subscribers back safely and comfortably to the King Street venue in the city. ‘fall.
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Duggan, too, is working a year ahead in terms of a season’s lineup. Much of the fall lineup is already in place, he noted, leaving little room for rescheduled shows with what will likely be a busy fall at the Isabel, Leon’s Center and clubs. premises, without forgetting that the Grand is a “very active” room rental for animators.
That he now had to put everything on hold once again came as a surprise.
“The response to the (short) season of Grand OnStage has been very strong, with wonderful feedback from our subscribers on shows, content and sales,†said Duggan. “And as you can imagine, now it’s all on hold. And so just the effort to get to that point was monumental. And so here we are, once again, forced to come together and readjust to how we re-engage our community and our audience to return to theater once that provincial mandate is relaxed.