Some shows due to take place at The Forum in Barrow have been moved to alternative locations, after asbestos was found in the venue.
It is estimated The Forum’s auditorium will have to be closed for six months while specialist work is carried out to remove the asbestos backstage.
Following discussions with promoters, The Coro in Ulverston has been able to host eight events so far and a further five events scheduled to take place in the theatre at the Forum will be performed elsewhere in the building, including in the studio and ante room.
All but one of the switched events are on the original dates and original tickets are still valid.
Events moving to The Coro include this weekend’s sold-out appearance of Pop Idol winner Will Young, Barrow Operatic Dramatic Society’s production of Everybody’s Talking about Jamie, the South Lakes Rock School’s show in October and the visit of Status Quo frontman Francis Rossi in November.
Ticket holders for the affected shows have been informed about the new arrangements and the Forum team is continuing to work with promoters to look for solutions to other shows and events in the programme, including relocating or re-scheduling.
Councillor Virginia Taylor, Westmorland and Furness Council’s cabinet member for sustainable communities and localities, said: “The team at the Forum have been working incredibly hard to contact promoters and event organisers to discuss options and to work with them to find a way through this difficult situation.
“We have been contacting ticket holders as soon as we have information confirmed about their event and answering lots of the inevitable questions and queries that have arisen since the announcement about the theatre space closure.
“We’d like to thank people for their understanding and patience while we work through this process and, if you have a ticket for a show and haven’t heard from us yet, please bear with us – we are still in discussions with a number of promoters and we are optimistic that we can find alternative ways for events to continue and we’ll only cancel as a very last resort.’’
Following a recent water leak at The Forum, investigations in the backstage area of the venue confirmed the presence of asbestos in the part of the roof affected by the leak.
No traces of asbestos were found in air quality tests and there is no evidence to suggest that any staff, members of the public, performers or stage crew has been exposed to risk at any time, the authority said.
Westmorland and Furness Council, which owns and manages The Forum, immediately closed the theatre space and backstage area as a precaution while further surveys were carried out by specialist contractors.
It was announced on August 22 that those surveys and assessments concluded it would not be possible to carry out the necessary work to remove the asbestos without closing the whole theatre space and backstage area for a period of up to six months.
The rest of The Forum, including the café and studio/meeting rooms, is unaffected and will remain open and available to the public and for events.
Moved performances
- The Lady Boys of Bangkok (Took place on August 29)
- Pop Princesses (Took place on August 31)
- Emilio Santori as Elvis (Took place on September 1)
- Will Young – September 7
- Barrow Operatic Dramatic Society’s Everybody’s talking about Jamie – September 3-7
- Disco Classical – October 12
- South Lakes Rock School – October 27
- Francis Rossi – November 5
Performances moved from The Forum theatre into the venue’s alternative spaces:
- Barrowfull Sinfonia – stories of Barrow – September 18 (now in Ante Room, theatre style seating)
- An Evening with Still Game’s Mark and Jane – September 21 (now in Studio)
- Live Nation Comedy Store – October 4 (now in Rydal and Grasmere rooms)
- Silver Sunday event – October 6 (now in foyer, bar and Ante Room)
- Charming Productions Christmas Show – December 13-30
