Windy City - Edinburgh Fringe's first dedicated circus venue has been forced to delay the opening of its larger auditorium due to bad weather. Underbelly's Circus Hub on the Meadows has announced that shows running in the 750-seat Lafayette tent will no longer open on Friday 7 August after strong winds prevented organisers from putting the cover over the tent's structure. Shows will now begin on Monday 10 August. Six productions will be affected by the delays in the Lafayette, while performances in Circus Hub's smaller tent, Beauty, will go ahead as scheduled from 7 August.
Green Guide - A guide has been published that aims to help theatres and arts buildings become more environmentally friendly, including ways to manage water and energy more efficiently. Green arts charity Julie's Bicycle has put together the guide in collaboration with Arts Council England to highlight measures organisations can take to reduce their environmental impact and save money. A number of methods are listed in the guide, including the use of different technologies for generating energy and ways to maximise water conservation.
Writing in the guide, Julie's Bicycle director Alison Tickell said arts organisations should "act now" to become more environmentally sustainable, adding that companies are faced with "unprecedented ecological crises, and a growing realisation that we are living beyond limits which our planet can support". The guide - Investing in Environmentally Sustainable Buildings: A Guide for the Arts - is aimed at companies who are applying for ACE funding in order to undertake capital projects.
Jukebox Jury - Rocky Horror Show writer Richard O'Brien has criticised jukebox musicals for being too "easy", warning that the musical as a genre may be "coming to the end of its journey". O'Brien, who wrote the book, music and lyrics for the 1973 show, said the evolution of the theatre and the growth of musicals based on pre-existing songs could spell the end of the genre in its current form. He told The Stage: "I dislike jukebox musicals. I think it is an easy journey. It's easier than writing songs, isn't it? I don't know whether the musical is coming to the end of its journey. There are areas of theatre that come into our lives and then are not around anymore - whether the musical has a much longer life, I am not sure."
O'Brien was speaking as it was announced that his musical will return to the West End in September, where he will play the Narrator for the first time in the UK for more than 20 years. The Rocky Horror Show will have an 11-performance run at the Playhouse Theatre from 11-19 September. This is ahead of a previously announced national tour, which begins in December and stars Diana Vickers and Paul Cattermole.
(Jim Evans)
