If you were planning to book a ticket to see a live play at Lieder Theatre, then you need to wait a bit longer.
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People were looking forward to see a great performance on stage after more restrictions were expected to be eased from next month allowing theatres to reopen.
However, keeping safety as their utmost priority, Lieder Theatre has decided not to reopen at this stage.
Theatre director Chrisjohn Hancock shared with The Goulburn Post that several members had expressed concerns regarding the safety and health risks.
According to the state government's guidelines, the physical distancing rule of one person per four square meters needs to be implemented at the venue.
"The stage does not have enough area to implement physical distancing and the actors will be in close proximity to each other. That's not a safe situation for our actors," Mr Hancock said.
While the theatre has a seating capacity of 140 people, the foyer is not big enough to accommodate them while ensuring the physical distancing rule.
"We don't want to break any rules and want to keep everyone safe. Until it's safe to reopen, we are going to hold off," Mr Hancock said.
He added that the amount of work involved in putting up a play for a small group of people was not viable.
Meanwhile, the theatre is working on several projects which will be presented through the online medium.
"Online platform is a great way to stay connected with the audiences. When the restrictions were enforced, we switched to the online medium to keep our members and Lieder family connected," Mr Hancock said.
The theatre is running online play readings and drama classes presently.
The Lieder Theatre is Australia's longest-running theatre company. It was first named the Liedertafel Society in 1891 and was run by a small committee in Goulburn.
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