London theatre faces cancellations due to high temperatures

The Orange Tree Theatre has cancelled its matinee performance due to expected high temperatures.

With the heat set to hit 39 degrees Celsius in the capital today, an outdoor performance of Shakespeare’s Love’s Labour’s Lost cannot safely go ahead.

The production is currently being staged in the gardens of St Thomas’s College on Richmond Hill with audiences on raked seating without shade. It is paired with a production of Much Ado About Nothing.

The matinee was also due to serve as a fundraising gala performance for the venue’s capital development project to transform both front-of-house and backstage areas.

Tom Littler, artistic director of the Orange Tree Theatre, commented: “When you’re doing an outdoor production, you always pray for sun and not for rain. But with today’s temperatures hitting 39C and the sun overhead, it would have been reckless for both actors and audience to carry on. The good news is that the evening performances are playing out in very pleasant warmth, and the temperature is due to drop again soon, so the rest of the run can carry on to 22 August as planned in lovely weather. But this summer has been a further wake-up call about the climate to come and the adaptations that will be needed.”

The repertory productions run until 22 August.

This is the first cancellation that WhatsOnStage has been made aware of, and we will continue to update this piece.