Six to reopen in West End with transfer to Nimax's Lyric Theatre

Six will transfer to the Lyric Theatre in November, becoming the first musical to reopen in a West End theatre since lockdown.

The show will move from the Arts Theatre to the Lyric, one of six West End venues owned by Nimax that have announced plans to reopen despite social distancing measures remaining in place.

The pop musical, inspired by the lives of Henry VIII’s six wives, will play an 11-week season at the Lyric – formerly home to Thriller Live – from November 14 to January 31.

Simultaneously, the touring cast of Six will resume shows from November 7 with a six-week Christmas season at the Lowry in Salford.

Producers Kenny Wax, Wendy and Andy Barnes and George Stiles said: "Across our two UK productions of Six we have the opportunity to give work to 100 or so actors, musicians, technicians, stage managers, production managers, costume makers, marketing, press, ticketing and office staff. We accept that with social distancing it is unlikely to be economically viable, but we hope to entertain many thousands of theatregoers who have been starved of live entertainment since March.

"We hope that opening Six will help build audience confidence and bring business back to the local economy. We also understand that restarting productions, particularly musicals, remains impossible for most producers for reasons of scale, finance and lack of cancellation insurance. We continue to look forward to the day when social distancing is removed and theatre can play to 100% capacity."

The show is set to be one of the first productions to return following the pandemic, and will be the first musical to reopen in a West End house since lockdown. Other shows in London have included a concert version of Jesus Christ Superstar at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre and Sleepless the Musical at the Troubadour Wembley Park.

Six, by Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss, will have nine shows each week at the Lyric, where capacity has been reduced to comply with social distancing. "Robust risk mitigation" will also be in place to boost health and safety, including a track and trace system, contactless ticketing, temperature testing and deep cleaning.

Six had been due to stage a series of outdoor drive-in performances earlier this summer, however these were pulled before they were due to begin, with producers blaming the threat of local lockdowns for hampering efforts to tour the show.

It is intended that Six will return to its original home of the Arts Theatre in March, with the planned opening of Bob Marley musical Get Up Stand Up taking place at the Lyric if social distancing has been lifted.

Nimax chief executive Nica Burns announced yesterday (September 13) that the company’s six West End theatres would soon be resuming performances, and said that despite running at a loss due to the effects of social distancing, reopening would help retain some of its workforce, create new jobs and begin to reinvigorate the West End.

The Apollo Theatre will be the first to reopen, on October 22, with performances of Adam Kay’s This is Going to Hurt, followed by Six at the Lyric.

A special programme of smaller shows will reopen the Nimax theatres, which also include the Duchess, the Garrick and the Vaudeville, before long runners Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, The Play That Goes Wrong, Magic Goes Wrong and Harry Potter and the Cursed Child return.