It will be another rock ‘n’ roll Christmas thanks to Gordon Craig Theatre regulars That’ll Be The Day.
The show will go on this Christmas after the That’ll Be The Day gang recorded a festive special at the Stevenage theatre earlier this month for streaming later in the year.
That’ll Be The Day’s Rock & Roll Christmas Show has been running for over 30 years.
In these crazy times, while the show is unable to tour, the performers are offering fans the chance to see their new Christmas show in the comfort of your own home.
That’ll Be The Day will stream their Christmas spectacular online this festive season to their army of fans up and down the country, bringing rock ‘n’ roll nostalgia and some much-needed cheer.
The performance was filmed at the Gordon Craig on October 1 and October 2 ahead of its launch in December.
Paul Ruff, the theatre’s general manager, said: “I’m delighted that the Craig was chosen as the venue to film this production.
“That’ll Be The Day has been loved by Stevenage audiences for years and after six months of closure, this has provided some much-needed magic to stage once again.
“The performance ran smoothly, and was testament to the hard work, determination and talent of all concerned to put the Gordon Craig and the wider industry back into the spotlight.”
The small backstage and production teams, along with the cast of That’ll Be The Day, worked seamlessly together in order for this event to happen.
Measures were put in place to ensure a COVID-secure environment, with everyone’s safety the number one priority throughout.
The filming was a great success and reminiscent of days gone by, injecting life back into the Lytton Way venue’s auditorium and providing a much-needed creative outlet for all involved.
As many theatres and event organisations up and down the country start to look at new ways of delivering events to audiences, it is hoped that the Gordon Craig can use the tools and experiences learnt to collaborate with other productions to bring more of the same over the coming months while the theatre remains closed to the public.
The pre-recorded show will include the best pop Christmas classics and traditional Christmas songs along with hilarious comedy routines.
Trevor and some of the cast will also be live online during the stream – pre-show, during the interval and after-show – to answer your questions, chat and share a virtual sherry with fans.
That’ll Be The Day posted on its Instagram page: “We can’t begin to tell you how great it felt to get back together as a company after 7 long months of the show being off the road to record the Christmas Show at The Gordon Craig Theatre in Stevenage last week.
“Our heartfelt thanks go out to the staff at the venue and their amazing backstage crew along with our own dedicated crew and production team for pulling out all the stops with their hard work and preparation (and plenty of official paperwork) to allow this event to happen and has been seen as a landmark post-COVID event in the theatre industry.
“With all the current guidelines strictly adhered to it was heartwarming to get back to doing what we love – albeit without our loyal fans cheering us along but we knew that you were with us in spirit.
“We can’t wait for you to see the finished product either in DVD or streaming form.”
Audiences can watch That’ll Be The Day online from Thursday, December 3.
The Stevenage Gordon Craig stream will take place on Saturday, December 5 at 7pm.
The reason there are different streaming dates is that Trevor and the cast wanted to give as many of their fans as possible the chance to feel the Christmas Show really had come to their theatre this year by using the live interactive element.
If the streaming had happened on one night only to 30,000 fans, this would not have been possible.
So, streams are running from December 3 to December 13 with different theatres’ audiences having different dates.
You can pre-book for the Stevenage date via the link https://www.thatllbetheday.events/theatres/gordon-craig-theatre-stevenage
Tickets to stream the event are £12.99, and to stream and download £17.99.
