Box Office Coronavirus (Covid-19) information page
Update: Thursday 23 April 2020, 17:00
Changes made: Wednesday 11 November 2020, 13:00
To look after our audiences, we’ve set our Box Office staff up to work from home, to process over 6000+ orders for cancelled or rescheduled shows. It’s been a challenge to put in place, but we’re slowly working through. It isn’t something we can automate for every customer, our reduced Box Office team of three are contacting around 500 bookers a week to complete transactions. For up to date information on show status please visit our Information and advice about Coronavirus (COVID-19) page.
We hope to have arranged access to be able to facilitate all outstanding refunds by the end of May, and we’ll be in touch to let you know when we plan to call. In the meantime, please take the time to read what you can do to help:
- Enable your phone to accept calls from withheld numbers.
- Answer the phone when you see a call from a withheld number.
- Check emails regularly, including your spam folders.
- We try and discourage people from emailing us regarding updates. I know it’s difficult, but the honest fact is, if we didn’t spend so much time replying to emails requesting updates, we’d get through this a lot faster. However, if you do wish to email us for an update, please, email from the address in which you placed your order, or include details of you order in your email. Emails from addresses not linked to orders with no order information contain them are the biggest cause in delaying us at the moment.
- We’d also like to discourage people from emailing in with suggestions or instructions on how to process refunds. We know what we’re doing, and if there was a quicker, safe and legal way to get this done, we’d already be doing it. Having to stop what we’re doing to justify our progress only increases delays.
- Finally, if you are emailing for an update, we ask you consider our situation in the words you use, and remember there is a person on the other end of the email correspondence living through this crisis like you are. There are three of us working from home, which brings its own challenges, attending to almost 6,000 customers who are effected by cancelled or rescheduled performances this season. This is going to take some time.
How we are working
We’re working on a show-by-show basis – this does not mean you will be contacted before the date of your scheduled performance. The majority of people have been very patient with us and it’s hugely appreciated.
Donating your ticket cost
Thank you to everyone who has shown patience and kindness, and a huge thank you to those of you who have donated to us. As a registered charity we rely on ticket sales and this generosity helps keep us going. If you would like to donate the cost of your ticket to us, you can contact [email protected] with your name, email you booked with & order number stating whether you would like to ‘Donate the cost of your ticket to the theatres’. We can process that for you without having to call – but we’ll be in touch when we’re a little less hectic to say thank you.
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Cancelled shows
If you haven’t done so already please email [email protected] with the:
- Name of the booker
- Name & date of the show or event you were meant to be attending (also include seat numbers if you have them)
- Email address you booked with
- Order number
and then state whether you would like to follow one of three options:
1. Donate the cost of your ticket to the theatres
2. A credit to your account to be used for future performances
3. A refund
We may have to call you to process this, but it may take a little longer than what would normally be expected, and could mean some orders take up to and over ten weeks to be processed.
If you would like a phone call to discuss your options, we’d be delighted to speak to you. Please include the best number to call you on in your email
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Rescheduled shows
When a show has a new confirmed schedule we’ll be in touch with all bookers about this and we will be able to discuss your options if the new date is not appropriate. You can check the ticket transfer for shows here.
If your new date is fine, please email [email protected] accepting the transfer of your current tickets to the same seats for the new performance date. Please include the following details in your email:
- Name of the booker
- Name & date of the show or event you were meant to be attending (also include seat numbers if you have them)
- Email address you booked with
- Order number
If the new date is not appropriate and if you haven’t done so already please email [email protected] with the:
- Name of the booker
- Name & date of the show or event you were meant to be attending (also include seat numbers if you have them)
- Email address you booked with
- Order number
and then state whether you would like to follow one of three options:
1. Donate the cost of your ticket to the theatres
2. A credit to your account to be used for future performances
3. A refund
We may have to call you to process this, but it may take a little longer than what would normally be expected, and could mean some orders take up to and over ten weeks to be processed.
If you would like a phone call to discuss your options, we’d be delighted to speak to you. Please include the best number to call you on in your email.
Until it’s safe to see you again, stay at home and look after one another.
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Update: Monday 6th April 2020, 17:30
Box Office update
To look after our audiences, we’ve set our Box Office staff up to work from home, to process over 5000 orders for cancelled or rescheduled shows. It’s been a challenge to put in place, but we’re slowly working through.
It isn’t something we can automate for every customer, our reduced Box Office team of three are contacting around 500 bookers a week to complete transactions.
Please note our phone lines are still closed during this time.
How we are doing this
We’re working on a show-by-show basis – this does not mean you will be contacted before the date of your scheduled performance. The majority of people have been very patient with us and it’s hugely appreciated.
It’s a stressful time for everyone and we understand the delays are frustrating. Please remember – there is a person on the other end of your emails – be kind and treat our team with respect, so we can all move through this by working together.
We’re sharing all the information we have on our COVID-19 Information and Advice page. Please don’t contact us to see where we’re up to, as it takes time away from bookings to read and reply.
Refunds for cancelled shows
If you would like a refund for a cancelled show, be assured you will receive a refund. We’ll call you, but it may take a little longer that what would normally be expected, and could mean some orders take up to and over ten weeks to be processed.
Refunds for rescheduled shows
When a show has a new confirmed schedule we’ll be in touch with all bookers about this and we will be able to discuss your options if the new date is not appropriate.
Donating your ticket cost
Thank you to everyone who has shown patience and kindness, and a huge thank you to those of you who have donated to us. As a registered charity we rely on ticket sales and this generosity helps keep us going. If you would like to donate the cost of your ticket to us, you can contact [email protected] and we can process that for you without having to call – but we’ll be in touch when we’re a little less hectic to say thank you.
Until it’s safe to see you again, stay at home and look after one another.
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Update: Tuesday 31st March 2020, 15:30
Following government measures to slow the spread of coronavirus by reducing the time people spent outside of their homes, we felt it was not responsible of us as an organisation to bring our Box Office team into our theatres.
Box Office are working through bookings for all shows as quickly as possible and are contacting 5,782 customers individually via home working to discuss each individual’s booking. We are making progress, but with the current situation this process is taking a little longer than normal to complete.
We have really appreciated your patience during this time, and we hope you are able to extend this as we work through another different situation.
To keep audiences updated, we are providing regular updates about postponed and cancelled productions via our Coronavirus (COVID-19) information and advice page.
If you have tickets for any of our cancelled or postponed productions, please take some time to read the following information:
Where shows or events have been cancelled, customers will still be entitled to two options:
1. Donate the cost of your ticket to the theatres
2. A refund.
Currently, we cannot safely process refunds off site. To protect your personal information, we are only able to take payment and refunds on specific computers using certain phone lines directly linked to our theatres. As an organisation, we have a duty to protect your data, and failure to do so could result in heavy penalties and prosecution.
Box Office managers are working on how we can process refunds while our building is closed. Please bear with us as we try and arrange the safest and most secure way to do this. We realise delayed refunds may be frustrating, and we apologise for any inconvenience caused.
If your show is marked as postponed, please wait until a new date is announced before deciding whether you would like a refund. Ticketholders will be contacted when new show dates are announced.
We would like to thank everyone who has donated to us during this difficult time. As a registered charity and like many other theatres, we rely on goodwill and support to keep our theatres going. If you feel you would like do the same we would be eternally grateful. If you would like to donate, please email [email protected] and we will make a note on your account.
Our Box Office team are available via [email protected], Monday to Friday, 10am to 5pm. Phone lines are unavailable.
Our buildings are closed, except for essential on-site building maintenance staff. We’ll be back with you in person as soon as we can, but in the meantime keep regularly updated with our current status and the status of shows on this page.
Please keep safe, look after one another and keep in touch.