Your Safety

Our building is spacious and designed for large crowds, but we will be using it in new ways to make sure your visit is safe and comfortable.

With performances taking place in the brand new Lydia & Manfred Gorvy Garden Theatre this summer, we have made many changes to our building and procedures to keep staff and visitors as safe as possible.

The Garden Theatre has been designed to help you keep your distance from other households and remain safe. We will make sure that any queues are socially distanced, as needed.

We clean and sanitise all areas of our buildings and facilities thoroughly before and after every performance or event. All cleaning regimes follow the latest government Covid-secure guidance.

Before you come

If you or anyone in your household has any Covid-19 symptoms (high temperature, new persistent cough, loss of taste or smell) or has been advised to isolate, then don't attend in person.
Let us know when you book if you have any access requirements. We'll make sure that those with disabilities have seating appropriate for their needs.
Our cloakroom is closed, for the safety of both visitors and staff. You need to keep coats and personal belongings with you so please only bring a small bag if you can.

Keeping you safe

We will continue to follow government safety guidance as we reopen. We will confirm these measures with you – including information about masks and temperature checks – before you attend, and ensure that our staff and audiences follow the guidance to guarantee everyone’s safety.

Arriving

The Garden Theatre and colonnade to our main building will open an hour before each performance.

You will enter the Royal Shakespeare Theatre building through the main front doors, and will be signposted through the colonnade at a safe distance from other audience members.

You will be able to use the toilet and collect drinks before exiting through the Swan Theatre end of the building and entering the Garden Theatre.

Tickets

We are now only offering e-tickets, which you can either print out or show on a mobile device when you arrive. In order to ensure your safety, tickets cannot be held at the Box Office for collection. If you can't print or access your e-ticket please contact tickets@rsc.org.uk

Hand sanitising

We will ask you to sanitise your hands on arrival. There are hand sanitiser stations in prominent, convenient positions throughout our building and gardens.

There are plenty of toilets available in the colonnade and foyer, all with hot water, soap and paper towels or hand dryers.

One way system

There are one-way routes around our building to help everyone maintain social distance, so please follow all signs.

Bags and coats

Please keep personal items to an absolute minimum. Coats, bags and personal belongings will need to stay with you as the cloakroom won't be open, so please only bring a small bag. Large bags won't be allowed into the theatre. Please don’t bring cooler bags, picnic hampers, umbrellas or cushions.

A member of staff will carry out a contactless bag check, asking you to show the contents clearly. They might ask you to remove items from your bag to assist with this.

Collect pre-ordered drinks

To help minimise queuing, you can order drinks online before or on the day of the performance - we will contact you with further information about how to do this.

Socially-distanced seating

To ensure that your seat - and your journey to your seat - is safe, we aren't offering the option to select your own seat in advance, although you can select an area of the theatre. Our Front of House team will find suitable seats for everyone with a clear view of the stage.

If you need to leave your seat during the performance, we'll direct you out. We will be able to readmit you, but you may have to wait until a suitable point in the performance and must return to your original seat.

After the performance

You will be directed out gradually using several exits, to ensure that everyone remains safely distanced. We will be keen to know what we have got right and what we could improve. There won’t be any opportunity to meet the actors after the show at Stage Door.

ON STAGE AND BACKSTAGE

All our events and performances have been carefully planned to ensure we can observe social distancing guidelines at all times on stage and backstage, which includes training staff and performers to ensure they know how to keep themselves and others safe.

Many of our staff teams are working in 'bubbles' to ensure as much as possible we don't have to cancel any events if anyone falls ill.

IN AN EMERGENCY

We will do all that we can to ensure that you are safe and that your enjoyment of the experience is not interrupted. In the event of an emergency, we will ensure we avoid clustering at exits and outside our buildings and that distancing is maintained as much as possible.

Take at a look at our Garden Theatre FAQs if you still have questions about the events.