When the government banned concerts and social gatherings as a lockdown measure in mid-March, musician and company director Max Fox wasn’t sure what to do.
A whole season of theatre shows had to be postponed.
After a bit of brainstorming, he and his team came up with a new – yet decidedly old-fashionedâidea. To take the Drive-in Cinema experience and apply it to live shows in a safe way.
International Shows Ltd have created a new company called âSafe-Eventsâ, and will be bringing an array of live entertainment to Valiants Farm, Lancaster Road starting next week.
The planning has been ongoing for nearly two months, it is only now, however, that government guidelines allow the show to commence, and tickets have been flying with some events selling out within 5 minutes.
As well as showing the traditional drive-in favourites such as ‘Grease’ and ‘Shrek’, the company, who have toured theatres and arenas with established shows such as âThe Jerseysâ and âThe Greatest Showâ are bringing a new take on live entertainment, whereby customers will watch the show from within their vehicles, and tune in on their radio to capture the sound.
âWe had to rethink everything from start to finish. We are used to working with indoor venues such as theatres, but now thatâs impossible.
“The idea of cinema screenings has been done before across America, but performing live shows is a really exciting concept that we canât wait to bring to life to cheer people up, whilst also staying safeâ
âCustomers will purchase a ticket on our website, be scanned in with their QR code by a member of staff wearing PPE equipment, and be ushered to a place at our outdoor venue where they can enjoy the show.
“The concert will be completely unamplified. Guests will tune into an FM frequency where they will be able to hear the show live from within their vehicles.
“We have partnered with a leading production company, who will leave no stone unturned to give customers the same experience as they would receive at a festivalâ.
An exciting line up of popular tribute artists and comedians will perform in afternoon and evening events six days a week. Fox hopes to give locals some recreational stimulation in Preston, Blackpool and the wider NorthWest, and in doing so create jobs and support local businesses.
Tickets for the events are available by going to their website, with multiple shows being added on a daily basis. Listings of all their events are also available on their Facebook page.