The second annual Liverpool Theatre Festival has been hailed a roaring success after attracting 2,700 theatregoers across 12 days.
The live outdoor event. - started by city producer Bill Elms last year to entertain people safely during the pandemic - presented 23 performances of 16 shows at the aptly-named, roofless St Luke’s Bombed-Out Church.
Organisers say were thrilled with the “incredible” and “heart-warming” feedback.
The first festival was created in a matter of weeks, winning praise from audiences and critics alike and winning an award.
This year’s event was larger and was preceded in July by a seven-day Little LTF fringe theatre event to showcase new work, attracting 1,200 festivalgoers in the process. The two festivals offered work to 200 performers across 30 local and regional productions, despite Covid restrictions.
The main festival featured two shows that might even go beyond their festival origins: one-woman comedy 2Gorgeous4U, written by Liverpool playwright Mark Davies Markham and starring local actress Lynne Fitzgerald; and Something About George – The George Harrison Story, featuring city actor and musician Daniel Taylor. Festival director Elms is in talks with production companies about both productions.
Only one show was a victim of the festival location: Opera Beneath the Stars more accurately became opera beneath the floor, when it was moved into the nearby Royal Court’s basement studio during heavy rain.
Bill Elms said: “It’s been an extraordinary year for the festival. It’s still very new but support from the public has been incredible.
“We are still in the midst of a pandemic, but the feedback has been really humbling and heart-warming. It shows how the festival could grow in years to come.”
The festival is funded by Liverpool City Council and Culture Liverpool, with the help of local sponsors and Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse theatres.
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