We’re very sorry to say that we have today made the difficult decision to cancel our upcoming Gathering in April, due to the current COVID-19 pandemic.
Although the event is still 5 weeks away, and anything could happen in that time, our Board met yesterday and agreed that it would be wiser to make the decision now, rather than wait to see how things develop. We don’t want to put anyone at any risk, and we also don’t want our showcase performers to go to the effort of travelling to Skye to showcase their work, when we can’t guarantee how many of our promoter members will be able to attend.
Of course we’re disappointed, and I’m sure you will be too, but I hope you understand our thinking. At this stage, we have not made any firm decisions about when the next Gathering will be scheduled.
Supported Programme
We’re aware that the lack of a showcase event this Spring is going to have a knock-on effect for performers tour plans, and our Supported Programme, so we’re currently investigating ways that we can ensure culture remains at the heart of so may of our promoters communities, once the “social distancing phase” of this pandemic turns a corner.
We intend to still include our showcasers in our Supported Programme, meaning that our promoters can apply for a bursary when they book them later in the year.
To explore the performers eligible for Supported Programme, head here (members only) or take a look out our Theatre, Music, Comedy and Dance edits.
Keeping the Network Connected
We’re considering ways we can continue to support our members over the coming weeks / months. These will include:
- hosting weekly network meet-ups which you can read about here.
- Offering advice to our Members on remote working
- Supporting our members personally with any issues that have arisen as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic
- continuing to host our face-face Network Meet-ups. These are published here – please keep an eye on them, in case of cancellation as a result of COVID-19.
- Producing a list of ideas and resources on this article here.
These ideas will, I’m sure, develop over the coming weeks, but if you have any thoughts or ideas that will help support you in the coming months – please do let us know.
All the best, and stay safe,
The Touring Network Team