Bard on the Beach announces cancellation of in-person Vanier Park fest for summer 2021
COVID uncertainty has also forced the cancellation of the Celebration of Light and folk fest park concerts
BARD ON THE Beach Shakespeare Festival has just made the painful decision to cancel its Vanier Park event for summer 2021.
“It is a deeply difficult call to make. We see the faces of those who depend on us, and the impact Bard has on the Vancouver economy, sector employment, and the community’s love for our iconic summer event,” artistic director Christopher Gaze said in a statement released this morning. “But the conditions we need to present a safe and satisfying in-person Festival are simply not there at this time.”
The cancellation marks the second year in a row Western Canada’s largest Shakespeare fest has had to call things off.
The news came one day after provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry told a press conference that there likely won’t be any large events, even outdoors, all year. Yesterday, she explained “there will not be big events, where there’s lots of crowds of people this summer.”
However, Henry said small outdoor events might be allowed by summer if vaccine deliveries can be sped up.
Yesterday, Vancouver’s huge summer fireworks festival, the Celebration of Light, also cancelled its shows for the second year in a row.
Over at Bard on the Beach, the production schedule requires so much lead time that it was impossible during pandemic-restrictions uncertainty to move forward for this year.
The company cited the financial risk. Each year, it makes a major investment in installing its tents and site infrastructure at the waterfront park, which also bring associated operational expenses.
The festival said it explored a range of scenarios aimed at downsizing and modifying its in-park model to reduce costs but “not compromising artistic quality and the safety of its teams and patrons”. All those scenarios required that site construction start no later than May 1, to be ready for a mid-July opening—the latest the festival deemed feasible for delaying the start of public performances. (Weather conditions require the season to end by early October.) By May 1, with no indication from provincial health authorities that in-theatre audiences would be able to gather again by July, construction could not begin on time.
“A further issue was the challenge of ensuring critical health and safety protocols were maintained for Bard’s large artistic and production teams,” the fest said in today’s statement.
Instead, the festival will make its 32nd season entirely digital, offering a slate of new online content and programming.
Last year’s cancelled 2020 lineup featured Shakespeare’s comedy A Midsummer Night’s Dream in repertory with the drama Henry V, on the BMO Mainstage. The Howard Family Stage in the Douglas Campbell Theatre was to host a Jazz Age rendition of Love’s Labour’s Lost and Erin Shields’Paradise Lost. The fest has pledged to stage the same program in summer 2021 instead.
At the time, Bard executive director Claire Sakaki released a statement saying, "We know that the cancellation of our full slate of over 200 performances will have a significant financial impact on the livelihoods of the people who rely on us for a large portion of their annual income—as well as on our organization."
The news is a further disappointment for arts fans who had hoped vaccinations and pandemic controls would allow for outdoor festivals, even if in a limited manner, by summertime.
But Bard is only the latest to scale back and move online. The TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival has already announced extensive online programming, with plans for limited outdoor events if health orders ease. DOXA has been able to work drive-in events for up to 50 cars into its schedule later this month. The Vancouver Folk Music Festival, scheduled for July 16-18, also cancelled its huge live festival at Jericho Beach, but is planning a roster of At Home events.
Watch for details on Bard on the Beach's virtual programming, with the centrepiece being the new full-length play Done/Undone by Kate Besworth, commissioned by Bard for the 2021 Season. The Festival’s popular educational offerings, including annual summer camps and workshops, will also transition to online formats.
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