Cleveland Play House Cancels Final Week of LIGHT IT UP!

Cleveland Play House announced today, due to COVID-19 concerns, the final week of live performances for their world premiere holiday musical, Light It Up!, has been cancelled. The decision to cancel the remaining live performances was made out of an abundance of caution and concern for the safety of the actors, musicians, and crew appearing in the production.

Digital Access Tickets to stream the holiday production on demand are now available through December 29 exclusively at www.clevelandplayhouse.com.

Light It Up!, a new holiday musical was developed at Cleveland Play House, America's first professional regional theatre and the recipient of the 2015 Regional Theatre Tony Award. Written by Tony Award-winner Jason Michael Webb and Lelund Durond Thompson, public performances of Light It Up! began on November 27 and played 17 performances in the Allen Theatre before its first cancelled performance was announced on Tuesday, December 14.

CPH Artistic Director Laura Kepley says, "Everyone at CPH is fully vaccinated, including the cast, crew, and audiences of our new holiday show Light It Up!. In spite of vaccinations, regular testing, and other safety protocols, members of the cast/crew experienced breakthrough cases of COVID. We are grateful that the few people who tested positive are asymptomatic or experiencing only mild symptoms." Kepley says, "While heartbroken to close this joyful and uplifting show six days early, we recognize we are not alone as several theatres on Broadway and across the country are in similar situations. We thank our audiences for their compassion, understanding, and support as we continue to navigate this ever-evolving global pandemic. We hope people will enjoy the high-quality digital recording of the production in their homes with their families. This company of artists and technicians are to be commended for their talent, commitment, and graceful professionalism."

CPH's commitment to the health and safety of its staff, artists, and audiences is of the utmost priority. In August, CPH adopted several COVID-19 safety protocols for its staff and artists as part of compliance with Actors' Equity Association, the League of Resident Theatres, the CDC, and the State of Ohio.

CPH Managing Director Collette A. Laisure says, "When we learned of the COVID-19 infections earlier this week, we were concerned for the health and safety of the cast, musicians, and crew of the production. We took the necessary precautions by increasing testing and cancelling performances accordingly. While understudies and crew were prepared to step in where needed, we were concerned about further potential spread of the virus and that's what led us to make this very difficult decision. Definitely a disappointing and hard decision as we are in this festive season; however, a necessity for the health and safety of all."

Ticket holders to cancelled live performances of Light It Up! will be provided with several options, including the option to stream the production online as well as an option to exchange their tickets for another CPH production this season. Ticket holders will be contacted by a member of the marketing and audience services team over the next several days to discuss their options.

Audiences can now stream Light It Up! online via Broadway on Demand. Digital Access Tickets start at $25 and are available through December 29 exclusively at www.clevelandplayhouse.com.

At this time, Cleveland Play House's Festival of Trees will remain open to the public through Wednesday, December 22. Visitors must wear masks in the Allen Theatre complex at all times and must show proof of vaccination or a recent negative COVID test result before entering. For hours of operation, please visit www.clevelandplayhouse.com.

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