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'We had to find a way of getting open' - launching a music venue in a pandemic
Sep 19, 2020
With most gig venues still stuck in a dark and silent stasis, and coronavirus restrictions getting tighter, it's an unlikely time for new venues to be opening their doors.
Craig Pennington has been busy measuring out socially-distanced "pods" on the floor of Future Yard in Birkenhead. When indie band She Drew The Gun launch the venue to a sell-out crowd of 45 people later, each pair of fans will be allocated a pod in which they can stand and watch - but not dance, sing along or cheer.
If opening a small venue wasn't arduous and risky enough, doing so amid the Covid-19 crisis - especially with cases rising again - is a logistical migraine and a licence to lose money.
"Launching a live music venue in the midst of a global pandemic is not something I'd advise," Pennington says with a wry laugh.
Image caption The Wirral's finest She Drew The Gun will play Future Yard's opening night on Saturday
And yet he's going ahead. He got the keys to the building in January, before Covid was really on the radar, initially planning to open in April with a capacity of 350. When the government gave the go-ahead for indoor venues to reopen in England with social distancing in August, Pennington didn't want to wait much longer.
As well as hosting gigs, Future Yard will offer training for 16- to 24-year-olds in the live music industry, and rehearsal and recording spaces for new local artists.
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