A year since being forced to close due to the Covid pandemic, one of the few sectors in Wales which has not been allowed to reopen is today highlighting how much they miss the general public and those who work with them.

On March 16, 2020 theatres and entertainment venues across Wales were forced to close to the public, a week before the UK-wide Covid lockdown.

Although lockdown measures have been eased for short periods of time for other sectors, these Welsh venues have not been able to reopen. One year on, Creu Cymru, the development agency for theatres and art centres in Wales, has launched the #WeMissYou #HiraethuAmdanat campaign to highlight how much they miss the audience, the performers, and the staff.

Despite venues being closed to the general public, they have not been empty during this challenging period for the arts. Physical audience may not have been allowed in, but for many the show has gone on, supporting the local community during the Covid pandemic and moving performances and outreach activity online to reach new audiences.

Theatres have been used as Covid Mass Vaccination Centres, pantomimes delivered online, shows “staged” and recorded for care home residents, as well as live performance streamed online reaching audiences near and far. Some theatre staff have also been supporting the Covid effort, delivering free school meals, working with the Track and Trace teams and volunteering in their communities. The technical team at Venue Cymru, in Llandudno was redeployed to work on ITV’s I’m a Celebrity... which was filmed at nearby Gwrych Castle.

The #WeMissYou #HiraethuAmdanat campaign is being supported by celebrities such as Callum Scott Howells, who recently played one of the key parts as Colin in Channel 4’s It’s a Sin.

In a social media post, Callum said: “I am so proud of our local theatres. All I can say is #WeMissYou but we are going to be back soon, and we are going to be back stronger than ever”.

Flintshire’s Theatr Clwyd, in Mold, has been a leader in Wales in working to support communities during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The theatre has worked closely with Flintshire Social Services to provide free creative hubs, giving respite and artistic fun to vulnerable families in the region.

Their close collaboration with Welsh Blood has led to ‘sold-out’ blood donor sessions and record donations from the sessions hosted in the venue.

Most notably the theatre has led in supporting many of the creative freelancers who have fallen through the cracks in the furlough schemes, encouraging networking as well as a hugely successful bursary scheme which distributed more than £60,000.

As part of the #WeMissYou #HiraethuAmdanat campaign, theatres and arts centres across Wales will be lit up in the colours of the rainbow today as a sign of hope, as they continue their preparations to open the doors to the public as soon as they are allowed to do so.

One year on, Creu Cymru director Louise Miles-Payne said: “We wanted to unite theatres across Wales and what better way to do that than with a rainbow. It is a symbol that we are still here and waiting for the return of our audiences, staff, and performers.

"Theatres and arts centres play a vital role in the arts economy in Wales. From small studios to big-budget stages, theatre and the performing arts are part of the fabric of Welsh life.

"Towns, villages and cities the breadth of Wales, have and use theatres for more than seeing a show – they are spaces for many different groups in the community to come together to learn, socialise and create.

"Theatres are often the heartbeat of the local community. They bring people together to laugh, cry, rejoice and learn. They have continued to do this during this uncertain time.

“We’ve been working closely with Welsh Government Officials and the Deputy Minister on the safe reopening of our theatres. We hope that this will be allowed soon when the situation improves”.

Venue Cymru in Llandudno was one of several theatres to have played a high-profile part in the Covid pandemic response, having been used as Mass Vaccination Centre. Almost 50,000 people have been vaccinated at Ysbyty Enfys, Llandudno based at Venue Cymru.