Has West End Live Grown Too Big?

Written by Jacqueline.

What is West End Live?

Last weekend, Trafalgar Square hosted the 2023 West End LIVE. For those of you who don’t know, West End Live is a series of outdoor concerts celebrating a range of UK theatre. Each show is given a segment of around 10-20 minutes to perform a small section of their production. Many of the West End’s largest shows take part, including Wicked, Phantom of the Opera, and Les Mis. Newer shows can also gain exposure through their West End Live performances, such as the recently-opened Operation Mincemeat, or The Time Traveller’s Wife which is set to open later this year. Each performance is recorded and uploaded online after the event. Entry to Trafalgar Square is free, on a ‘first come first served’ basis.

What are the challenges?

On paper, West End Live seems like a theatre fan’s dream. A full day of shows for free, surrounded by likeminded people should be a wonderful time for all involved. However, I know from personal experience that this is not necessarily the case.

My first visit to West End Live was in 2018. The event was due to start at 11am, with the gates opening at 10:15am. I joined the queue shortly after 8am and was one of the first people there. This meant that after around two hours of sitting in the queue, I could hand over my bag for a quick security check and make my way down to the stage. I watched the performances until around 2pm and then left for a two-show day, and all in all the experience was very positive.

However, by 2019 things had changed. I joined the queue at 8am as I had the previous year, but was much further back in the queue. It was an extremely hot day, and I was unable to leave the queue as I was there by myself and would have been unable to guarantee my space being kept for me, so I was rapidly dehydrating. I made it into the venue, but unfortunately, a combination of heat, dehydration, and the crush of the crowd resulted in me needing to leave much sooner than planned. I haven’t returned to West End Live since. According to many theatre fans on Twitter, this year was no different, with many people discussing feeling faint, being sunburnt, and suffering from symptoms similar to heat exhaustion.

The event was paused during the Covid-induced theatre shutdown, and since re-commencing things have escalated. There were tweets discussing the beginnings of the West End Live queue starting from as early as 10pm on the Friday night. As a large proportion of the audience are young girls, this raises concerns around the safety of these people sleeping in the streets of London, and the risks they are taking for the sake of securing their spot in the crowd.

At one point the queue reached Holborn Station, a mile away from Trafalger Square (keep in mind that the queue wound around side streets and such, so was likely much longer than a mile). At 12:36pm, West End Live posted on their Twitter account that anybody not yet in the queue was unlikely to get in, and many people who were already queuing by then did not get to enter the event at all, despite waiting for hours.

This raises a lot of concerns around the accessibility. Many people have physical disabilities and cannot queue for hours on end, regardless of the weather. The event is not suitable for families with young children as they are at greater risk of being crushed in the crowd. I can state from personal experience that once in the crowd, it is incredibly difficult to leave quickly if you need to. There is an ‘access area’ at the event, but that in itself has its own challenges.

`Image taken from the West End Live website`

The access area is very small in comparison to the rest of the square, and is far from the event stage. Understandably, anybody requesting the use of the access queue is not asked to ‘prove’ having an access need, but many visitors have suggested that people already in the event were advising their friends to join the access queue to get into the event sooner.

One positive step the event has made in terms of access is the fact that the 2023 event marked the first time that BSL interpreters were visible on the event screens, rather than only being visible to those in the front of the crowd. Though this is a positive step, it could be asked why this wasn’t done sooner. Similar discussions were had earlier this year at the 2023 Olivier Awards, which was the first time the event had a ramp leading from the seating area to the stage, despite the fact that previous years already had winners and nominees who used mobility aids. It is excellent that theatre is actively aiming to become more accessible, but the progress is incredibly slow, even for accommodations that should be commonplace such as ramps, BSL interpreters and subtitling.

What could be done?

As discussed above, many theatre fans have been citing their dissatisfaction with how West End Live has been run in recent years, so here are a few suggestions of actions that could be taken.

Access should be able to be booked in advance, allowing customers to disclose any specific requirements they feel comfortable doing so and therefore allowing the event organisers to staff the access areas accordingly. Furthermore, there should be more than one access area- possibly one closer to the stage and toilets, and then the existing raised platform further back, allowing visitors to choose which is best suited to their needs.

Understandably, Trafalgar Square is an ideal location for the event as it is in close proximity to many theatres, allowing performers to head to work for a two-show day after their performance. However, there is no denying that the capacity of the area is an issue. One option to try and handle the capacity issues is to make the event ticketed. Tickets could be free and booked online, or allocated via a digital lottery system similar to how television studio audiences are selected. Furthermore, the audience space in Trafalgar Square could be separated into sections and people could book where best meets their needs, for example wanting to be closer to toilets or an exit. Perhaps a small seated area could also be an option. If the event organisers wanted to, they could put a small number of tickets on sale for the front section for a cost of perhaps £5-10, with all proceeds going to Acting For Others. Many people would be willing to pay a small amount to ensure a good view of the show, especially as many people already commit to paying for travel and accommodation in the first place, and would prefer to have guaranteed access to the event itself.

One other suggestion would be to follow the example set by the ‘Broadway in Bryant Park’ concerts. Each summer, Broadway shows have the opportunity to perform live in New York’s Bryant Park, with 3-4 shows appearing each week. This means that the demand is spread across a number of weeks, allowing a more relaxed experience for all involved.

Though I fully understand the appeal of West End Live and have had positive experiences in the past, I personally won’t be returning to any further events until the event organisers can address the issues raised by attendees around capacity and access. I look forward to seeing how these issues are approached in time for next year’s event.

What do you think? Do you think West End LIVE has grown too big? Leave your thoughts in our comments.

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