Leicester’s Phoenix cinema and art centre is reopening its doors after over six months closure due to Coronavirus. With new social distancing and extensive safety measures in place, the city centre cinema and its Café Bar will initially open seven days a week from 12pm – 10pm daily.
Film fans will be able to enjoy some recent movie releases and others they may have been unable to watch during lockdown, including Christopher Nolan’s new film Tenet on 35mm, Gemma Arteton in Summerland, US death row drama Clemency, new French thriller Les Misérables, and atmospheric British horror Saint Maud arriving on a wave of critical praise. Phoenix is encouraging customers to buy tickets in advance at phoenix.org.uk.
Phoenix staff have been working hard to ensure the reopened charity’s venue is safe and welcoming for all. Measures include allocated seating and reduced capacity in both cinema screens; table service, reduced capacity and a simplified menu in the Café Bar; adjustments to the ventilation system to increase fresh air levels; and increased cleaning and hand sanitising stations throughout the venue.
“Cultural venues like ours have been hit especially hard by lockdown, but we’ve been heartened by the many hundreds of individual donations we have received from our customers, as well as public funding from the National Lottery through Arts Council England, and our partners at the BFI,” said John Rance, CEO of Phoenix.
The Phoenix art programme will continue online, with a range of artworks and creative learning activities available to experience online. The galley will reopen in November with The Idle Index, an exhibition featuring newly commissioned pieces by eight Leicester artists. Over the next few months there are also plans to take the art programme onto the streets with spectacular events in the city centre.
