Playwright was behind one of the few plays to open in August, before theatres closed again
30 December 2020 • 5:00pm
Ralph Fiennes stars in a socially distanced performance of Sir David Hare's play Beat the Devil at the Bridge Theatre, London
Credit: Craig Sugden
On 27 August, my play Beat the Devil – starring Ralph Fiennes – opened at the Bridge Theatre. The producer and director Nick Hytner was absolutely determined that British theatre should not close down, so he was the first to get his London theatre reopened.
We had 250 people a night – socially distanced, in masks. The company had daily temperature checks. Ralph was very emotional to be back on stage. He insisted what a pleasure it was to play to an audience who never coughed. And audiences were thrilled to be there. It made people realise that they do miss theatre, and that they need it.