The producers of the panto Aladdin at the National Stadium in Dublin have said they are unable to continue this festive season's run "due to new restrictions and ongoing and increasing concern" associated with Covid-19.
The cast and crew described themselves as "absolutely devastated" on Wednesday evening when the news was announced in a statement. Aladdin had opened on 9 December.
The statement continued: "We apologise wholeheartedly for any inconvenience and upset, as we understand just how much our panto means to our loyal audience. We have tried everything in our power to keep going but we now accept that this is impossible. We are heartbroken, as our cast and crew are eager to deliver our fabulous show to all our panto fans. We have a duty of care to our cast, crew and, of course, you, our loyal audience, that we take very seriously. Please know this was not an easy decision and is beyond our control.
"We appreciate your continued support and we say Tanx [sic] a thousand and Happy Christmas.
"Right now, our dedicated box office is asking that the public be patient and please bear with us and they will contact all patrons in the coming days regarding bookings.
"We would like to acknowledge and thank Minister Catherine Martin and her department for their ongoing assistance and guidance during this difficult time."
The decision to call off the show comes in the wake of the new Covid-19 restrictions announced by Government last Friday that came into effect on Monday.
Later that day, Dublin's 3Olympia Theatre announced that its Christmas pantomime would no longer go ahead as scheduled. It had been due to begin on 22 December and run through to 9 January.
