Hunt for Scouting for Girls venue is on as Oklahoma group keeps slot

Ulverston Amateur Operatic Society initially thought that they would have to give up their Saturday matinee performance of Oklahoma on October 5 at The Coro, Ulverston when Westmorland and Furness Council approached them. 

The council apologised for 'any misunderstanding' and said that it was 'always intended that any decision was the society's to make.' 

The cast and crew created a photo of the members looking forlorn at the prospect of losing the matinee slot (Image: Ulverston Amateur Operatic Society)

Kenneth Hindle, the chair of the society, said: "Westmorland and Furness Council have reconsidered their original proposal to cancel the matinee of Oklahoma on 5th October in the Coro to accommodate a show which was to be moved to Ulverston from the Forum in Barrow in Furness.

"The society is delighted with the outcome."

The council is on the hunt for a new venue for the indie-rockers after it was revealed that The Forum theatre in Barrow would have to shut for up to six months following the discovery of asbestos. 

The band, known for hits 'She's So Lovely' and 'Heartbeat,' are due to play soon. Fans cannot currently buy tickets for the show online on The Forum website. 

The Forum theatre has had to shut for six month after the discovery of asbestos (Image: Google Maps)

A spokesperson from the council said: "Due to the closure of the Forum theatre space in Barrow due to the discovery of asbestos, we are currently working with promoters and event organisers to look at switching as many events as possible to alternative locations and venues to ensure as many events as possible can still go ahead.

"We have already been able to successfully switch a number of events to The Coro in Ulverston, including this weekend’s sold-out show by Will Young, without impacting the existing programme at The Coro.

Scouting for Girls are due to perform in Furness next month (Image: PA)

"We have another show booked for the band Scouting for Girls at the Forum at the start of October. We have therefore been exploring options for alternative locations and looked at the possibility of moving the gig to The Coro.

"The date in question coincided with the final matinee performance of [the society's] production of Oklahoma.

"We discussed various options with the society, including the possibility of bringing the time of the performance forward slightly so the venue could still be used in the evening for the Scouting for Girls gig.

"Another option discussed was the prospect of cancelling the performance and what compensation may be available to the society, if they were happy to cancel.

"We always intended that any decision was the society’s to make and that, if they still wanted the show to go ahead as scheduled, we would look for other options at different locations for Scouting for Girls.

"The priority will always be with the existing booking, particularly for local community groups and performers, and we had only ever intended to explore options that could potentially suit all parties.

"We have apologised to Ulverston Amateur Operatic Society for any misunderstanding and upset caused and have confirmed that the matinee production of Oklahoma can still go ahead on 5 October as planned and that we are now looking for alternative venues for Scouting for Girls.’’