2020 was the OSO’s 20th anniversary and we had many ambitious plans to celebrate this milestone, starting with staging 200 shows in 2020. However, we hadn’t reckoned with a worldwide pandemic which meant that, far from focusing on staging shows, we had much bigger problems on our hands… Early on, it was decided that the OSO building could be repurposed into the OSO Crisis Kitchen with support from local charity, the Barnes Fund.  Teams of fantastic local volunteers made, and delivered, thousands of freshly-cooked meals for the vulnerable in our community from March to July 2020 demonstrating what can only be termed the Barnes Blitz spirit. Alongside the Crisis Kitchen we were also a drop-off point for items for the local food bank.  

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Obviously, the fact that our theatre was dark and our Café closed meant that we had to think outside the box to keep the OSO going and remind our audiences of its existence until such time as we could restart shows in our theatre space.  Thanks to an amazing and stalwart group of OSO volunteers, we ran the OSO Pop-up Café outside on the Green from Summer 2020 until Christmas 2020. The Pop-up ran in all weathers and became part of many people’s daily walk across the Green, providing not just hot drinks and snacks but also – critically – some social interaction for customers and volunteers alike. 

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During this period, we also launched the online This House is Now Open which was used to connect actors, directors and producers to each other and to produce original online content to entertain our audiences during the pandemic.  

In Summer 2020, we undertook a major refurbishment of the building using the money we had been granted from the Community Fund in 2019.  This project totally transformed our space, notably adding the red velvet full-length drapes throughout the building and upgrading our WCs and our Café space. 

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By Autumn 2020, when restrictions were starting to be relaxed the OSO was approached by a number of high-calibre production companies keen to stage shows in our flexible theatre which allowed us to pack away our raked seating and stage shows cabaret-style, allowing families to sit in their Covid ‘bubbles’. 

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During this period, we also launched our popular Piano Lounges using the very talented jazz singer, soprano and pianist Sofia Kirwan-Baez who at the time was working as a barista in our Café with nowhere to perform.  Local residents might recall her operatic renditions on the steps of the OSO during the lockdown period, which brought much-needed joy to people (and a local fan club which continues to this day!).

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Towards the end of 2020, singer, actor and presenter (and local resident) Michael Ball officially reopened the newly refurbished OSO. All the volunteers who had manned the Pop-up Café were invited.  

 

Lisa Ross – CEO