Lake Country’s Creekside Theatre is reopening with more than a dozen shows planned between October and February.

The theatre closed in March when the COVID-19 pandemic broke out.

Attendance will be limited during the upcoming shows, but a series of small-scale outdoor concerts this summer showed theatre management it could be done.

“After hosting the intimate sidewalk concert series this summer in place of the large Live in Lake Country concerts in the parks, the district received a lot of positive feedback and expressions of appreciation for offering live entertainment in settings that considered the personal safety of audiences,” said Ryan Donn, Lake Country’s cultural development coordinator, in a news release.

Performers will offer two shows per night — at 6:30 p.m. and 8:45 p.m. with time for staff to clean and sanitize between theatre audiences. Each show will be 70 minutes long with no intermission.

There will only be 50 tickets per show available for contact-free purchase sold online or by phone with receipts emailed to theatre patrons.

“The seating layout will adhere to physical distancing protocols with tickets sold only in pairs or groups of four. In a limited seating environment, ticket prices have been kept as low as possible while also offering fair compensation to artists,” said Donn.

“Headlining the season is Barney Bentall and Jill Barber. We’re excited to offer a number of popular comedy shows in addition to well-known country, folk, Motown and blues performers.”

The Lake Country Film Committee will be offering a feature film each month as well, starting with Hugo in September, The Circus in October, The Peanut Butter Falcon in November, and Call of the Wild in December.

Hand sanitation supplies are available at the theatre and contact information will be collected from ticket buyers to accommodate the potential need for contact tracing through the Interior Health Authority.

Shows include comedian Herb Dixon on Oct. 16, Barney Bentall on Oct. 24, Ben Klick on Oct. 29, comedian Tim Nutt on Nov. 13, the Sycamore String Quartet on Nov. 20 and Barber on Nov. 28, plus more shows in January and February.

Visit creeksidetheatre.com for details on the shows and getting tickets.