The threat to Elgin’s annual Pantomime this week appears to have been lifted after Moray Council staff went the extra mile on repairs to Elgin Town Hall.
Last week it emerged that a burst boiler posed a very real threat to the Elgin Amateur Dramatic Society’s production of Sleeping Beauty, due to open in the Town Hall on Wednesday.
It was feared that a solution might not be found in time, leaving hundreds of ticket holders disappointed – and the Drama group with a severe financial headache after they had spent thousands on preparing the production.
However, a Council spokesman has confirmed today that the show will go on after a solution was found, saying: “We are hoping the heating system will be up and running at the earliest late Tuesday night or Wednesday morning, ready for the Panto starting on Wednesday evening all going to plan.”
A temporary fix to the burst boiler involving the use of a special resin was tried at the weekend – but failed to hold when the system was tested on Sunday. With a replacement for the existing boiler requiring building warrant permissions to be in place it looked like the show was over as that would take two months.
Not wishing to make a drama out of a crisis however, Moray Council found a solution in the form of a temporary boiler. The spokesman said: “The only possible way to maintain building operation during this period is to consider a temporary boiler arrangement.
“This we have done and a rented one is due to arrive shortly from Glasgow and engineers will be working through the night to connect it.
“Given that temperatures are mild and there is no perceived risk of frost damage, the water services has been re-commissioned to allow the toilets to be operational and permit rehearsals to go ahead.”