A number of entertainment venues across the Black Country and Birmingham have fallen silent after Government advice to avoid large public gatherings.

Birmingham Hippodrome have cancelled all remaining performances of The Book of Mormon which was due to be in residence at the 1,800 seat theatre until March 28th. Bosses have said they will assess future shows in the coming weeks. Posting on social media, a spokesperson for the venue said:

"Unfortunately upcoming performances of The Book of Mormon have been cancelled. For upcoming performances from March 29 onwards, we are in discussions with producers and will keep our ticket holders informed.

"The safety and health of our staff and visitors is our number one priority and we will continue follow any recommendations from the relevant authorities and implement all appropriate instructions accordingly.

"If you are attending a future performance, our website and twitter pages will be updated regularly, please do keep checking our channels for the latest updates."

The Alexandra has followed suit with the UK tour of Everybody's Talking About Jamie being pulled yesterday evening. Part of the Ambassador Theatre Group, the venue have initiated a blanket closure across all their sites, which include a number of major West End Theatres - all of which will postpone performances 'for the foreseeable future'. 

Wolverhampton's Grand Theatre, which is due to open the Gloria Estefan musical, On Your Feet, this evening has also confirmed it will close until 29th March.

Similar fates have hit performance spaces including Brierley Hill Civic Hall, who have closed until at least 31st March, and The Artrix in Bromsgrove who have shut up shop indefinitely.

However the move has angered many customers who are furious at the Governments 'apathetic' approach to national advice. Writing on social media, one commentator was 'enraged' by Boris Johnson simply suggesting people 'avoid theatres and concerts' rather than making it mandatory - meaning venues can confidently close and claim for losses. The ambiguity could mean that a space who choose to close their doors could lose a large amount of their income - with many being charities.

Patrons are advised to contact venues before travelling to find out whether performances are taking place.