“Every day we read about a new proposed seating plan or air-filtering system being trialled in an Edwardian playhouse to enable safe, socially distanced theatre in a building designed for the opposite. A big top is far more spacious.” You can fit in hundreds of people with plenty of social distance, and raised sidewalls provide plenty of air circulation. What’s more, argues Circus250 ringmaster Dea Birkett, a big top offers plenty of advantages in terms of diversifying your audience. – The Stage