News / Shetland Arts to launch new box office
THE SHETLAND Box Office will close at the end of next month and will relaunch as Shetland Arts’ own box office service on the same day.
As a consequence, Islesburgh Community Centre will cease to operate as a box office outlet as of 28 November.
It marks the end of a 10-year partnership between Shetland Islands Council and Shetland Arts that provided an island-wide hub for all ticketing and booking requirements.
Shetland Arts general manager Graeme Howell said the box office had been operating at a “fraction of its intended capacity” for some time and also was in need of a major upgrade.
He said the arts development agency would continue to offer a paid box office provision to promoters wishing to use such a service.
“The Shetland Box Office was an innovative partnership at its inception, but for some time now has only been operating at a fraction of its intended capacity,” Howell said.
“We’re very excited about the launch of our new service; it’s a very simple, user-friendly system, and we’re confident that customers will find it much easier to find and book tickets for events.”
All tickets for events bought through the old Shetland Box Office will remain valid, although, due to the change of systems, customers will be required to re-register for an account with the new system to ensure security of personal data.
The council’s manager for sports and leisure, Neil Watt, confirmed that the loss of the service from Islesburgh will have no job implications for the community centre’s reception staff.
“The box office has provided a great service to both customers and promoters of local events,” he said.
“However, with Shetland Arts launching their new box office service and other promoters finding alternative options for the sale of their tickets then the time seems right to end the partnership.”
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