Fusion laments being ‘left in limbo’

The entertainment industry has been “left in limbo”, the chief marketing officer of the multimillion-dollar entertainment complex Fusion Superplex opined yesterday.

Nikolette Elden said having the complex closed for nine months, just two years after opening, has been especially challenging.

She said what’s worse is that despite the country recording zero new cases of COVID-19 this week and the prime minister announcing even more relaxed restrictions for other businesses and churches, no indication was given as to when Fusion would be allowed to reopen.

“What’s disheartening is that the prime minister would come on December 6 and say curfew would be extended for watchnight services. It would almost make you believe that we shouldn’t expect another address from him until his holiday address. Why would he say gyms can open tomorrow and church services can operate midnight mass, but say nothing about the entertainment industry? So we’re left in limbo,” Elden told Guardian Business.

“We want to return to normalcy, getting our staff back to work is most important. You know we’ve been out of work for almost nine months and having them return to work and also having a venue for people to escape after being locked down for so long would be something we would really want to be able to provide.”

After the initial lockdown period ended in June, Fusion had planned on reopening in July, but was never granted approval despite its COVID-19 social distancing protocols.

“As far as I am aware a plan has been prepared and submitted to the relevant authorities, and we continue to wait,” Elden said.

Fusion, a 100,000-square-foot facility boasting the only IMAX theater in the region, 4DX cinema, XS3 cinema, Pure VIP theaters, a kids zone and an arcade, is not alone in its challenges as movie theaters around the world are suffering because of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has had a significant impact on the film industry.

The deadly virus has caused multiple delays, cancellations and changes to film industry schedules, leading Warner Bros. Studios to announce last week that it will release all of its upcoming films for 2021 on streaming service HBO Max. Disney is releasing all of its new releases on its own streaming service.

Elden said despite the challenges in the film industry, Fusion has gotten feedback from customers still willing to patronize the megaplex.

“We ran a social media campaign a couple of days ago. The response we got was so overwhelming that it turned into a whole other social media campaign. People have been saying all sorts of things, it’s really encouraging that they’re patiently waiting too, having withdrawal symptoms,” she said.

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source https://thenassauguardian.com/fusion-laments-being-left-in-limbo/