Five climate protesters from the activist group Just Stop Oil disrupted a performance of the musical “Les Misérables” at the Sondheim Theatre in London’s West End on Wednesday night.
The demonstrators entered the stage during the performance of the song “Do You Hear The People Sing?” carrying orange banners that read “Just Stop Oil” and “The Show Can’t Go On.”
London’s Metropolitan Police posted on social media that local officers were quickly on the scene and arrested five people.
Just Stop Oil said the protesters locked themselves to the set using flexible bicycle locks at around 8:50 p.m. local time, which theater technicians were unable to remove. The performance was halted, and the theater was evacuated by 9:10 p.m.
In a video Just Stop Oil posted to X, formerly known as Twitter, the audience can be heard booing at the protesters and telling them to get off the stage.
“Like the citizens of Paris in 1832, you have locked your doors, while the young face slaughter on the streets. We will inherit a scorched earth, unfit to live in and our politicians will be long gone,” Just Stop Oil said. “We cannot let this stand. The show cannot go on.”
The activist group has also disrupted several major sporting events in England this year, including The Open Championship, Wimbledon, The Ashes and the World Snooker Championship.