Beta: Monday 12 January, 2026 Full Client Release: Mon 19 & Tue 20 January, 2026
🎉 What’s new in Release 224 (& 223)?
We've got not one but two releases for you to kick-start 2026! This bumper edition brings improvements to waiting lists, SEO, and accessibility—all shaped by your needs.
🎫 Never miss a sale with improved waiting lists
What changed?
Waiting lists just got significantly more powerful with email confirmations and Query Builder integration.
For integrated waiting lists (via ticketing API):
- Waiting List requests are now automatically stored on Visitor accounts when signed in
- New Query Builder filter lets you target everyone on the Waiting list for specific events
For all Waiting lists:
- Visitors receive email confirmation of their Waiting list request
- Forms now use site-wide styling for more consistent branding
- New Email confirmation to visitors setting is enabled by default
- Improved form layout with explanatory text for better visitor experience
How do I use it?
- Contact us to activate integrated Waiting lists for your ticketing system.
- The email confirmation setting is found in Control Panel > Waiting List > Email confirmation to visitors (enabled by default)
- Query Builder Waiting list filter is available for immediate use.
Thank you to Isala Theater for sponsoring part of this project!
🔍 Take complete control of your SEO with meta titles and descriptions
What changed?
- Google displays your meta descriptions in search results, and uses it to index and rank your content.
- Every relevant page now has dedicated meta title and description fields that you can manage directly from the CMS—giving you complete control over how your content appears in search engines and social media.
What's included:
- Productions and Pages already had these fields (no change there)
- Themes and Theme Groups now have new meta description fields
- Genre pages pull meta information from the genre name and description
- Template texts now include meta titles and descriptions for system pages like What's On, Courses overview, and search pages (search for labels starting with FE3_meta_)
- Homepage meta description moved from control panel to template texts for multilingual support
How do I use it?
- Navigate to any Theme, Theme Group, or system Template text to find the new meta fields.
- Craft compelling descriptions that encourage clicks from search results.Think of them as mini-advertisements for your content.
💌 Newsletter signup: Always show all preferences
What changed?
- Newsletter signup forms can now display all newsletter preferences.
- This gives you more control over how you present subscription options and makes it easier for visitors to choose their interests upfront.
- When visitors see all their options at once, they're more likely to choose multiple mailing lists rather than just picking the main newsletter and missing additional interests.
How do I use it?
- Enable this via Control Panel > Opt-ins > Always show mailinglists. Your newsletter signup forms will immediately display all available preferences.
Thank you to Cultuurhuis de Warande for suggesting this feature!
🔎 Better in-site search results
What changed?
- If any search term appears in a page title, that result now jumps to the top of search results.
How do I use it?
- No action needed – this improvement is already working across your site.
Thank you to Curious Minds and Lowry for your feedback and Search insights!
♿ Accessibility wins across your platform
What changed?
Multiple WCAG improvements make your site more usable for visitors with disabilities:
- Selected tags in genre/theme filters now have a clear "×" button for deselection
- Screen reader users hear improved information about selected filters
- Sponsor logos now include proper alt-text
- Footer line height increased on mobile for easier navigation
- Event list headers now available for Courses overview (the last page without a native H1 now has one)
- Improved validation for postal code and phone number fields
How do I use it?
- No action needed - these improvements are already live across your platform.
🎟️ Smarter wallet tickets
What changed?
Wallet tickets (Apple Wallet and Google Pay) now display more complete, accurate information:
- Hall information added to Google wallet tickets (previously only on Apple)
- Hall section now appears on all wallet tickets
- Removed redundant visitor information
- Fixed issues where tickets broke when productions had no title
How do I use it?
- No action needed – wallet tickets now display richer information automatically.
💌 Better control over system emails
What changed?
- When system emails bounce (login confirmations, order confirmations, etc.), you can now set up a dedicated no-reply address to receive these notifications instead of cluttering your main venue inbox.
How do I use it?
- Contact us to add a no-reply email address for bounced system emails.
For Tessitura venues:
📝Highlight important event information
What changed?
- The Tessitura updater can now import Event Level information into the Side note field, giving you more control over what details appear on your event pages.
How do I use it?
- Contact us to activate this feature for your organisation – we'll enable the import in your Tessitura integration settings.
Thank you to Theatre Royal Concert Hall for suggesting this feature!
⚙️Additional fixes & Improvements
Site speed and performance:
- Significant sitemap improvements including better memory usage, architecture upgrades, and caching
- Sitemaps now include last modified dates
- Only visible genres, themes, and pages appear in sitemaps
- Personal balance now correctly reflected for visitors in the CMS
- Caches (stories, menu, etc.) disabled when in SpecialAccess mode so you see changes immediately
Content management improvements:
- Content library items now only available in new CMS with proper code field editor
- Event updater module hidden in CMS when inactive
- Improved load speed for CMS pages
- New filter for Story types in Pages module
- Improved sorting for people on productions
- Fixed error when opening some course detail pages
- Deleting productions now works correctly
- New platform data export option for last month of opt-in activity only
Security and admin improvements:
- Removed admin names from CMS login page
- Removed "Force login to purchase" setting for hybrid integrations, allowing visitors to enter purchase path without logging in first
- Improved validation and explanations for upload limits in media gallery
Ticketing system fixes:
- Fixed dynamic barcodes for Itix
- Fixed shared tickets for cancelled orders (Itix & Ovatic)
- Improved Tessitura import options (TRCH)
- Upgraded SDK version for PSP "PAY"
Wayfinding and Digital Signage:
- Cleaned up Digital Signage CMS menu for easier display management
General fixes:
- Cookie consent reset part now handles older cases where consent timestamp was missing
- Genres no longer flicker when scaling pages
- Course start date now optional and displays correctly
- Fixed "Max" parameter for story type part
- Fixed Combo Queries loading error
- Improved mailing list import messages (new CMS only)
- Changed CMS help texts for "tiers" (previously called "ranks")
🔮 Looking ahead: COVID-era feature retirement
As part of our ongoing platform modernisation, we've removed two features created during the pandemic that are no longer in use:
- "Online event" feature from Event CMS
- Attendance survey feature
This cleanup is part of our broader effort to streamline the platform, reduce technical debt, and focus development resources on features that serve today's needs. If you were using either of these features (unlikely, but let us know!), please contact support.
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