Broadway Audiences Need Vaccine and Mask Evidence


Citing the ongoing dangers of the coronavirus pandemic, Broadway’s theater owners and operators said on Friday they had decided to require theater audiences to be vaccinated against Covid-19 and to wear masks to attend a performance.

Announcing that shows will begin a few days before the first Broadway play in more than 16 months, the policy allows children ineligible for the vaccine to attend shows if they’ve been tested for the virus. But some performing arts venues in New York say they’ll go even further: Metropolitan OperaIt hopes to reopen in late September and carnegie hallPlanned to reopen in October, it plans to ban not only vaccinations but also children younger than 12 who are not yet eligible for the vaccine.

New vaccine requirements for visitors to New York City’s top performing arts venues come as the highly contagious Delta strain causes increased cases of Covid-19, prompting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to recommend that vaccinated Americans continue to wear masks in virus-heavy areas. . inside. A few big businesses, local governments and federal government recently decided require their employees to be vaccinated or subject to frequent testing.

Broadway rules, which will apply through at least October and apply to all 41 Broadway theaters, require audience members to wear masks when eating or drinking.

The Broadway vaccination instruction will apply not only to the audience, but also to the performers, backstage crew and theater staff. There will be limited exceptions: “persons with a medical condition or a close religious belief that precludes vaccination” and children under the age of 12 with evidence of a recent negative coronavirus test.

The vaccination requirement is already in place for Bruce Springsteen’s concert performance, which will be released in June, and his new play “Pass Over,” which is scheduled to be released on August 4. The new rules will affect all future shows. : Twenty-seven, including many of the blockbuster musicals, are scheduled to launch in September and October, starting with “Hadestown” and “Waitress” on September 2.

Broadway League president Charlotte St. “We’ve said from day one that we want our players, teams and viewers to be safe, and we believe this is a precautionary measure to ensure that,” Martin said. “We’re doing everything we can to open it safely and protect everyone.”

Given that no vaccine has yet been approved for pediatric use, deciding what to do about young children has been particularly frustrating. While Broadway, a series of shows that depend on families with children to buy tickets, has decided to allow under 12s to attend if tested, the Met Opera gets more, which attracts fewer young children to many of its productions. restrictive approach.

“Children younger than 12 who are currently unvaccinated are not permitted to enter the Met, regardless of their guardian’s immunization status,” the company’s website said.

“Obviously, it’s painful for young people not to come to the theater, both personally and for the company,” said Peter Gelb, the Met’s chief executive, who said the company’s vaccine policies were designed to protect its nearly 3,000 employees. to make the audience feel comfortable coming back and sitting in the immediate vicinity. The Met also requires all guest performers and members of the orchestra and choir, as well as its staff, to be vaccinated.

Saying that it is a difficult decision to block children under the age of 12 for now, Gelb said, “They are our future audience.”

Gelb said he hopes children will be eligible for the vaccine by December, when the Met plans two holiday presentations for families and children: The company’s abbreviated, English version “The Magic Flute” and “Cinderella” in English – Massenet’s “Cendrillon” in English adaptation.

Both Broadway and the Met plan to open at full capacity, meaning no social distancing, and the Met says masks will be optional. Broadway theaters range in size from 600 to 1,900 seats, while the Met has 3,800 seats.

Broadway will provide additional security behind the scenes: An agreement announced Thursday between the Broadway League, a trade association that represents producers as well as theater owners, and the Actors’ Equity Association, which represents actors and stage managers, requires weekly testing for employees. So is the vaccination mission.

The tough new rules for viewers are not entirely surprising. “Springsteen on Broadway” and “Pass Over” required audiences to be vaccinated, and Disney Theater Productions, which produced “The Lion King” and “Aladdin” on Broadway, asked attendees for proof of vaccination. a four-night concert run at the New Amsterdam Theatre this month. (Disney allows anyone under the age of 12 accompanied by a vaccinated adult.)

There are some venues in New York that are running vaccine-free work, but others have implemented the mandate, including Madison Square Garden, which required vaccinations for patrons in June. a Foo Fighters concert. The Park Avenue Armory is getting tighter, accepting proof of vaccination or a recently negative test for its first dance show this summer; by choreographer Bill T. Jones “deep blue sea” It is scheduled to begin performances in September.

There are also performing arts vaccination requirements emerging beyond New York: The San Francisco Opera announced Wednesday that it will request proof of vaccination for all users aged 12 and older, and a “Hamilton” tour was held at the Hollywood Pantages Theater in Los Angeles on Friday. . He said that ticket holders, which will start on August 17, should be fully vaccinated.

Broadway theaters are particularly high-visibility and particularly challenging because they attract audiences of all ages and around the world to sit side-by-side in cramped buildings with small lobbies, bathrooms, and cramped backstage spaces. New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo suggested in May that Broadway should consider a vaccine mandate, but some producers were hoping to avoid such a move, as they feared it could reduce attendance at a time when tourism plummeted and consumers were poised to return. going to the theater remains unclear. The recent increase in contagion has convinced industry leadership to put these concerns aside and embrace the imperative of vaccination for at least the next few months.

“I’m delighted that the theater owners and the Broadway League made the best decision for the community,” said Brian Moreland, executive producer of “Thoughts of a Colored Man,” which is scheduled to debut. In October. “We decided to do what science told us to do, and that’s what science tells us.”

For those who have already purchased tickets and are reluctant or unwilling to comply with the new policies, there may be options: most shows have adopted liberal refund and exchange policies for the fall.

The league said in September that it would reevaluate its safety protocols for performances in November and beyond.

Javier C. Hernández contributed to the reporting.



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