Most Broadway Ends Vaccine Checks as Cases Rise in New York


Walking towards the Gerald Schoenfeld Theater on Broadway, a man pulled out his photo ID and it was in his hand. with Check out “Come Away” but no one checked. Families who flocked to watch The Lion King were told to pull out their tickets and put on their masks, but their vaccination cards were not mentioned. And covid The security guards in neon yellow vests patrolling outside the “Six” were gone.

Most Broadway theaters stopped checking their customers’ vaccination status this week for the first time since they reopened last summer, and eased their safety protocols that same week. increasing cases of coronavirus He placed New York in a higher level of risk.

The industry hopes that removing vaccine controls, which have also been lifted at New York City restaurants, movie theaters and other venues, will make going to the theater more attractive and the remaining mask requirement will help keep audiences safe as cases increase, but hospitalizations and deaths remain low.

While some customers welcomed the change, others said they were uncomfortable going to crowded theaters without making sure their seatmates were vaccinated, and many Broadway nonprofit theaters continued to request proof of vaccination.

“I haven’t been feeling safe for the past few months,” said Lauren Broyles, 44, an executive assistant in Hershey, PA, who visited New York several times last winter to watch the performances but said she stopped planning. A summer theater trip after reading that Broadway is quitting the vaccine mission. “I’m waiting to hear what’s next.”

But Michael Anderson, 48, of Hudson, NY, who was waiting in line to see “The Executioner” the other day, said that he thought vaccination checks made sense before, but thought they were no longer necessary. “At that point, I got vaccinated and I got stronger,” he said.

Changes to security protocols come as Broadway yearns for a snowy spring. More than a dozen shows opened last montha big, risky bet for a theater industry trying to bounce back a harsh winter That the virus has forced some shows to be canceled and others to close early during the critical holiday period.

Still, some of the virus-related turbulence continued. including stars Matthew Broderick, Sarah Jessica Parker, Daniel Craig and Laurence Fishburne They all tested positive for the virus, missed shows and in some cases resulted in cancellations. So many players came out with coronavirus cases Tony Award nominations delayed Until Monday to give candidates more time to see all eligible performances.

Broadway theater owners and operators were among the first to ask customers to show proof of vaccination and wear masks, and even before the city was adopted they acted together to establish a common set of protocols. similar vaccination requirements for many indoor activities. There is no longer a uniform policy. All of Broadway’s nonprofit theater owners and operators have decided to stop checking evidence of vaccinations (“Moulin Rouge! The Musical”), effective May 1. continues to demand proof of vaccination For some people at their private desks close to the stage and actors), three of the four nonprofit Broadway theater operators have decided to keep their vaccination duties in place.

Vaccination task is removed 77 percent of New York state residents have been fully vaccinated. But Broadway relies heavily on tourists, and the country as a whole has a lower vaccination rate: two-thirds of United States residents are fully vaccinated.

Removing the post would allow theaters to save money by eliminating the jobs of people hired to check vaccine proof. Jeff Whiting, president of SwifTesting, a company that works with the Shubert Organization to help enforce Covid protocols in its theaters, said his company provides between five and 10 security guards per show, which pays between $5,000 to the cost of production. and $10,000 a week. Mr Whiting said about half of these positions have now been eliminated and the remaining workers are retained to help enforce the mask mandate.

Officials who run three nonprofits that have decided to pursue their vaccine missions said their priority is to maintain the trust of their core audience members, and especially their subscribers.

“Our customers have bought tickets and performances are given through May with the understanding that, as far as subscribers are concerned, they will be entering a fully infused and masked environment,” said Steve Dow, executive director of Roundabout Theater Company. Commentary on the Broadway drama “Birthday Candles.”

“We know that uniform approaches to Covid policies across all of Broadway have helped create clear messages to date,” he added, “but the bottom line is that as a corporate nonprofit theater, our audiences are built on long-standing and ongoing relationships. “

Adam Siegel, general manager of the Lincoln Center Theatre, who runs another Broadway theater that still maintains the vaccination mission, conceded that meeting this requirement at a time when most restaurants and other theaters don’t check vaccination status makes it a bit of an outlier. . But on the other hand, there is also an increase that is causing the relaxation of requirements to appear “incompatible.”

“I wouldn’t prefer to write back to my subscriber base and say, ‘We know you’re comfortable buying tickets, but we’ve changed our minds’,” said Mr. Siegel.

Several epidemiologists said in interviews that it is understandable to remove the vaccine requirement while maintaining mask requirement, as there is growing evidence that while vaccines are effective in protecting people from serious illness, they do not eliminate the risk of infection and transmission.

“Honestly, I think that’s pretty reasonable,” said epidemiologist Katelyn Jetelina of the University of Texas Health at Broadway. “We know that masks – if they are good masks – do a really good job of protecting the wearer and those around you.”

Infectious disease epidemiologist, who has advised several Broadway shows about Covid policies through his Infectious Economy company. Blythe Adamson said it supports new protocols.

Since March when the city eliminated the vaccine powers Many restaurants are booming. “Things are generally improving in restaurants” since the rules were relaxed “for many reasons,” said Andrew Rigie, executive director of the New York City Hospitality Alliance.

Security protocols are changing rapidly. A federal judge was dismissed a nationwide mask requirement for airplanes last month. However, a person who gets off the plane and takes the subway in New York still needs to wear a hat. mask while riding.

In Times Square this week, some sidewalks outside the Broadway theaters looked a little less crowded than in recent months, and people seemed to flock to the theaters faster without waiting for their vaccination cards to be inspected.

“I got into the theater a lot faster because they didn’t check their vaccination cards,” said Lee Seymour, 34, producer and theater journalist, recalling a recent visit to Broadway. “But there’s also a real psychic benefit to knowing you’re in a room full of people who continue to take a deadly virus very seriously.”

The virus protocols divided the country and they also divided some theater audiences.

Brittany Petruzzi, 35, said she wanted Broadway to remove the mask requirement, and said that she would not watch a Broadway show, as usual, on her trip to New York this year because she realized that the restrictions on Broadway were violated. it stays heavy.

“The first Broadway show to remove the mask requirement will work for me whether I want to see that show or not,” said Ms. Petruzzi of Kernersville, NC. I think that’s a huge obstacle to what theater does so well, namely bringing people together.”

But for Kathy Findon, 58, of New Jersey, the risk of exposure — and the possibility of lingering symptoms — was still on their minds.

“I took almost two and a half years to avoid catching Covid,” he said. “The long Covid is a problem. Why should I give it a chance?”





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