One of the top infectious disease experts in the United States, Dr. Anthony S. Fauci said he believes concert venues and theaters should be able to reopen “some time in the fall of 2021,”
With the COVID-19 vaccine still underway and going through trial and error periods, if this were to take place, audiences would still be responsible for wearing masks practicing social-distancing.
According to Variety Fauci says “If everything goes right, this is will occur some time in the fall of 2021, so that by the time we get to the early to mid-fall, you can have people feeling safe performing onstage as well as people in the audience,” he continues, noting that the return depends upon getting between 70% to 85% of the population vaccinated, according to the New York Times.
Fauci also says that if vaccine distribution succeeds, theaters that have good ventilation and proper air filters “can then start getting back to almost full capacity of seating,” while still encouraging venue operators to research their ventilation systems and protocols.
Back in August, there was a German study of an indoor concert, staged by scientists, that suggested that events that had “low to very low” impact on the spread of the virus as long as organizers ensured adequate ventilation, strict hygiene protocols and limited capacity.
Another alternative would be for individuals to require a negative test result, in order to enter venues and theaters, but of course theaters would need to take further safety precautions, if they cannot provide those effective ventilations.
“We’ll be back in the theaters — performers will be performing, audiences will be enjoying it,” Fauci says. “It will happen.”
