bear88 said: "I'm more cautious than the average person, as is my partner, but I remain frustrated by the stubborn refusal by theater venues to require proof of vaccination. I live in the San Francisco Bay Area, and would be interested in getting tickets to shows. But the main touring housewon't tell me what, if anything, will be required ofticket buyers. They just defer to local government agencies. A smaller theater, the San Francisco Playhouse,is requiringmasks and separates groupsby a seat Only Feinstein's at the Nikko mandates proof of vaccination for its performances.
Now I know that the government is telling me that my vaccinated self is totally safe in a crowded indoor venue. And I should feel some confidence where I'm at because vaccination rates are quite high.
But if I'm a little skittish about local shows, why would I plan a trip to New York City right now?
From Marks' article:
And despite McCollum’s belief that science has made gathering indoors safe again, there is the ever-present anxiety that the pandemic might re-intensify. “Springsteen on Broadway” has a vaccination mandate for all ticket holders, and so far, no problems have been reported. Owing to the virus’s unpredictability, other shows are awaiting government instructions on specific protocols, although the expectation is that masks and social distancing will not be required.
I understand the aversion toproof of vaccination requirements and masks. Who wants to require stuff that might turn off some potential ticket buyers if it's not necessary, or won't be necessary a few months from now? I've been told the unions will force the issue but it hasn't happened yet.
A trip to New York City isn't free, and those customer-friendly ticket policies really only help people in the NYC area. They don't help a tourist from hundreds or thousands of miles away whose trip is built around seeing shows.I'm still hoping to go in the spring of 2022. Hopefully, the virus and its variants will have faded even more or the rules will be more stringent, or both. But that hope doesn't allow me to plan.
I recognize I may be an outlier, and certainly on a board full of people eager to see a show already. But I don't think I am that atypical. Personally, I think it's going to tough for theaters to fill the seats they need to make things work financially for a while. Hamilton and Wicked may be unstoppable forces, but they're also the most successful musicals of the century. In movie terms, they are the equivalent of the latest Marvel blockbuster or Fast and Furious sequel. (And even Black Widow got a lot of its opening weekend business from people watching from the comfort and safety of their own home.)
I realize Broadway has to start somewhere, but the potential for an ugly fall tucked into Marks' otherwise cheery story seems to be a serious risk."
Bear, I sympathize with your concerns. And please know that the intent of what I'm going to say here is not to discourage caution, but rather to help manage expectations.
At this point, the near-unanimous consensus among epidemiologists is that SARS-CoV-2 is here to stay. Whatever that means each individual person, we're going to have to learn how to live with this virus. That will mean different things for different people, and far be it from me to say that any one person's risk aversion is superior to another's.
But one thing I would tell you is that if you're waiting for the virus to "fade away" before you see a show, I'm not sure if you're ever going to see a show again. Again, it's your choice to make, and I wouldn't begrudge you if you were to make that choice. But there will be no fading away of the coronavirus. What may happen (and this is even likely, according to some), is that over time, it will develop into something much less serious, akin to a cold/flu. Remember, the big reason this virus wreaked so much havoc is because literally no one had immunity. As the population builds more immunity, the virus won't disappear, but its impact will be more modest, because our bodies have been trained to fight the virus. Similar to what happened with the 1918 flu pandemic. That flu strain is still circulating to this day. In fact, it even caused another pandemic nearly a century later (the swine flu pandemic of 2009). But the population has sufficient enough levels of immunity to it, that it no longer causes mass death and suffering. Even the 2009 pandemic was immensely modest in comparison to 1918 (as well as our current pandemic).
However, there's one big difference here: this time, we have vaccines. These wonderful vaccines are a way for us to build that immunity, without being infected. Going back to what I said about learning how to live with this virus, the best way to do so is to simply get vaccinated. And if you are a more at-risk person (elderly, immunocompromised), maybe put a mask on in crowded places, just to be extra safe. I don't think any reasonable person would stone you for that.
I realize this isn't exactly the subject of this thread, but I do think it's relevant. Both for theatergoers on Broadway, and around the country. Depending on where you are, your risk if you're vaccinated likely ranges from low to extremely low. But it will never be zero. It never has been.
Updated On: 7/13/21 at 07:41 AM
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