Pass Over on Broadway Requiring Vaccinations

The first play reopening on Broadway, Antoinette Chinonye Nwandu’s Pass Over, has announced its Covid-19 safety policies ahead of its first preview at the August Wilson Theatre on August 4 before opening September 12. Audience members will be required to provide proof of full Covid-19 vaccination with an FDA or WHO-authorized vaccine, the production announced on July 15.

Guests under the age of 16 who are unvaccinated or those who are unvaccinated due to a disability or “sincerely held religious belief” will be required to show proof of a negative PCR test taken within 72 hours of the performance or a negative antigen test taken within six hours of the performance.

Masks will also be required until guests are seated, where they will be optional. For those previously mentioned guests who are unvaccinated, masks must be worn at all times, “except while eating or drinking when seated.”

Seating will not be socially distanced, but other safety protocols will be in place. The August Wilson Theatre, the production noted, “meets or exceeds all current standards for COVID safety with regards to ventilation and the circulation of fresh air.” Full Covid-19 protocols are available on the Jujamcyn Theaters website.

Pass Over is the second Broadway production to require vaccinations for guests, following another Jujamcyn show, Springsteen on Broadway.

The policies are nearly identical, though Springsteen on Broadway did not require masks for entry, relying on the individual audience members to decide whether or not to wear one.

The production indicated that these policies are in action for the month of August and will be revisited in September or sooner if necessary. These policies were created by producers, Jujamcyn Theatres and Dr. Blythe Adamson, an infectious disease epidemiologist.

Pass Over is a new play inspired by Waiting for Godot and the Exodus saga following two young Black men who dream of their promised land, a life beyond their street corner.

The play and full cast is transferring from a 2018 Lincoln Center Theater production. Pass Over is currently the earliest announced return date of a Broadway show, though it is possible another could move dates up and begin performances earlier.

Though Broadway as a whole has not universally mandated Covid-19 vaccines, these two productions suggest a pattern for how the rest of New York theatre will behave as more Broadway shows begin to reopen. As we are growing closer and closer to Broadway’s full return, time will tell if other shows follow in these footsteps.

Also on TheatreArtLife:

The Thrill of Seeing Theatre In-Person and Online

Restarting the Machine: A Post-Covid Theatre Checklist

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