DC Theater Arts: Theatre Washington, the service organization for Washington, DC-area theaters, and Limelight Insights by Shugoll, a national marketing research company headquartered in Rockville, Maryland, collaborated on an online survey, open from October 19 to 21, 2022, to better understand theater-goers’ opinions and attitudes toward COVID-19 safety policies at DC-area theaters.
2 comments:
While the majority of people according to this survey seem to prefer mandatory masking, there is still a good amount of variety and range in the responses of people to desires for masking in theaters. This survey is particularly interesting because through the amount of figures it gives us, it shows how there is even a lot of variety in terms of how people would react to different policies on masking even among those who prefer it. I think that the direction that theaters are going in, to make individual policies for themselves, is a good one. Different theaters have different audiences, conditions, and needs and therefore, I think they should be able to have different policies. One policy that I saw work well was City Theater's here in Pittsburgh. They are having optional masking at most shows while also having some performances where masks are required. This gives more people the opportunity to see theater, regardless of their comfortability.
Being from the DC area, I have seen firsthand the effects and strategies implemented by theaters around me regarding COVID-19. At the start, I think most people were elated just to be back in the theater, whether or not they were required to wear a mask. I also think people really enjoyed spaced out seating; however, as more and more people returned, this became less of an option; when movie theaters in this area started allowing people to come to mask free is when I saw the most significant uptick in anti-mask wanting people in the space I am glad, however, that DC theaters have held the ground and still require masks if not masks and vaccination proof to attend their shows. It makes me feel safe and makes me want to be in the theatre. It is also good for keeping the performers healthy and providing them a safe and fair workplace.
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