DURHAM, N.C. — Starting on Monday, you’ll need proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test within 72 hours if you want to attend an event at the Carolina Theatre in Durham.

What You Need To Know

Carolina Theatre in Durham now requires proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test to attend events

Guests also need to bring their photo ID and will be required to wear masks inside

There are 60 shows on the books for the theatre for the next 12 months

The theater has been hosting shows at full capacity, with various precautions, since the start of September. However, these strict precautions now apply to all events. Randy McKay, the president and CEO of Carolina Theatre of Durham, says guests will need photo IDs, masks are mandatory inside and there are no social distancing requirements.

“It’s been incredibly positive. I think our patrons feel more comfortable coming to an event with a lot of other folks because of that policy. The only feedback we’ve really gotten is they wish we started the policy a little bit sooner. We wanted to give folks time if their show was coming up to have the time to get vaccinated if they chose so they wouldn’t have to worry about the testing,” McKay said.

“It is amazing to have folks back in this building and to hear live music and comedy on our stage, to see our community come back together and celebrate with each other. It’s a pretty celebratory experience right now, every show we’ve had at the Carolina Theatre. I expect that we won’t be taking live theater and music and comedy for granted for quite some time,” McKay said.

The air filtration system was also upgraded at the theater in order to make sure the air inside is as clean as possible.

McKay says the industry has struggled since the start of the pandemic but the Carolina Theatre didn’t suffer as much as other venues.

“No venue has had a good last 18 months, but the Carolina Theatre had a very strong reserve and was in fact able to keep its full staff employed for the entirety of 2020, which most other venues were not able to do. We did have to downsize at the beginning of this year, because it wasn’t clear when it would be possible for us to reopen. But we have full staff back and are happy to be moving forward,” McKay said.

“Ticket sales are important to us but our donors also stuck by us so we are in a very strong position to come back and to fully move forward. We’ve got 60 shows on the books right now so we’re as busy as we’ve ever been,” McKay said.

To learn more about the theater’s events or precautions, visit its website.