After being closed for more than a year, the doors at Levon Helm Studios are finally opened to the public.

General Manager Drew Frankel says the arts and entertainment venue was able to allow audience members back into the facility on the day that Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced they could reopen.

“We had an artist booked in here to perform a webcast that we were just intending to sell online tickets for,” says Frankel. “We adjusted really quickly and came in and determined how many people we could fit in the room, safe and socially distant.”

Cuomo made the announcement April 2 that venues could reopen at 33% capacity with a limit of up to 100 people indoors and up to 200 people for outdoors. With testing and immunization, that number increases to 150 for indoors and 500 outdoors.

“I do agree that we need to start slowly. Of course, I'm very excited for the day that we get the go ahead to, you know, open to a larger audience. But it also gives us a chance to, you know, evaluate how we run our shows here and to determine, you know, the safest way to let people back into the room,” says Frankel.

Before the lockdown, Levon Helm Studios hosted eight shows a month, averaging 70 to 80 shows a year, but while they were forced to close, the staff worked to equip the facility with a video system to offer high-quality live video webcasts.

But Frankel says while he understands the need for reopening safely, not being able to have a full audience is difficult.

“That's something that we're hoping will, and that we're utilizing to get us through this time now, we're able to kind of supplement in-person ticket sales with virtual ticket sales. But ultimately, we're going to need to fill this room again in order to keep this business afloat,” says Frankel.

In the meantime, until they are able to host a full-house indoor concert, the venue will hold a series of outdoor shows.

Frankel is confident that it won't be too long before they are packing the building again with live music, continuing the legacy of the venue's namesake to keep the jam sessions going. Last year was Levon Helm’s 80th birthday, and the studio had a series of concerts planned to commemorate the day, but unfortunately, because of COVID, they had to postpone it.

They will all now be held this Memorial Day weekend to celebrate Helm's 81st birthday.