Jessica Russell (right) checks guests’ COVID-19 vaccination cards before Wilco performs on August 13, 2021 at St. Louis Music Park in Maryland Heights.
Marilyn Lynch, from Springfield, Ill., (Center) has her COVID-19 vaccination card checked before Wilco performs at St. Louis Music Park in Maryland Heights on Friday, August 13, 2021. Guests were required to provide proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test within 48 hours of the performance in order to attend the show. Photo by Jon Gitchoff
We thought 2020 was a different concert year than any we’ve seen, but 2021 has had its own surprises.
When concerts were canceled last year due to the pandemic, shows behind the wheel, in the parking lot, in the backyard and on the patio helped fill the void. Then came concerts with pod seats and other safer alternatives.
The arrival this year of vaccines to bring the pandemic under control has also brought a flood of concert announcements – and hope for a summer of unrestricted concerts at our favorite venues.
Venues that failed to function for most of last year, such as the Enterprise Center, Hollywood Casino Amphitheater, Fox Theater, Stifel Theater, Chesterfield Amphitheater, Chaifetz Arena, and Old Rock House, are back. And St. Louis Music Park and the Factory made their successful debut this summer, with no restrictions.
If only it was that easy.
With vaccination rates lagging behind and a further rise in COVID, an increasing number of sites are requiring guests to provide proof of vaccination or a negative test. The Hollywood Casino Amphitheater, Pageant, Delmar Hall, Off Broadway, Blue Strawberry, Red Flag, Heavy Anchor and Crack Fox are some of the venues with such requirements, along with a number of restaurants. and other attractions.
Live Nation President Michael Rapino has said COVID vaccines are the return ticket to live concerts. The company will require proof of vaccination or a negative test from October 4 at all of its venues, concerts and festivals.
