New Haven Register (New Haven, CT)
‘Consumer readiness’ seen as key as Phase 3 nears
Restaurants expanding capacity; live theaters may not resume quickly
When Gov. Ned Lamont announced that live theater production would be part of Connecticut’s Phase 3 plan for reopening businesses and other activities, the management team of the Shubert Theatre in New Haven was caught a little bit by surprise.
“We expected there to be much more restrictive (requirements),” said John Fisher, the theater’s executive director. “So it was a little surprising when we heard it was going to 50 percent (capacity).”
Even with Lamont’s blessing,
there are a variety of factors that mean the Schubert won’t hold any live productions until at least
June, according to Fisher. One is a lack of plays touring the country, he said.
“They would have to have a couple more cities than New Haven in order to make it worth their while,” he said of theater touring companies. “And nobody, no artist wants to go out if they might have to shutdown because of an occurrence.”
Fisher said he doesn’t expect to see a lot of live theater activity anywhere this spring.
“Our first Broadway show is scheduled for June and that’s if everything goes all right,” he said. “But we’ve been following what’s happening on Broadway and they are at least a year away from returning.”
Even when the Shubert does offer its first play next year, Fisher said he will have a few anxious moments to see how many theatergoers return.
“We recognize that there will be a reluctance people have, particularly because some of our audience skews older,” he said.
Daniel Fitzmaurice, executive director of the Arts Council of Greater New Haven, said “consumer readiness is getting talked about a lot” in the creative sector.
“Your core fans are going to come, but you really can’t run a theater on hardcore supporters,” Fitzmaurice said. “You need support from more of a general audience, as well.”
Some visual arts galleries reopened awhile ago, he said, depending upon the size of their space and how easy it was to configure for social distancing and other pandemic guidelines.
“But some of the art education centers are not able to reopen,” Fitzmaurice said.
One that has reopened is the Guilford Arts Center, which he said has some in-person classes as well as online classes.
“That gives them a real boost of confidence,” Fitzmaurice said.
Among the changes Phase 3 will bring about for businesses and other public gatherings:
— Restaurants, personal services, hair salons, barber shops and libraries can increase their indoor capacity from 50 percent to 75 percent.
— Outdoor event venues, such as amphitheaters and racetracks, will increase from 25 percent to 50 percent capacity with masks and social distancing requirements.
— Indoor performing arts venues will be able to open at 50 percent capacity with masks and social distancing requirements.
— Bars and nightclubs will continue to remain closed.
During his regularly scheduled COVID-19 update, Lamont said he is still committed to moving to Phase 3 Thursday.
However, “If we see infection rates rise, we won’t be afraid to change course quickly,” he said.
Lamont said the state’s restaurants deserve “some flexibility,” which is why the capacity of indoor dining will be allowed to increase. Restaurants opened for outdoor dining in May and then later indoor dining at the current level of 25 percent of total capacity.
“They’ve managed the protocols pretty well,” he said. “We don’t see restaurants as a big accelerant of the contagion.”
The Viron Rondo Osteria restaurant in Cheshire is coming off a summer that owner Viron Rondos described as “pretty busy.”
So busy, in fact, that Rondos now is before the town’s Planning and Zoning Commission seeking to add another level to the restaurant’s rear parking lot. Staffing has returned to 95 percent of prepandemic levels, he said.
He also is investing heavily to bring clear, plastic shields for between tables and, later this week, Rondos is bringing in special filters and air cleaners to be added to the restaurant’s heating, ventilation and air-conditioning system.
Additionally, he is looking to temporarily enclose the restaurant’s veranda, which overlooks the outdoor bar, and heat a portion of the outdoor dining area so it can be used during winter, as conditions permit.
Rondos said his restaurant “will definitely stay in business.”
“We will survive COVID-19 and we owe that to the community,
which has been tremendous, as well as to the hard work of our staff,” he said.
In downtown New Haven, two neighboring businesses have formed a unique joint venture as they fight to stay afloat.
Firehouse 12 and Cafe Nine began their joint venture last weekend, according to Paul Mayer, owner of Cafe 9, a well-known live music venue in the city’s
Ninth Square neighborhood. Mayer said Firehouse 12 staff cooks food, which then is brought a short distance down Crown Street where it is served in tents set up on the Crown Street side of Cafe Nine, which provide diners with drinks from its bar brought tableside by its severs.
“We did have some support and we’re hoping to build on it,” he said. “We’re both in the same boat: Their bar remains closed, but their kitchen has been open for takeout and our bar is closed and we don’t normally serve food. We’re just trying to move forward for as long as we can and bring in a little bit of income for both businesses while keeping some kind of presence in the neighborhood.”
The joint venture will continue on Fridays and Saturdays from 4-10 p.m. for as long as the weather allows, Mayer said. are also are about 30 seats inside Cafe Nine that can be used for dining, but that number is significantly less than the venue would draw if it were able to offer live music.
“I won’t say that it is sustainable, but right now it will allow us to pay some bills,” Mayer said of his business’ venture with Firehouse 12. Mayer has brought medical air purifiers into Cafe Nine to help raise diners’ comfort levels if they are eating inside.