SEATTLE — Sixteen months to the day since the historic Neptune Theatre shuttered its operations because of the pandemic, the live show venue brought staff and welcomed eager show-goers back to a sense of normal times.
"I can't express how excited we are," said Neptune Theatre manager Daniel Reinharz.
The last show at the venue was on March 10, 2020, featuring The Lone Bellow, according to staff. On Saturday, July 10, artists Sango, Dave B, and Stas THEE Boss headlined the evening for its inaugural, post-COVID comeback.
For more than a year, the Neptune, one of several show venues under the Seattle Theatre Group, put a hiatus on all performances.
Reinharz still recalls the moment he got word of the shutdown.
"It was shocking and it was terrible, but you know, we're people and we adapt. We were looking forward to reopening the minute it closed down," Reinharz said.
Per state and county reopening guidelines, Neptune will reopen at full capacity, with 800 seated and 1,000 standing, according to Reinharz, but the theatre will face a new normal of its own.
Fully vaccinated people will not be required to wear a mask, but unvaccinated visitors will need to wear one, Reinharz said. He added that staff will not be checking vaccination cards.
The Neptune also updated its HVAC system, installed more than a dozen hand sanitizer stands and placed a handwashing station inside the venue.
"There is a degree of a new normal involved," Reinharz said.
Seattle's Neptune Theatre reopens after pandemic hiatus
The live show venue is welcoming music goers at full capacity with COVID precautions.