The Kennedy Center will no longer require proof of COVID-19 vaccination at its indoor events and performances starting May 15.
The performance venue said masks will still be required for all patrons, regardless of vaccination status.
The change was announced on the Kennedy Center’s website, which said the venue consulted with the Cleveland Clinic and Northern Virginia’s Inova health system to “evaluate and adjust health and safety policies and will continue to do so as local and national conditions evolve.”
The vaccination requirements remain in effect through May 14. That means audience members over age 12 will have to display proof of vaccination to attend indoor events. Kids under 12 can show proof of vaccination or proof of a negative PCR COVID test taken with 72 hours of the performance or a professionally administered antigen test conducted the same day as the performance.
While the District’s citywide indoor mask mandate expired at the end of February, individual businesses can set their own policies.
The Kennedy Center rolled out the vaccination requirement last August, one of several entertainment spaces to do so. The operator of the 9:30 Club in D.C. and Merriweather Post Pavilion in Maryland, also rolled out vaccine requirements last summer but dropped them earlier this month.