Here Are the Current COVID-19 Protocols at Phoenix Museums and Theaters

Here's what you need to know about mask and vaccination requirements and recommendations.

September 7, 2021

Chandler Center for the Arts says patrons are "highly encouraged" to wear masks. Chandler Center for the Arts

[
        {
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Inline Content - Mobile Display Size",
          "component": "18478561",
          "insertPoint": "2",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
        },{
          "name": "Editor Picks",
          "component": "16759093",
          "insertPoint": "4",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "17980324",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "16759092",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "17980324",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 24
        },{
          "name": "Air - Leaderboard Tower - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "16759094",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 24
        }
      ]

Live theater is returning to metro Phoenix stages amid myriad efforts to mitigate the impacts of COVID-19. Likewise, local museums are open and operating with various protocols designed to keep patrons, staff members, and volunteers safe.

Here’s a look at how major venues are adapting to COVID-19, to help you keep up with various guidelines as you’re out there seeing exhibits and live performances. Check the specifics before you head out to local museums, galleries, and performing arts venues, because policies can change.

click to enlarge

The Heard Museum strongly encourages patrons to wear masks inside the museum.

Lynn Trimble

Masks at Museums

Every major museum either encourages or requires patrons to wear masks.

Masks are required at The Gallery at Tempe Center for the Arts. Masks are required for non-vaccinated patrons at ASU Art Museum and Western Spirit: Scottsdale's Museum of the West, which also strongly recommends masks for vaccinated patrons. Children's Museum of Phoenix requires masks for all patrons ages 2 and up. Masks are strongly encouraged at Chandler Museum, Heard Museum, and Phoenix Art Museum.

Masks are encouraged or requested at the i.d.e.a. Museum and Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art. Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum requests that non-vaccinated patrons wear masks. Masks are optional at the Musical Instrument Museum.

click to enlarge

Herberger Theater Center requires patrons to wear masks.

Courtney Sargent

Masks at Theater Venues

Every major theater venue either encourages or requires patrons to wear masks.

Masks are required by ASU Gammage, Black Theatre Troupe, Fountain Hills Theater, Herberger Theater Center, Madison Center for the Arts, Phoenix Center for the Arts, Peoria Center for the Arts, Stray Cat Theatre, and Tempe Center for the Arts. (Patrons at Fountain Hills Theater who show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test taken within 72 hours of an event do not need to wear masks.)

Masks are strongly encouraged by Arizona Broadway Theatre, Chandler Center for the Arts, Phoenix Theatre, and Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts.

Masks are encouraged or recommended at Mesa Arts Center, the Orpheum Theatre, and Symphony Hall.

click to enlarge

Tempe Center for the Arts is home to a gallery and performance spaces with mask protocols.

Lynn Trimble

Vaccinations for Museum Visits

Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum encourages patrons to get vaccinated. No museums currently require that patrons be vaccinated, and many don’t address this issue in their guidelines for visitors.

Vaccinations for Theater Visits

Arizona Theatre Company (which performs at Herberger Theater Center) and the MIM Music Theater require that patrons show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test completed within 72 hours of the performance they are attending.

The Orpheum Theatre and Symphony Hall do not require vaccinations but allow event producers to do so.

Mesa Arts Center encourages patrons to be vaccinated. Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts recommends that patrons be vaccinated or have a negative COVID-19 test within 72 hours of attending a performance. Several venues do not address vaccinations in their guidelines for patrons.

Mesa Arts Center is one of several arts and culture venues in Mesa.

Mesa Arts Center

Additional Measures at Museums

Phoenix Art Museum requires that patrons practice social distancing in indoor spaces. ASU Art Museum and Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art recommend social distancing, but do not require it. Some museums require timed-ticket entry.

Additional Measures at Theater Venues

Phoenix Theatre requires temperature checks for patrons before they are seated at a performance. ASU Gammage requests that patrons social distance as much as possible.

click to enlarge

Checking out an outdoor walkway near Phoenix Theatre.

Lynn Trimble

Become A Member

BEFORE YOU GO...
Can you help us continue to share our stories? Since the beginning, Phoenix New Times has been defined as the free, independent voice of Phoenix — and we'd like to keep it that way. Our members allow us to continue offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food, and culture with no paywalls.