Starting Feb. 1, two vaccines will no longer be enough to attend shows at the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts.
The Arts Partnership announced last week that all guests will be required to present proof of vaccination and a booster shot beginning next month. And all guests, including the triple-vaxed, will be required to wear non-cloth face masks.
The Arts Partnership consists of four organizations — Minnesota Opera, Ordway, The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra and Schubert Club — that perform regularly at the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts.
“The health of our guests, artists and staff is paramount, and we want everyone who attends one of our performances to feel comfortable and safe,” Ryan Taylor, president of the Arts Partnership, said in a press release. “Our updated policies continue to follow current recommendations from public health experts, and we will continue to pursue decisions to best protect our artists, guests, organizations and our broader community.”
The unvaccinated and those with only two doses of the vaccine will be required to show negative test results taken within 72 hours of a performance. Even children under the age of 12 who are not eligible for a booster will be required to show negative test results.
Guests must also present a driver’s license or state ID to confirm the validity of their vaccination cards or negative test results.
Just three months ago, Gov. Tim Walz mocked Republicans who were concerned about the prospect of so-called “vaccine passports.”
“They wanted an absolute ban on vaccine passports, which we don’t have a damn vaccine passport so quit pretending on the politics. My patience level is gone,” Walz said during an October press conference.
Walz on vaccine mandates: 'None of those things are real' pic.twitter.com/3UYIHe9rrW
— Alpha News (@AlphaNewsMN) October 18, 2021
“We need you to make sure that there’s a vaccine passport ban, that there’s a vaccine mandate ban,” he added, imitating Republicans. “None of those things are real.”
Vaccine passports are now the de facto law of the land in both Minneapolis and St. Paul.
Anthony Gockowski
Anthony Gockowski is Editor-in-Chief of Alpha News. He previously worked as an editor for The Minnesota Sun and Campus Reform, and wrote for the Daily Caller.
