Arts Companies Partner with Emory School of Nursing to Reopen Safely

A coalition of Atlanta’s arts organizations have partnered with the nursing school at Emory University to create guidelines for safely reopening theatres and performance venues.

Actor’s Express has led a group of 18 arts organizations in creating a partnership with the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing at Emory University to evaluate and study performing arts operations. This evaluation will lead to the creation of a set of guidelines and suggestions on how to safely and responsibly reopen as the COVID-19 pandemic continues.

The study will analyze data on how patrons, performers, and staff interact, and propose ways to safely return to work and performances as soon as it’s safe to do so. These plans will also take into account current statistics on new infections in the community, and define benchmarks for reopening.

After all 18 of the participating performing arts companies have completed an assessment tool, the project architects will analyze the data to create standard operating procedures for each area of operation, including front of house, performance spaces, and backstage. These operatingprocedures can be applied across all the performing arts companies inthe region.

Then the Doctor of Nursing Practice students at Emory will go one step further, issuing specific guidance to each participating performing arts company detailing how it can adapt workflows to mitigate the effects of COVID-19.

“Because every operation is different and each venue has a unique set of challenges, no one sweeping policy will work for everyone,” said Morgan Clark-Youngblood, a DNP candidate at the Emory School of Nursing. “Through this partnership, as well as guidance from the CDC and Georgia Department of Public Health, we hope to find a set of guidelines all performance venues can put in place to reduce risk to audiences, artists, and crew, as well as specific action plans for each company participating in the study.”

Participating Arts Companies

7 Stages Actor’s Express, The Alliance Theatre, ART Station, Atlanta Lyric Theatre, Aurora Theatre, Center for Puppetry Arts, Dad’s Garage, Dance Canvas Found Stages, Georgia Ensemble Theatre, Horizon Theatre Company, Kenny Leon’s True Colors Theatre Company, Out Front Theatre Company, Stage Door Players, Synchronicity, Terminus Dance, Theatrical Outfit

School of Nursing Facility Public Health Clinical Leaders

Daniel Geller DNP, MSN, FNP, Roxana Chicas Ph.D., RN, Rebecca Shasanmi Ellis, MPH, BSN, RN, Monica Donohue MN, RN, Kim Crawford, MPH, FNP, Sarah Febres-Cordero RN, BSN Priscilla Hall Ph.D., CNM