Actors’ Equity Association Shares COVID-19 Testing & Pre-Production Guidelines

Following the news that the regional theaters Barrington Stage Company and Berkshire Theatre Group will resume performances in the coming months, Actors' Equity has shared a public list of resources, including COVID-19 testing guidelines as well as a pre-production sheet, geared toward producers readying to resume live theater,

Equity offered their five recommended brands/tests to be given to actors, stage managers and all other employees that will be interacting with the them: Cepheide/Xpert Xpress SARS-CoV-2, Genmark/ePlex SARS-CoV-2 test, BioFire/BioFire COVID-19 Test, BioFire/Respiratory Panel 2.1 and Roche/Cobas SARS-CoV2. Tests must be administered at least once a week at no costs to actors and stage managers.

The pre-production safety sheet holds producers accountable to answering a series of questions that will be paramount to determining the safety of a theatrical work environment. Questions include "Does the Employer's state or county or city have reopening plans for theatrical productions?" and "Will the Employer have health and safety protocols in place?" among others. The full sheet is available to view here.

As previously reported, AEA has retained safety consultant Dr. David Michaels, who served as the administrator of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) under former President Barack Obama, to advise the union to develop the steps necessary for reopening Broadway and theaters across the country. Dr. Michaels joined AEA President Kate Shindle and Executive Director Mary McColl in presenting four core principles that need to be met before theatrical productions can resume safely.