New York Movie Theaters Can Reopen At Reduced Capacity: Cuomo

ALBANY, NY — Movie theaters in New York will be allowed to reopen next week following a months-long closure, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced during a briefing on Saturday. The order goes into effect Oct. 23 and excludes theaters in New York City.

The order allows movie theaters to open at 25 percent capacity and carries with it mandatory guidelines, social distancing requirements and other precautions.

Among them:

• Movie theaters will only be allowed to reopen if the county of locations has an average positive testing rate of less than 2 percent in a 14-day period.
• Masks will be required at all times except when seated, eating or drinking.
• Assigned seating will be required in theaters.
• Additional staffing will be required to ensure compliance in occupancy, traffic and seating.
• Theaters will be required to meet enhanced air filtration, ventilation and purification standards.

More than 159,000 coronavirus tests were taken in New York on Friday, a new record for the state, Cuomo said in a tweet. Of those, 1,784 were reported positive. The state also reported nine deaths on Friday.

Watch Cuomo's full briefing: