More than 250 people allowed for indoor concerts, stage plays - Nancy

The hosting of indoor concerts and stage plays are now allowed to seat more than 250 people depending on the capacity of the event halls, said Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri.

Nevertheless, organisers would need to ensure social distancing among members of the audience as well as complying with the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) to curb the spread of COVID-19 outbreak.

Citing Panggung Sari as an example, Nancy said Istana Budaya would only allow seating for 505 people despite it having 1,413 seats.

The minister said this after attending the New Normal Concert at Istana Budaya here, yesterday.

On July 10, Senior Minister (Security Cluster) Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob announced that starting July 15, the maximum number of participants or attendees for religious, social and official events would be subject to the event space capacity while maintaining safe distancing.

The New Normal Concert today and tomorrow was organised to provide a clearer picture of the implementation of the guidelines issued by Ministry of Health (MOH) and protocols set by National Security Council (MKN) for hosting of events during the Recovery Movement Control Order (RMCO) period.

Among the SOP implemented by Istana Budaya are not allowing audience member below 12 and above 60 into the hall, having disinfection process done before and after the event and limited show time of one and a half hour.

On the SOP for outdoor or stadium concerts, Nancy said the matter had been discussed with MKN and would be announced later subject to approval.