'Springsteen on Broadway': Show reopens, but only those with certain Covid-19 vaccinations are welcome to attend

Only those fully vaccinated with Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna or Johnson & Johnson can go to the New York show

Bruce Springsteen's 'Springsteen on Broadway' will be the first show to reopen on Broadway since closures caused by the pandemic. AFP

Bruce Springsteen's show will be the first to reopen in Broadway following closures caused by the pandemic, but not everyone will be welcome to attend.

Only those who have been fully inoculated with US-approved vaccines will be able to go to Springsteen on Broadway, which reopens on Saturday, June 26 at the St James theatre in New York.

It starts with a five-night run, followed by more performances scheduled until Saturday, September 4.

Ticketholders will have to prove they have received one of three Covid-19 vaccines approved for emergency use by the US Food and Drug Administration. These are Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson.

That means anyone who has had the AstraZeneca-Oxford jab, which is popular in Canada and the UK, or Sinopharm, widely available in the UAE, will not be able to attend, for example.

Those eager to enjoy the show, which is billed as "an intimate night with Bruce, his guitar, a piano and his stories", are not happy with the announcement, particularly people in Canada, where nearly two million people have received the AstraZeneca vaccine.

A headline in the Toronto Star newspaper read: "Burn in the USA", a play on one of Springsteen's most popular hits.

“The show must go on," the newspaper wrote. "But if you got the AstraZeneca vaccine, you’re not invited."

The theatre's owners said the rule has been implemented "at the direction of New York state" and that the only exemption will be for children 16 or younger, although they still must provide a recent negative Covid-19 test and be accompanied by a fully vaccinated adult.

Concert-goers will not be required to wear masks.

The reopening is being seen as a test, as many other Broadway shows have not planned to launch until September onwards.

The show is based on the musician's autobiography Born to Run. "I loved doing Springsteen on Broadway and I'm thrilled to have been asked to reprise the show as part of the reopening of Broadway," Springsteen said in a statement.

Earlier this week, Springsteen released a new track with The Killers called Dustland, a remake of the band's 2008 song A Dustland Fairytale, which was written as a tribute to the lead singer, Brandon Flowers's parents.