Lincoln Grand Cinema offers vaccine-required shows

Marcus Theatres is hoping the option appeals to people who've been holding off on returning to the cinema.

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – Remember going to the movies? The pandemic may have hit movie theaters harder than many other places, but we’ve seen them slowly come back to life. Still, it’s not quite all normal.

“It’s been a long couple of years”, says Marcus Theatres Vice President of Sales Clint Wisialowski. “As this continued to bear down on us, we realized that there were a lot of guests who hadn’t been back to us in a long time.

There have been changes to help put people at ease, Wisialowski says. “We’ve changed so many things from where we have hand sanitizer, to how we ventilate our theaters, to how we sanitize our seats.”

Another change is the advent of vaccine-required shows. They start at the Lincoln Grand Cinema on Friday, January 21.

“A vax-required show is a single showtime of a single title in a single auditorium”, Wisialowski explains. “It’s very clear on our website and our app what’s vax-required.”

Sure enough, one look at the website to find the best showtime for you, and the bold “vaccine required” addition to certain films makes it clear these are the special showings. Those are outliers. You don’t need to worry if you don’t have or want the vaccine.

“You don’t need a vaccine card to go to the theater. You don’t need a vaccine card to use the concession stand, or to visit the lobby, or to go to the bar.” Wisialowski continues, “You need a vaccine card for that single showtime of that title in that auditorium.”

That’s because this option is just that: an option. It’s not meant to keep people out, but to bring more people in.

“We don’t want to block you from going, and we don’t want to be Big Brother and say you’ve got to have a vaccine card if you want to go to this theater”, says Wisialowski. “We want to give you the choice.”

If you do make that choice, you’ll need your proof of vaccination, either on the card you were issued or a paper copy. You’ll also need to bring a photo ID. If you’re going to any other show, don’t worry about those extras. You also don’t need to bring them at any other theater in Lincoln. The Grand is the only location offering the vaccine-required shows.