Kentucky dining restrictions force Rupp Arena concerts to be postponed
Rupp Arena’s restart of live music has been postponed.
“With the recent restrictions placed on indoor dining, which includes food and beverage at Rupp Arena concession stands, the decision has been made to postpone the upcoming December concerts,” Rupp said in a news release.
The emergency order put in place in November by Gov. Andy Beshear halted the sale of food and drink in the arena, including at University of Kentucky men’s basketball games. The food and drink restrictions are expected to be lifted on Dec. 14.
Beshear put the restrictions in place, at the behest of the White House coronavirus task force, in November as the cases surged to new levels. They are meant to halt the spread of the virus, which has killed almost 275,000 nationally and more than 2,000 in Kentucky since March.
Two December concerts that were set to be the first live music events to play the Lexington venue since the coronavirus pandemic hit in March have been rescheduled to January.
The Acoustic Concert, which was scheduled for Dec. 8, has be rescheduled to Jan. 15, according to an announcement by Central Bank Center. The concert was moved to Rupp from the Lexington Opera House to allow for a larger socially distanced crowd than would be permitted inside the Opera House.
Also the Three 6 Mafia concert, originally scheduled for Dec. 11, has been moved to Jan. 16, according to the venue.
All previously purchased tickets for both concerts will be honored for the new dates, according to the announcement.
Both concerts are subject to only 15 percent seating capacity because of the COVID pandemic, as the UK games have been, limiting the crowd to about 3,000.
For more information on tickets and COVID-19 protocols, go to rupparena.com.
