KUTX In this file photo, hundreds of people gather near a stage during the Austin City Limits music festival. The City of Austin announced Wednesday it is loosening the COVID-19 rules for event organizers applying for permits.
Austin s ailing live music and arts scenes have been hurting in the pandemic.
But as more and more Central Texans get vaccinated and COVID-related hospitalizations wane, the city known for live music is priming itself for a return to relative normalcy.
As part of that process, the Austin Center for Events announced Wednesday it s revising the health and safety requirements it laid out in March for organizing events.
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Let the music play. Popular Austin venue Cheer Up Charlies will reopen to the public on Saturday, as the city s music venues slowly return amid growing vaccinations for COVID-19.
The Red River Cultural District cornerstone, which is known as an LGBTQ-friendly space for performance and nightlife, has been largely dormant since shutting down in March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. On Friday, the venue held a friends & family welcome home party, and it will be open this weekend to the public from 4 p.m. to midnight, according to a post on the Cheer Up Charlies Instagram account.
DJs on Saturday will be Winona Grindr and Mouthfeel & Dylan Reece; on Sunday, Suxxy Puxxy & Lilith will provide the music, which starts at 6 p.m. both nights.
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After sitting dark for over a year, celebrated Red River Cultural District club the Mohawk will reopen on May 27 with a limited capacity show from the Heartless Bastards. The event is part of grand opening celebration that will also include the club s annual cheese dip smackdown, the Quesoff, on May 29.
The Mohawk will continue programming local and regional shows and operating at 50% capacity through June and July before bringing back full capacity shows in August. The club s calendar for late summer into fall includes a two-night stand from the Mountain Goats, performances from power pop trio Jukebox the Ghost and indie rock outfit Bully, two nights with Waxahatchee and an October get down with bounce queen Big Freedia.