grand-ole-opry-announces-friday-night-performances-resume-november

Grand Ole Opry Announces Friday Night Performances Will Resume in November

The Grand Ole Opry will be returning to Friday night and two-hour performances. Plans to expand the venue’s reopening will take place starting in November. The first Friday show is scheduled for Nov. 6, according to News Channel 5.

Additionally, Saturday night shows will include a one-hour performance for the Circle Network. Starting in early October, the Opry has slowly reopened to audiences. The venue worked with the Metro Public Health Department on its social distancing guidelines. To ensure audience safety, the Opry spaced its seating farther apart and required all guests and staff wear facial coverings.

The Grand Ole Opry reopened its doors for its 95th anniversary

On Oct. 3, the Opry welcomed a crowd of 500 people to celebrate the 95th anniversary. Singers Terri Clark, Vince Gill, Dierks Bentley and Lorrie Morgan performed some of their most iconic songs at the venue for the celebration.

“It feels like having 500 fans in the audience is the next step as we work to return from this pandemic,” Dan Rogers, Opry executive producer, told The Tennessean. “It’s not the end of the journey — it won’t truly feel like the Grand Ole Opry until our backstage is bustling and there are 4,400 fans from around the world out there, excited about the big red curtain going up — but it’s the next step and a safe step to take to get to that point somewhere down the road.” 

Since the anniversary, the Opry has continued to allow a limited number of guests into the venue in October. While many places closed down during the pandemic, the music never actually stopped at the Opry, according to Forbes. Since March, the venue has invited musicians to perform every Saturday in a scaled-back concert. The Opry may not have had a live audience during much of the pandemic, but the venue has been live-streaming the performances online.

Brad Paisley, Marty Stuart, Amy Grant, Luke Combs and Terri Clark were among some of the performers.