Safe and Sound

By Bekah Sandy

Jeff Vaughan can practically feel the Symphony supporters’ palpable eagerness to return to Benaroya Hall.

“There’s this pent-up demand to listen to some of the best musicians in the world,” said the Seattle Symphony’s Facility Director. “People have got to be yearning for [live music]. There’s just nothing like it. It’s transformational...”

But is it safe?

Vaughan knows this is the question on everyone’s mind, and as one of the individuals tasked with ensuring an unequivocally affirmative answer, he says it’s his honor to be part of the team responsible for providing the safest space possible for the community to connect, reflect and heal. Here’s what the longtime arts facility safety expert had to say about how he views his role, why he feels safe at Benaroya Hall, why an arts organization should avoid safety theatrics, and more:

Q: How do you view your role as Facilities Director at Benaroya Hall for the Seattle Symphony?

A: I kind of consider myself as an ultimate caretaker for Benaroya Hall. Making sure it’s clean, welcoming, comfortable, safe — that’s my role, and it’s a responsibility that I’m honored to have, because it doesn’t get more iconic than Benaroya Hall in Seattle. Obviously, the safety component of my role has evolved this past year and a half, but at its core, my job is to make sure that patrons have a great experience, that our building functions at its highest level, and that the Symphony’s staff is supported to do the wonderful work they do. 

Q: It sounds a bit like being the host at a great party while also serving as its safety guard. How do you decide which role takes precedence?

A: You want to make sure everyone is having a great time, but you want that great time to happen in the safest way possible. That was true even before the pandemic. It’s a cliché, but that safety first slogan is one that’s always been true for us. Life, safety and security are always priority one issues for me. That’s what’s going to get first attention.

Q: What initially drew you to working in the arts industry?

A: I’m an odd bird. As a teenager, if my dad had his way, I was going to be a ship captain, but when I was 16 years old, I walked into a Wizard of Oz casting call and said, “Hey, I don’t want to act, but what can I do?” And they said, “Do you want to run the soundboard?” And I said, “Sure!” And that was it. That one experience changed my career trajectory, and life, forever. I can tell you the name of the director, of everyone in the show, how it made me feel, all of it, because of that experience. It was a pivotal moment where I knew I’d found something.

Q: How did that love of the arts transform into a career?

A: As anyone in the world of nonprofit theater can tell you, resources can be slim, so you take on more and more responsibilities as the need arises. I always tell the story of how at this one theater they asked, “Can you open this window?” And I said, “Yeah, I can do that,” and they were like, “Great. You’re in charge of facilities.” So, you know, it grows. I’m just an arts guy, through and through, who somehow made it into the world of facilities. It’s a win. A big win.

Q: Obviously, your job presented different challenges this past year and a half. How did you approach ensuring that Benaroya Hall is as safe as it can be for the audiences, musicians and staff?

A: First and foremost, you want to make sure you’re compliant. That’s a great place to start. You look at all of the regulatory and official guidance you can. You look at everything there is from Occupational Safety and Health Administration, State Department of Labor & Industries, King County, City of Seattle, etc. It’s a lot of research and reading. I checked the International Association of Venue Managers, where folks from all over the country that run performing arts centers, stadiums, arenas and convention centers share their best practices. And because this is an airborne virus, we consulted with the industry association for air systems, because they’re the authority on this. You start by educating yourself by seeking out the best resources you can. You learn, you consult, you follow the guidance and the science, and you try to dig through it all as thoughtfully as you can to create the most robust safety program you can.

Q: How safe do you feel at Benaroya Hall?

A: The short answer is that I feel very safe. The longer answer is that I feel very safe, mostly because of our air handling system. Benaroya Hall is a large, well-built, well-intentioned concert hall. In order to condition air and do so silently, you need the best designed air systems out there. If you go to a convention center and stand in the atrium or lobby, you can hear the air moving. And that’s fine. But you don’t want that happening at a world-class concert hall, which we are. You don’t want to hear the air conditioning in the middle of a symphony concert. So, we have the advantage right off the bat of having an air system that’s almost overbuilt. Even before COVID, Benaroya Hall had installed a double filtration system. That was just an inherent design of this level of system. Not every performing arts center has double air filtration. This is the first place I’ve worked that does. Additionally, the filters we use exceed recommendations for mitigating the COVID-19 virus. Our air exchange rates do, too. We’re also adding ionization equipment to suspend pollutants and viruses and bacteria mid-air to make it easier for the filters to scrub them out of the air. It’s cool stuff. And it’s stuff like that, along with all of our other many safety protocols, that give me immense peace of mind.

Q: In other words, our patrons can feel as safe as is reasonable at Benaroya Hall?

A: It’s only logical to be a little suspect any time you’re in an indoor environment during a pandemic [with airborne transmission]. But coming into Benaroya Hall? It doesn’t worry me. We have the best air system for this, and we’re one of the few facilities in the city that has this level of air purification. I’m not saying that every restaurant or shop or whatnot should be going out and getting the same air purification system we have. We’re a large performance venue that needs the best air system there is to ensure that our acoustics remain spectacular. It doesn’t make sense for your average business to do that. But I do think about these things when I’m out and about and then come here. All to say, yes, I feel safe here.

Q: Of course, Benaroya Hall’s safety policies encompass more than just superb air purification. Can you talk about your cleaning protocols? 

A: The other part of staying healthy is the cleaning and sanitization. We already had robust disinfection protocols as part of our pre-pandemic cleaning program. We’ve always been disinfecting high touch surfaces regularly. Now, we’re relying on those solid practices we already had in place, but with greater frequency. And we’re incorporating contactless systems and hand sanitization stations.

Q: How do you approach ensuring that your policies are effective, especially as increasing studies surrounding COVID-19 result in evolving knowledge of best practices?

A: As an arts organization, we know how to put on a good show, but when it comes to safety, you want to avoid theatrics. So, for example, you might remember footage of crews using a giant fog machine to spray aerosolized disinfectant at parks and down city streets in other countries. It looks impressive, but the science doesn’t match. I’m not going to spray a fog of aerosolized disinfectant on the seat I’m sitting on, because I’m not physically coming into contact with the seat. My pants are. But I’m not. And I’m not breathing in the virus from my chair. It might make people feel good to see a picture of someone fogging a seat that way, but there are many other measures that would have greater impact on reducing the virus’s spread. What is effective is masking, more frequent cleaning, our air system, and time. Another example would be those plexiglass dividers that started appearing at the beginning of the pandemic. The science has since shown they actually disrupt air flow, so any virus isn’t cleared out as effectively. You can have the best intentions and want something visible to reassure people that measures are being taken, but what will keep us safest isn’t the theater of it. What keeps us safest is looking at the facts and developing procedures based on those facts.

Q: What does it feel like to have that responsibility of making sure people stay safe in these uncertain times?

A: Thankfully, our safety plan is by no means my sole plan. I’m part of a wonderful group of people who are committed to making Benaroya Hall as safe as it can possibly be. We have an entire team dedicated to researching these topics, talking them through, running scenarios, consulting experts and more to make the best decisions we can when crafting the best policies we can.

Q: How do you feel about returning to live music? How do you think our audience members feel?

A: I understand not everyone is automatically excited about coming back to this kind of communal environment. And I think it’s only normal — not to mention smart — to ask what risks you’re encountering as you go about any activity during a pandemic. I’ll share this story in closing. When we were moving our performances from in-person to livestream, I got to be part of a socially-distanced test audience. And as I was sitting there... it was emotional, to be honest. As I sat in Taper Auditorium and listened to our symphony, all I could think was, “Oh, my goodness. This is... wow.” I remember thinking, “Hey, streaming’s great. And our streaming’s the best. But I don’t care how good your home stereo is. You can’t replicate this.” The energy, the vibe — there’s no substitute for that in-person experience, where you’re watching with the people around you. That energy? People have got to be yearning for it. There’s just nothing like it. It’s transformational. I just have to believe there is this pent-up demand to experience what I got to experience. It’s our job to make sure everyone knows and feels they are safe during that experience. And that’s what I’m trying to do, what all of us at the Seattle Symphony are committed to doing. We are taking all of the necessary precautions. And we are taking them seriously. Because we know how important, how vital this is.