GALA Hispanic Theatre will celebrate its 45th season this fall by becoming one of the first theaters in the D.C. region to reopen for indoor, in-person theatrical performances.

The Columbia Heights theater celebrates the work of Latinx writers and performers, often through shows in Spanish with English captioning. Its first show of the 2020-2021 season will be an adaptation of “El Perro del Hortelano,” or “The Dog in the Manger,” a comedy by the 16th century Spanish playwright Lope de Vega. It opens Oct. 29.

The theater has put in place a number of safety precautions ahead of its reopening. To prevent the spread of coronavirus, the performance space, lobby, and backstage spaces will all be cleaned daily. Masks, glove, hand sanitizer and disinfecting wipes will be available in the lobby. And a theater spokesperson says they’ve revamped their HVAC system and installed “high efficiency filters.”

Staff and patrons will be required to wear masks at all times, in line with D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser’s mask ordinance. Volunteers will check the temperatures of everyone entering the theater with non-touch thermometers.

The D.C. government currently limits mass gatherings to 50 people, so GALA will only sell up to 50 tickets per show — less than 20% of the theater’s maximum capacity. Patrons can buy up to two tickets online. If they want to buy three or more, they’ll need to contact GALA’s box office to coordinate a socially distant seating arrangement.

GALA is one of the only theaters in the D.C. region to announce firm reopening plans for the fall — if not the only one. Some theaters have canceled all 2020 performances, including Round House in Bethesda and Theater J near Dupont Circle. Arena Stage plans to start its 2020-2021 season in January.

The Kennedy Center has laid out plans for hosting in-person, indoor concerts, but it’s waiting to move forward until D.C. enters phase three of reopening. When that happens, the performing arts center will transform its opera house into a COVID-era performance space. Artists will perform on a stage extension built out into the hall’s orchestra-level seating section. Patrons will be seated in pairs on stage and look out at the performers. The hour-long performances will have no intermission in an effort to reduce contact, and audiences will be capped at 200.

And while many theaters have had to fire employees due to the shutdown, GALA says it has avoided laying off or furloughing any staff members.

“Today there are still too few theaters staging stories by Latinx writers with Latinx actors, and at the same time we are faced with a public health crisis that reveals the inequities faced by communities of color,” said Rebecca Read Medrano, GALA’s co-founder and executive director. “So we affirm our commitment, continue the experiment, and renew our act of love and faith by taking the necessary steps to safely open our 45th season.”