2021 Festival FAQs

If you choose to submit record of a negative test within 72 hours of the event you are attending, you may pick up your tickets at will call after providing record of the negative test to the Box Office.

If you and your guests opt to provide a record of your COVID vaccination, our Box Office will email or mail your tickets as soon as we receive your records.

In order to reduce contact in the theatre-going experience, DMMO is recommending patrons utilize digital tickets for the 2021 Summer Festival. Tickets will be delivered by email as print-at-home or mobile tickets. Please note in your order if you would prefer to have physical tickets mailed to you or held at will call.

If you plan to show your ticket on your phone, have your ticket ready for scanning before you get to the entrance. We highly recommend taking a screenshot of your bar code before you arrive at the opera.

While we encourage everyone to experience all three productions, we will not offer ticket packages or subscriptions this summer. Given the performance schedule and limited capacity, selling performances individually will allow maximum flexibility in choosing the dates and number of performances that work best for you.

Ticket buyers may select their own seats for Sweeney Todd, The Queen of Spades, Platée and Fellow Travelers.

When it is time to reserve your tickets, please contact our Box Office (515-209-3257) if you have questions about accessible seating so we can better assist you.

Subscribers’ seats will be held until it is time to renew for the 2022 Festival Season. We look forward to the possibility of welcoming back full capacity audiences to the Blank Performing Arts Center in 2022.

Our performances will be filled around 50% capacity. We will continue to monitor current public health conditions and will adjust if conditions allow.

The Queen of Spades is appropriate for audiences over the age of 13. Sweeney Todd, Platée and Fellow Travelers contain mature subject matter and themes. Please contact the Box Office if you have questions about the content or age appropriateness of specific shows.

Credits can be used toward ticket purchases for this summer’s productions, rolled over to 2022 Summer Festival subscriptions, donated to Des Moines Metro Opera to support this summer’s one-of-a-kind season, or refunded in part or in full. We are happy to work with you as you evaluate your options, and we thank you for the support you have shown during these uncertain times.

We encourage you to plan ample time to park your car, provide record of a negative COVID-19 test or vaccination, and navigate to your seats prior to showtime. Should you arrive after the performance starts, decisions regarding latecomer seating will be handled at the discretion of house management.

We encourage anyone who is feeling unwell not to attend the performance. If you have any COVID-19 symptoms, please call the Box Office prior to your performance to discuss your ticket options. If you are feeling unwell, please stay home. We pledge to work with patrons on a case-by-case basis if you become unable to attend. We expect there will be a sizeable waiting list for seats filled with eager potential ticket buyers to purchase even last-minute seats.

Our safety strategy includes five basic mitigation strategies, developed and approved by our Medical Advisory Panel, that apply to all company and audience members:

Testing and Vaccination– Des Moines Metro Opera requires a negative COVID test completed within 72 hours of attendance at any DMMO performance or in-person event. Attendees may bypass this requirement by presenting proof of an approved COVID-19 vaccine as an alternative. We need you to join us in this important safety measure. All DMMO artists and company members will have been vaccinated prior to their June arrival in Iowa.

Masking – Everyone is required to wear a face mask at DMMO events unless eating or drinking. Singers and some orchestra musicians will perform unmasked during performances.  

Ventilation – DMMO has partnered with Waldinger Corporation and Simpson College to install supplemental air exchange systems that will increase fresh air exchanges per hour and enhance ventilation and circulation systems for extra safety.

DMMO will monitor changes in guidelines closely and continue to adjust decisions to prioritize everyone’s safety and enjoyment. Please check our Health and Safety Page frequently for updates.

View DMMO's complete Health and Safety Protocols >

All attendees at DMMO events this summer must provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test within 72 hours of the event. Attendees may bypass this requirement by presenting proof of an approved COVID-19 vaccine as an alternative.

To provide record of a negative COVID-19 test:

• Please ensure that your test was administered no more than 72 hours prior to the event you will attend (ie: a test administered not earlier than 2 p.m. on Thursday, 7/1, if attending the performance on Sunday, 7/4).
• Once you have your negative test result*, you may:
  • Send a photo or forward your text notification via text to (515) 209-3251
  • Send an image or forward your email notification via email to boxoffice@dmmo.org
  • Stop by the administrative office at DMMO, 106 W Boston Ave, Indianola IA 50125 before the date of the event you will attend and show our box office staff proof of a negative test.
  • Bring a copy of your negative test result with you the event you will attend (arrive at least 45 minutes before the beginning of the event, please)**

*Please ensure that you redact or block out any private information on the test result (if your result includes any personal medical information).

**To avoid congestion at will-call or the possibility of forgetting your proof of a negative test, we strongly recommend providing your negative test result BEFORE the event you are attending if possible.

To provide record of vaccination:

• It is only necessary to provide your record of vaccination one time this season, and we ask that you supply it as soon as possible so we can update your record.
• Once you have your vaccination card following your complete vaccination*, you may:
  • Send a photo via text to (515) 209-3251
  • Send an image via email to boxoffice@dmmo.org
  • Mail a copy of your vaccine card to 106 W Boston Ave, Indianola IA 50125
  • Stop by the administrative office at DMMO, 106 W Boston Ave, Indianola IA 50125 before the date of the event you will attend.
  • Bring your proof of vaccination with you to the event that you will attend (arrive at least 45 minutes before the beginning of the event, please)**

*Please ensure that you redact or block out any private information on the card (if your card includes any personal medical information).

**To avoid congestion at will-call or the possibility of forgetting your card, we strongly recommend providing proof of vaccination BEFORE the event that you are attending if possible.

DMMO takes your privacy seriously. We will not retain your personal information or any document regarding your vaccination record or negative test result for longer than 24 hours. 

Staff will update our patron database upon seeing your proof of vaccination or negative test result to qualify you for entry to appropriate DMMO events.

DMMO will purge any physical copy, email, or text with personally identifying information within 24 hours of its receipt.

Des Moines Metro Opera requires all patrons to wear a face mask while within the Blank Performing Arts Center and while attending any DMMO special events. We strongly recommend N95/KN95 masks or double-masking for the duration of your visit to our facility. If you need one, we will be happy to provide a mask for you. We recommend that your face mask should:

• Have two or more layers of washable, breathable fabric.
• Completely cover your nose and mouth.
• Fit snugly against the sides of your face and don’t have gaps.
• Have a nose wire to prevent air from leaking out of the top of the mask.

If you are feeling unwell, please stay home. Call our Box Office at least two hours prior to the performance time and we will exchange your tickets for a later date. If that is not possible, we will gladly turn your tickets into a credit for 2022, turn them into a tax-deductible donation, or give you a full refund for your tickets.

Each of the opera titles originally scheduled for the 2020 Summer Festival Season will be presented in July of 2021. They include all new productions of Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd, Tchaikovsky’s The Queen of Spades and Rameau’s Platée. Two performances will be given as part of our 2^nd Stages Series including Spears/Pierce’s Fellow Travelers at Hoyt Sherman Place and The John Holiday Experience at Sheslow Auditorium at Drake University.

Sweeney Todd, The Queen of Spades and Platée will be performed in our home theatre, the Blank Performing Arts Center, on the Simpson College campus in Indianola. Fellow Travelers will be performed at the historic Hoyt Sherman Place Theatre. The John Holiday Experience will be held at Sheslow Auditorium on the Drake University campus.

All 2021 Summer Festival productions will be performed in repertory beginning July 2 through July 25, 2021. Performances times vary. 

View the festival calendar >

Our popular Opera Prelude Talks by Joshua Borths will be recorded and offered on our website in advance of each production. You are invited to listen at your convenience or on your way to the show.

Sweeney Todd Overtures podcast >

The Queen of Spades Overtures podcast >

Platée Overtures podcast >