Entertainment is allowed in eateries and wineries again. Just don’t expect big concerts.

“Pivot, pivot, pivot. That’s been the word for this whole thing,” says Koly McBride, who runs Paper Wing Theatre in Monterey. She just received confirmation from local health officials that the county is following the lead of state guidance and allowing live entertainment to resume in restaurants, wineries and bars. Paper Wing qualifies, because it doubles as a restaurant.

Up until Sept. 29, a number of restaurants hosted live music. Then the County Health Department sent out a letter, reminding “all food facilities that live music and entertainment is not allowed under the current guidance issued by the California Department of Public Health.” Before that letter, there was limited guidance. McBride was in the middle of polishing an outdoor dinner theater play when she received the news.

Outdoor entertainment has been allowed since Dec. 3. But county spokesperson Karen Smith says the news may have been lost because six days later came a stay-at-home order, putting a stop to it. “It is not surprising that people have not heard,” Smith wrote over text.

Kim Stemler, executive director of Monterey County Vintners and Growers Association, says wineries are elated with the news, hoping – cautiously – to entice more customers. “We’re very cautious, but just being able to add to the experience of a wine tasting is going to make it better,” Stemler says “We’re talking about small acoustic shows, not concerts,” she adds.

One of the biggest changes for venues is the way the musicians are arranged. If playing in a group, musicians have to be socially distant from each other and if they’re vocalists or using their mouth to play an instrument, they have to be at least 12 feet from the closest audience member.

Kiki Wow, who just finished a gig at Twin Oaks Winery in San Marcos, says she’s excited to get back to work in Monterey County. Even so, she doesn’t expect normal to return for a long time. “I think people will approach with trepidation and caution,” she says. “It’s hard to be a performer and not see your audience smiling back at you.”

She’s mostly been recording since the shutdown, but the prolific local singer-songwriter says she and other musicians are ready to get back to performing live, even if it means adapting to spaced-out outdoor restaurant settings in winter.

“This is our livelihood and it’s been very hard for some of us to work in isolation,” she says. “It’s just a sigh of relief. We’ve been cut off for months, and now we have permission.”

As for McBride, she’s picking up where she left off readying a production of Jungle Book set to run in March, and has booked a magician. “We needed a plan and direction. [Paper Wing] had a plan. This is our direction,” she says.