The Paper Mill Playhouse is reopening following a 19-month pandemic shutdown.

The playhouse will feature the play “Songs for a New World” when it opens for live audiences.

“It’s a show about characters that have come up against a moment where they have to make a decision or make a change or take a stand and what do you do in that moment?” says actor Andrew Kober.

Kober says that he believes that the music in the show fits right in with what so many people have faced in life during the pandemic, even though the show was written more than 25 years ago by Jason Robert Brown.

The Millburn theater will require audience members to have the COVID-19 vaccine or a negative COVID-19 test.

“What we hope will happen, and I believe will happen here at Paper Mill, is people will come one time, maybe with a little trepidation, but they’ll see the safety protocols we have in place and they’ll feel safe about coming,” says Paper Mill artistic director Mark Hoebee.

While sold-out shows are normally a good thing, Hoebee says that it is not the goal this time around.

“Paper Mill has left 25% of the seats unsold. That is so that anyone who may be in the theater and feeling a little crowded can move to an area where there is more space,” he says.

"Songs for a New World" is in previews with its official opening on Sunday. It runs through Nov. 7.