As Connecticut’s vaccine rollout continues and with the state ready to essentially eliminate restrictions on businesses this month, theatergoers are starting to show a willingness to return to performing-arts venues, which could signal a recovery ahead for a key industry that’s been hit hard by the pandemic.

The latest monthly statistics from Audience Outlook Monitor (AOM) — a global survey of theaters, museums and other arts spaces, including venues in Connecticut — show for the first time a dramatic increase in peoples’ willingness to return to their favorite indoor arts spots.

The March survey found as many as 46% of Northeast audience respondents said they are willing to go to indoor arts events right now, following mask requirements and other safety guidelines, an uptick of nine percentage points compared to February.

Meantime, 70% of Northeast audience respondents said they see themselves returning to venues by September and 80% say “yes” to an October return.

Those numbers, Connecticut theater executives say, are promising and may even prompt some venues to reopen earlier than anticipated.

At stake is a key part of the state’s economy, which has been largely sidelined since the start of the pandemic.

The Connecticut arts and culture industry accounts for about 5% of the state’s GDP — or about $9 billion in economic activity — and supports about 57,000 jobs, more than half of which have been shed over the past year, according to federal data and the Southeastern Connecticut Cultural Coalition.

“It’s a whole different ball game,” says Alan Brown, principle of WolfBrown, an international arts consulting and research firm that created the study to track audience attitudes on such topics as returning to the theater, digital offerings and vaccinations. “I am now…CONTINUED