Status: 08/21/2021 1:57 p.m.
Cultural life is back, there are events again. But can they pay off if Corona requirements limit the number of visitors? There is still great uncertainty in the industry.
Philipp Godart has to hurry this Saturday. The solo musician is allowed to perform at four events. An unfamiliar situation, because for months there was almost nothing going on for him professionally. “Now the people finally want to celebrate again,” said the Cologne singer, who performed in front of 60 carnivalists on this day.
The party friends catch up with the carnival, and Godart can finally play in front of an audience again. It is still not really plannable because the uncertainty is still great. “Most bookings come very spontaneously, sometimes on Friday I am asked for Saturday,” says the singer. Cancellations are still the order of the day. But the back and forth is better than the excruciating situation of the past few months.
Many rely on support
For almost two years, next to nothing went, reports Godart. In the corona crisis, he was dependent on support. At the very beginning, Godart applied for emergency aid. In the meantime, however, it is clear that he has to repay the entire amount. “The conditions have been changed retrospectively”. He also applied for bridging aid, but here most of the money was incurred for tax advisors, who had to submit the applications for him. He was only able to claim fixed costs from the state subsidies.
“As a solo artist, that meant renting the studio or the storage room for me. But the monthly costs of 400 euros for the artist’s social security fund were not included,” said Godart. And so all the financial aid has become a ballast. “With every euro that I have received, I am afraid that I might have to pay it back. One is concerned about approaching the money.”
Still great uncertainty
One thing remains above all with the artists: a great deal of uncertainty. The view into the future is anything but certain, says the President of the Federal Association of the Concert and Event Industry, Jens Michow. “There would only be light at the end of the tunnel if the industry were finally told what still needs to happen so that events without distance rules using the full hall capacity are possible again.” The federal association criticizes that under the currently applicable rules it is almost impossible to carry out concerts and events economically. There are still restrictions on the number of visitors.
At major events with more than 5,000 spectators, the occupancy may not exceed 50 percent of the respective maximum capacity and is limited to a maximum of 25,000 spectators. Such events are “at best employment measures” for artists and the many self-employed individuals who earn their money with them, according to Michow. “They can’t be economical. An income opportunity of 50 percent at a cost of 100 percent makes little economic sense.”
Dieter Semmelmann, managing director of the major event organizer Semmel Concerts, also criticizes the fact that there are no uniform rules in Germany. “We are currently struggling with a federal confusion of regulations, which makes it impossible to carry out national tours. We need a clear structure. In his opinion, this includes:” No restriction by incidences, full utilization of the halls, if need be with a mask and an approval of the public for vaccinated, convalescent and tested people “.
Ralph Siegel has to finance musicals privately
The crisis has almost shattered many a lifelong dream. The legendary composer Ralph Siegel actually wanted his musical “Zeppelin” to start in November 2020. But because of Corona, the premiere had to be postponed again and again. The consequences were severe. State aid could not flow in part, Siegel had to pay fees from its own hand, the producers jumped out. Ralph Siegel didn’t want to give up his heart project so easily. “I then went to the bank myself and asked for a loan. I went in at full risk and thank God the bank said yes”.
Now everyone is sure that it can finally start. On October 16, the world premiere of the Zeppelin musical will finally start in the Festspielhaus in Füssen. But under what conditions? In order for the loan to be paid, it is important to play in front of a full house. Here Siegel appeals to politicians: “You can’t permanently forbid vaccinated people to take part in cultural events. We will only be able to continue if we play in full halls. We have to pay the artists every day, we are not subsidized,” said Siegel .
3G rule
As part of the protection against infection in the corona pandemic, the 3G rule serves to define groups of people who are assumed to have a low epidemiological risk. The three “G” stand for:
– Gvaccinated persons
– Genesene people
– Gtested people (i.e. people with a current, negative SARS-CoV-2 test)
Proof of belonging to one of these three groups of people may include access authorizations to facilities or entry permits to certain countries. The competent authorities in each case define whether and in which cases the 3G rule is applied and how long the evidence of membership of the respective group of people is valid – for example, how old a negative test result may be or how long ago the infection was survived allowed to benefit from the 3G rule after recovery.
Industry relies on 3G rule
The industry therefore continues to rely on the 3G rule, i.e. access for those who have recovered, who have been vaccinated or who have been tested. Excluding non-vaccinated people is anything but desirable, says Jens Michow. “After all, based on the current vaccination coverage, you would still have to forego 50 percent of your audience. Above all, I want to finally know how politicians react to this proposal. I’m getting the impression that normal events are no longer at all should give. “
Philipp Godart is optimistic about the coming months and hopes above all that more people will be vaccinated. “I can’t understand the young people who don’t get vaccinated. Or maybe they don’t realize how much it depends on it for other people and for us artists.”