How the COVID-19 Delta Variant Could Impact Live Events

In March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a wave of cancellations and postponements of events. Now, over a year later, vaccines have allowed many events to pick up again, but the spread of the highly contagious delta variant casts uncertainty as to whether certain in-person events will – or should – continue in fall as expected.

Take, for example, the Chicago Lollapalooza Music Festival, which hosted nearly 385,000 people last month. The internet was plagued by criticism of the event that continued despite coronavirus fears as there were concerns that the music festival was a super-broadcaster event.

Chicago Public Health Commissioner Dr Allison Arwady shared in a tweet two weeks later, there was no evidence of a “super-spread event or substantial impact on Chicago’s COVID-19 epidemiology.” She also noted that more than 90% of participants were vaccinated, of which only 0.04% subsequently reported testing positive.

Still, reactions to Lollapalooza reflect reluctance among many to pick up on big events as COVID-19 variants ravage the world. Other large gatherings have been pushed back to 2022, such as the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, which was due to take place in October, and Justin Bieber’s Justice World Tour, which was due to start this summer.

“The [is] much more risk for anyone booking a live event between October and December, because the new variant is always unpredictable, ”says Clay Durant, CEO of entertainment consultancy CAD Management, which advises brands, artists and creators of content. Still, he said, with so many people keen to return to live events after spending more than a year in lockdown, “There will always be people who are willing to take the risk.”

Lollapalooza’s success, all things considered, could prompt more planners to continue with scheduled events, Durant says, albeit with safety precautions such as vaccine requirements, negative COVID-19 tests, and warrants. mask.

Dr Bob Bollinger, professor of infectious diseases at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, says if more people get vaccinated and masks are mandatory indoors, it’s likely we won’t see a another mass shutdown like we did in 2020. Applying these security protocols will allow the company to open up faster, he says, and prevent the variants from getting worse.

The hybrid approach

The answer for many event planners, at least until the end of the year, are hybrid events, which allow both in-person and online participation. This can be a draw for companies that want to hedge their bets while reaching out to a global audience, says Geoffrey Wellen, director of customer service at virtual events company 6Connex. He says inquiries about hosting virtual events have exploded at the company over the past two weeks and “started to emulate what happened last year” when there was massive cancellations.

Whether other events are postponed or canceled in the coming months also depends on general trends in the entertainment space, Wellen said. “What we found out last year was when a domino fell, the rest started to fall,” he added. “I imagine it’s going to be similar this year.”

Because the pandemic doesn’t appear to be ending anytime soon, many companies are adopting security measures while pursuing scheduled events, at least for now. Live Nation and AEG Presents have said they will require proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test for attendees and event staff at U.S. venues and festivals this fall.

Where events will continue will also depend on how a particular region handles COVID-19, said Mike Schabel, CEO of Kiswe, which is building the technology fueling digital events. Wherever cases are lowest, festivals and concerts are likely to continue. It will also depend on whether individual artists feel comfortable bringing together thousands of people at this time.

“It’s like threading a needle, and it changes every day,” Schabel said. “There is no rule book here that tells you what to do.”

Because some audiences may still be hesitant to join large crowds at this time, many live events over the next few months will likely be complemented by a virtual component, he says. This is something that will likely remain beyond the pandemic.

“It’s going to be part of our entertainment repertoire,” Schabel said.

Keep safety in mind

Choosing to attend a live event involves weighing the risks. Health experts are urging everyone to get vaccinated and wear a mask if you are indoors with people whose vaccination status is unknown.

“Before Delta, if someone wanted to go to a big event and they weren’t vaccinated, they were really just putting themselves in danger,” said William Lang, former White House doctor and director. WorldClinic Medical. “Now with delta, if you choose not to be vaccinated, you slightly increase the risk to those who are vaccinated.” While groundbreaking COVID-19 infections can occur with the delta variant, vaccination has been shown time and time again to protect against serious illness.

The risk of disease if you are not vaccinated applies to people of all ages, including young people who may mistakenly believe COVID-19 is not a threat to them, he says.

“Young people will not get so seriously ill, but we see a lot of young people in the hospital [and] in intensive care, ”he said.

Anyone can guess when conditions might improve, experts say, but it’s important to keep some perspective if events are called off or postponed in the months ahead.

“Everyone has to realize that artists who are great artists won’t stop being great artists tomorrow,” Schabel said. “They will always have the opportunity to play, sing, dance and perform. If you keep that in mind then everyone can make very good health and safety decisions.”