If you are reading this editorial, it means that 2020 has packed it in. We all believed in last year’s best wishes for good health, good business and a bright future, which we exchange almost out of habit. Let’s do it better in 2021, shall we?
Let’s start by not proclaiming victory as long as new strains are running rampant like the world debt, and until we all receive the magic shot in the arm. So, for now we’ll keep talking like speech therapists, with our glasses fogging up and our hands stinking of ethanol for as long as it takes, our Colgate smiles be damned. Finally, let’s bear it out with patience because, as Cervantes said to Don Quixote: “all these storms that befall us are signs that the weather will soon be fair, and things will go well with us”.
Take heart, 2021 is here
Above all, let’s keep the faith. The public, whose desire to return to the venues has been put in doubt, is waiting for this. On the rare occasions when we have been able to host them, in one seat out of every two, they have been there, serene and happy to see live shows again, despite a very limited artistic offering and unprofitable capacities.
Let’s use these long months of forced time off not to rest and, above all, not to rest on our laurels. In a few months, we’re going to experience an incredible rush and we’re going to have to be efficient, creative and innovative to keep up with a pace that will likely be infernal, so we may as well try to maintain our bodies and minds, our knowledge and our relationships.
2021 will also require us to know how to make the best use of our current technical assets. We will have to look for new sound designs, new lighting designs, learn how to make better use of networks, create audio and visual environments, devise more flexible logistics, and rethink the set-up phases and the tools that will make them even faster and safer.
Let’s also renovate our gear, let’s apply those touches of paint which, invisible to the public, nevertheless make employees and customers happier; in short, let’s do everything that has always been put off until the next day and, above all, let’s train as much as possible and take the necessary time at the shop to put into practice the knowledge we have acquired, a luxury that is impossible in periods of full activity.
Finally, let’s look for that rare and affordable gem, the new tool that will bring an irresistible plus for the audience without putting a minus sign in front of our margins, which we will have to keep a close eye on.
2021 is going to be a year of many challenges that we will have to face wisely, keeping the “price” factor out of the tenders as much as possible, but this year will also be the launch pad for the most amazing tours, musicals, plays and the most insane events that everyone is waiting for.
Happy New Year to everyone, including SoundLightUp who learned how to punch new holes in our belt without using our hands, and the last word goes to Gene “Seneca” Kelly: “Life isn’t about waiting
Text: Ludovic Monchat
