“Total deconfinement, without distancing, is now! The appeal launched to the President of the Republic by the Prodiss (with the cabaret and private theater unions) was not heard. The national union for musical and variety shows, which has nearly 500 members, including the owners of the 90 main private performance halls - from the Zeniths to the Stade de France - is very worried that Emmanuel Macron has not addressed their deconfinement , Sunday, during his speech.
Aurélien Binder, vice-president of Prodiss in charge of theaters, and president of Fimalac Entertainment, which manages 35 in France, including five Zeniths, six Parisian theaters and the Pleyel hall, explains.
Did Emmanuel Macron's speech disappoint you?
AURÉLIEN BINDER. Beyond disappointment, it worried me. Live performance companies, we are completely ignored, we do not exist. While the dead loss of our 500 members in cash over the year amounts to 275 million euros! Everyone goes green except us. Because we would be the last to spread the contagion. We are shown as dangerous economic actors. While the purchase of show tickets has stalled, how are we going to reassure spectators so that they come back to our halls?
A few weeks ago, you did not envisage their reopening before 2021…
With the improvement in the health situation, we are a little more optimistic. We could reopen this fall. But in September, in December? We have no idea. The only certainty is that we do not want to start over with the current distancing measures, because it is not economically viable. And with the Vigipirate plan, it's even impossible. A thousand spectators waiting outside is a kilometer long queue. No, it requires a complete deconfinement, but with health consistency.
What do you mean ?
We propose to experiment during the summer with a gradual reopening. We would do a test in July in a room of 2,000 people. For the public, we would impose freezing at the entrance, wearing a mandatory mask in circulation spaces and then free to keep it in the room. It would also be a test for staff, technicians and artists, which must also be reassured. The refreshment stalls, which are compulsory in the economic balance, would be opened with equipped employees of course ... Then, every fortnight, we would see if this health protocol works with 500 additional spectators according to the rate of circulation of the virus. The objective is that in September, we will be able to open halls with 5,000 seats, such as the Accor Arena and Paris La Défense Arena, and beyond without distancing.
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And what does the Ministry of Culture think?
We do not know ! It is the most total indifference. We were very conscientious, we worked a lot, discussed, there were a lot of back and forth trips which are ultimately only back and forth.