In Sermamagny, in the Territoire de Belfort, the Eurockéennes had to reinvent themselves because of the health crisis. The usual 130,000 festival-goers have given way to 1,200 privileged people who come with their health pass.
'
C
' is a crisis of the festival,
says Jean-Paul Roland, CEO of the event.
What people lack the most is a change of scenery. Rather than imagine a reduced version, we wanted to offer something else.
"
A change of location, first of all. “
We opened the part of the peninsula which is usually reserved for VIPs. Festival-goers discover a new place, which is home to beautiful surprises.
In particular, a stage built on the water where artists can perform
,
”
says the patron of the festival since the early 2000s. A second stage, the green room, is reserved for DJ's. The organizers have also enriched the offer for meals. “
We called on seven very talented chefs to be able to serve 150 people each evening in a rural atmosphere by the water. The seats are gone in five minutes. It gives a different twist to the event, more convivial
”, rejoices Jean-Paul Roland.
Read also: After the cancellation of the festival this summer, the Eurockéennes postpone the Muse concert until 2022
The festival started on July 20.
“The day after the President's speech on the evening of the 12th, we offered to reimburse the 5,000 people who had their tickets. We received 82 requests. ”
For some, the presentation of the sanitary pass is not too strong a constraint. “
For me there are no problems because I got vaccinated quickly,
” says a festival-goer at the microphone of BFM. Before adding: “
It feels good to be able to mix it up a bit. With the introduction of the health pass, I feel more confident. ”
Upon arrival, people must scan their QR code. Otherwise, a rapid test center is also provided on site. "
Of the 1200 visitors, we needed to perform 52 tests.
We send newsletters every day to remind them to come equipped with their tests or their pass.
"
Avoid deprogramming
This year, no international headliners.
The choice is quickly assumed by Kem Lalot, programmer of the festival, as he explains at the microphone of BFM:
“We decided not to program American and English artists, because it would be difficult to bring them in.
"
Jean Paul Roland, him, nuance: “
The challenge of bringing in foreign artists was very present. But we still wanted international programming to go hand in hand with this idea of a change of scenery. Out of 30 programmed artists, 10 are foreigners. We also opened the festival with a group from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Fulu Muziki. One of their musician couldn't get her visa, but she's the only foreigner who couldn't come.
"
The 2021 edition of the festival will not lose money. “
We wanted to save the structure and avoid getting into financial difficulty on this somewhat alternative project. The usual patrons and sponsors have responded this year, despite the changes in conditions, which has even enabled us to offer places at 10 euros for those under 19, ”
explains Roland. A good way to attract a local high school audience, who have not had the opportunity to go to concerts since the start of the epidemic. And to conclude: "
We were ready to quickly set up this sanitary pass system so that the live sector was not constantly on and off. But we feel stigmatized, it's heavy. We hope that everything will be quickly replaced by clear health protocols, which would allow us to regain some stability.
"