Uncertain tune plays in Valley
Promoters, venues keep navigating waves, rules as pandemic nears third year
Signs indicate the concert and entertainment industry is back in business.
Packard Music Hall had its busiest fall in years, Disney on Ice drew more people to the Covelli Centre than it ever has and Nelly had one of the biggest crowds ever in the short history of the Youngstown Foundation Amphitheatre, according to Eric Ryan, president of JAC Management, which operates all three venues.
The Robins Theatre offered more than 10 performances in December, mixing veteran music acts and family entertainment. And Sunrise Entertainment President Ken Haidaris said River Rock at the Amp did great whenever the weather cooperated.
Stambaugh Auditorium saw audiences return for events ranging from Opera Western Reserve to Youngstown State University lectures, and Youngstown’s Westside Bowl hosted several national touring acts along with the local and regional performers that play there.
But many of the attractions that came to Youngstown and Warren played to smaller crowds than expected, and in several cases, promoters offered discounted tickets to lure more people in the doors. In a business where it’s always been a gamble guessing what audiences will pay to see, the odds of success are tougher as COVID-19 (and inflation and other issues) remains a concern.
“There are shows here and there that do well, but overwhelmingly attendance is off 20 to 40 percent on pretty much everything else,” Westside Bowl owner Nate Offerdahl said. “Anecdotally, I’m hearing the same thing from other venue operators. It’s a very different environment right now with multiple headwinds.”
MASKS AND VACCINES
With COVID-19 cases surging as the omicron variant moves across the country, the politicization of wearing masks and getting the coronavirus vaccine continues to be a problem for venue operators. If masks are required, some potential ticket buyers will object and stay away. If they aren’t, some potential ticket buyers won’t feel safe and stay home.
“Either way it’s going to cost you ticket sales,” Ryan said. “We’re in a tertiary market with a lot of competition. Put us up against any market with 500,000 people, and I guarantee you we’re in the top 10 in the amount of events we have, but we need everybody to make these financially work. I do feel you’re damned if you do and damned if you don’t (require masks).”
Dani Dier, chief business officer for Stambaugh and the DeYor Performing Arts Center, said she recently attended an event in Cleveland where audience members were required to wear masks and show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test.
“No one seemed to question it,” she said. “It’s really weird to see here in Youngstown-Warren how much pushback there is. For our ticketed public events, people are required to wear masks, and we police it as much as we can. Our staff’s safety is what we’re worried about and the performer’s safety.”
When those buildings are rented for private events, the renter can set the policy for attendees, but Stambaugh and DeYor staff still wear masks, Dier said.
Haidaris said they had many refund requests when the band America instituted a mask requirement for its October show at the Robins.
“We go by Ohio Department of Health and CDC guidelines,” Haidaris said “There’s not a mask mandate; there’s not a vaccine mandate.”
Westside Bowl may be the only concert venue in the area that does require masks and proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test. Offerdahl said he still believes it’s the right policy, but he also knows it hurts sales.
“What’s the vaccination rate in the city, 45 percent? That means 55 percent, if they want to come, have to take a test,” he said. “If it’s a national touring band, you might get a test. But if it’s a local band that plays here five times a year? You’re not coming, you’re just not.”
PROMOTERS GO YOUNG
While COVID-19 concerns and coronavirus policies can affect attendance for any event, the impact seems greatest on shows that appeal to an older audience.
Ryan said he’s studied the demographics, and shows whose target audience is 55 or 60-plus seem to be underperforming the most.
Offerdahl was even more blunt.
“If you’re looking at (a show that appeals to those) under 35, it’s going to perform to expectations or a little under,” he said. “35 to 54 and over 54, you’re going to have a hard time, I don’t care if it’s a national act, regional act or local act.”
Haidaris said he believes some genres seem more COVID-19-proof than others, particularly country music and the blues. He said early sales are strong for a spring show by blues guitar player Kenny Wayne Shepherd, which was announced earlier this month.
Ryan agreed that country audiences seem more willing to brave crowds, but he still believes age is a bigger factor than genre.
“I don’t see the issue going away soon,” he said. “I would think twice before bidding on the older demo shows.”
OUTDOORS OVER INDOORS
Crowds this summer at both the Youngstown Foundation Amphitheatre and the Warren Community Amphitheatre indicated that concertgoers seemed comfortable seeing shows outdoors. And Ryan said attendance figures nationwide indicate that outdoor shows are drawing better than indoor concerts.
That may be great in the South, but outdoor events are impossible in northeast Ohio at least half of the year and unpredictable in many spring and fall months.
Haidaris said he would consider using the Warren amphitheater for more than just the tribute acts that fill the River Rock at the Amp schedule, but other factors are involved.
“It’s more expensive to do a show at the amp because we have to provide sound, security, everything,” Haidaris said. “It’s much cheaper to do a show at the Robins because it’s all self-contained.”
Ryan expects a busy summer at the Youngstown amphitheater, but it also could run into problems beyond its control. The tours playing venues that size are smaller than the ones going to Blossom Music Center and have smaller crews. Three of the 12 national acts booked in 2021 canceled their Youngstown dates due to COVID-19 outbreaks within their touring entourage, Ryan said. Larger tours seem better equipped to weather those problems. That’s one of the reasons there haven’t been as many concerts booked at the Covelli Centre for fall and winter.
“Those shows couldn’t sustain one, two or three crew members getting COVID, where the bigger tours playing bigger arenas could sustain it better,” Ryan said. “Booking the arena was more of a challenge. That being said, I expect next summer and fall will be really good in that space.”
OUTLOOK FOR 2022
Since the start of the pandemic, many promoters and venue operators have expressed cautious optimism that things will get better in three to six months. It’s telling how unpredictable things remain that they’re still using that three-to-six-month timeframe to discuss their expectations for the new year.
With many Broadway shows shutting down due to COVID-19 concerns, Dier said she fears the same thing could happen with the touring productions, and Stambaugh and DeYor might rely more on local bookings than touring attractions until the future is more clear.
Offerdahl said he’ll probably be more conservative in the guarantees he offers acts playing Westside Bowl, at least until spring. But he stressed Westside Bowl primarily is a live music venue, and it will continue to be one, even if it means losing money in the short term.
Haidaris said he believes more and more people will get comfortable going to indoor shows as they get vaccinated and / or get tired of living under restrictions.
Ryan has plenty of events in the works for the venues JAC manages, but he also is aware that could change.
“Looking at 2022, you’d be crazy not to have concerns about omicron and how it could hurt the industry again,” he said. “Nobody has a crystal ball.”