(NBC) Simulcast concerts
- From: "Donnieb78" <donnieb78@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: 31 May 2006 12:54:32 -0700
Somebody posted a question recently on how this works:
From Widespread to Stones, concerts moving to big screen|
|By DOUG GROSS|
|Associated Press Writer|
CHAMBLEE, Ga. (AP) - After attending more than 100 Widespread Panic
concerts, Julie Stevens knew what she was talking about when she said a
show this month at Atlanta's Fox Theater was different.
''You can see a lot better and you can hear the music and
there's no smoke,'' said Stevens, 27, of Atlanta, during a break
between sets. ''That's cool because it's been a long time since
I've seen them up close.''
The difference? Stevens was watching this concert live on a big screen
12 miles away from the Fox at a movie theater in this Atlanta suburb.
Widespread Panic, the jam band from Athens, Ga., that has built a
massive following based on the strength and carnival atmosphere of its
live shows, joins acts like the Rolling Stones, Bon Jovi and Green Day
who in the past year-and-a-half have rolled out concerts simulcast on
big screens offsite. Sometimes way, way offsite.
Combining rock shows and movie theaters is an idea at least as old as
1970's ''Woodstock,'' the movie version of the previous
year's legendary three-day festival. But advances in technology are
making it easier to pull off events like the May 9 Widespread Panic
show - when the concert was beamed live to 114 theaters around the
country, from California to Florida.
And an increasingly competitive marketplace is making the special
events attractive for bands looking to reach new audiences and offer
something special for their existing fans.
''The artists, the managers, the promoters ... have all come to
see there is a terrific value in bringing their music to movie-theater
screens so fans can gather together to see them nationally - but in a
very local and personal way,'' said Dan Diamond, vice president of
digital programming for Big Screen Concerts.
The Denver-based company is jointly owned by three of the world's
biggest movie theater chains - AMC, Cinemark and Regal - and has
the capacity to broadcast concerts and other special events in as many
as 850 theaters nationwide. Other companies have occasionally
simulcasted concerts, but not as frequently and to as many theaters as
Big Screen Concerts.
The company kicked off by offering recorded performances by bands like
KISS, Rush and the Grateful Dead in 2003. But with changes in
technology, the number of live simulcasts has steadily increased in the
past two years.
Big Screen broadcast 21 concerts in 2004, including Phish, Jimmy
Buffett and Prince, and 10 last year. They've done six already this
year - most recently a May 16 show by Pink Floyd's David Gilmour.
Tickets range from $10 to $20, depending on the group and whether the
event is live or, as in still a few cases, recorded. And most concerts
are scheduled for weeknights - when the vast majority of movie
theater seats are typically empty.
''Clearly, we're primarily focusing on nontraditional, non-peak
nights,'' Diamond said. ''We're not trying to compete with
our core movie business.''
The company's most successful event was a simulcast of the last
concert by jam rockers Phish. About 40,000 tickets were sold for the
August 2004 show.
Widespread Panic vocalist John Bell said simulcasting a concert allows
the usually hard-touring group to still reach out to fans without the
rigors of an extended tour.
He also called it a chance for the band, formed in 1986, to continue a
tradition of exploration that has kept music-making exciting for the
group's members after two decades.
''The kids buy into the novelty of it, just the way we do,''
said Bell, hours before their recent simulcast show. ''It's a new
way to have that concert experience with your friends in your hometown
- and you get to buy popcorn.''
Buck Williams, the group's manager and agent, sees a different
upside to the simulcasts in movie theaters. He said an estimated 25
million to 40 million people would see the band's name on posters,
trailers or other theater promotions for the concert event.
The Fox Theater May 9 broadcast marked the first time Widespread Panic
performed in concert all the songs from ''Earth to America,''
its new album due for release June 13. The show also featured songs
performed with full brass and string sections - which Bell said the
band never would be able to bring along for an extended tour.
At Hollywood Stadium 24 in nearby Chamblee, a couple dozen fans geared
up for the show by tailgating in the parking lot - lounging in lawn
chairs and drinking cans of beer from coolers, as Widespread music
blared from their car stereos.
When the band tore into ''Pigeons,'' a driving, groove-based
rocker and the second song of their first set, the movie theater
audience hooted and cheered. Pockets of fans danced in the aisles and
in the back of the theater as others were content to sit in place -
albeit cheering and clapping at the end of each song and, in some
cases, even shouting out requests at the screen.
Several fans said they were enjoying themselves, but didn't feel the
same energy they feel when attending a concert in person.
''It's nice seeing things I don't normally see and hearing
things I don't normally hear,'' said Jarett Bellini, 27, of
Atlanta, who has seen the band live about five times. ''That being
said, I'd still rather be at the Fox.''
---
On the Net:
Big Screen Concerts, http://www.bigscreenconcerts.com
Widespread Panic, http://www.widespreadpanic.com
.
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