With the government roadmap in place and vaccination rates soaring, we’re so excited to be getting back to holding live, COVID-Safe events! From festivals to weddings and everything in between, our calendar is bursting with activity for 2022 and beyond. We don’t just love organising events though – naturally, we’re in our element going out and getting involved as guests at the fantastic events on offer across the country.
Events have come back with a bang overseas, showing us just how much fun we’re in store for very soon! “Strong demand is proving that fans are eager to get back to the experiences they love — it feels like every week we have another event breaking a record,” Ticketmaster president Mark Yovich wrote. “For some of these record-breaking on sales, we have millions of fans lining up for just a few hundred thousand tickets.”
As we’ve all heard in the news, ‘post-COVID’ isn’t really an accurate description as the way forward is managing and living with the virus. Naturally, outdoor and seated events are returning before other events which means getting creative and adapting to this mode of event delivery.
Here are a few of our favourite events that have thrilled and entertained in a COVID-Safe environment, to get you excited for what’s just around the corner here in Australia!
Expo 2020 Dubai
Expo 2020 Dubai is an incredible event celebrating global collaboration and unity, ‘Connecting Minds and Creating The Future’ through sustainability, mobility and opportunity. For 170 years, World Expos have provided a platform to showcase the greatest innovations that have shaped the world we live in today. As an indication of the prominence of these expos, in 1939 the first ever live TV broadcast was made the New York World’s Fair!
Celebrated Tenor Andrea Bocelli, who performed at the Opening Ceremony, summed up the event and its significant timing perfectly: “We have all gone through a year that no one could ever have imagined. For a year, we have lost the essentials, our freedom and, in a sense, and even our dignity. Now we finally see the light and I hope that this event will also help to instil in everyone a sense of optimism, a desire to achieve and to put what has been behind us.”
To protect that light and help move forward, guests all need to show proof of at least one dose of a COVID vaccine recognised by the WHO or a negative test to attend. They are even offering free tests on site each day with results turned around in under 10 hours.
Spanning a mind-boggling 6 months from October 2021 – March 2022, the event is an absolute behemoth and brings together the very best from a wide range of industries and expertise.
You would need close to that long to experience, see and do everything on offer! Cultural stage shows, A-list pop star performances, sports workshops, personal fitness consultations, lunch made by robots (or Michelin Star Chefs if you prefer), business matchmaking apps – there’s way too much to sum up here.
Check it all out on the Expo 2020 Dubai website and join us as we drool over the experiences those lucky enough to get to UAE get to enjoy!
Lollapalooza 2021
Now a global music festival, Lollapalooza actually started as a farewell tour for Jane’s Addiction back in 1990. Today it’s considered one of the largest and most iconic music festivals in the world with its home base weekend-long event held in Chicago annually. Like so many events it was cancelled for 2020, opting to stream headliners on Youtube.
In 2021 it made a triumphant return, with an estimated 100,000 people descending on the festival each day!
They showed the world how handling a MASSIVE non-seated, impossible-to-social-distance event is done. The COVID plan included mandatory masks anywhere indoors and proof of full vaccination or a negative COVID test required to enter.
According to tweets from the organisers, more than 90% of attendees showed proof of vaccination and 8% showed a negative covid test. 600 people were turned away just on the first day of the festival for not meeting the vaccination/test requirements – a drop in the ocean for the 100,000 capacity event and necessary precaution to keep their festival alive and punters safe.
With an incredible lineup of international musicians like Foo Fighters, Jimmy Eat World, Megan Thee Stallion, Miley Cyrus and Australia’s own Alison In Wonderland (just to name a few), across 7 stages of entertainment, it was definitely ALIVE!
Check out more here:
BMW Re:Imagine Today
What do you get when you combine the largest city palace in Germany, the Munich Symphony Orchestra, luxury cars and absolutely mind-blowing lighting design? BMW’s Re:Imagine Today concert which took place in September 2021.
An exceptionally talented collection of industry professionals worked tirelessly to transform the 1385-built castle into an immersive 360-degree audio visual experience for guests, celebrating the immersive nature of audio in cars and BMW’s partnership with world-renowned composer Hans Zimmer.
‘The concept of electric vehicles set the theme for the evening concert. “Hans is composing all the sounds for our electric cars, so we decided to also give this show an electric vibe,” explained Dr. Alexander Kotouc, BMW Group’s head of experiential marketing, adding that some of the on-stage musicians even played electric instruments to showcase the quality of the sound. “We wanted to make this show happen to celebrate our partnership—but mainly we wanted to bring joy to the visitors and to create an amazing memory for everybody who was there.”’– BizBash
Just imagine listening to over 30 of the world’s most talented musicians covering the hits of Hans Zimmer, including pieces from The Lion King, Pirates of the Caribbean, Inception and more. What an absolute treat for the senses! Over 150 guests attended the once-in-a-lifetime event and I’m sure they won’t soon forget it.
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