The world has witnessed something never seen before in early 2020. The novel coronavirus pandemic that erupted in China’s Hubei province spread all over the world, infecting almost 5 million people while the global death toll has already surpassed 300 thousand. Without any known cure to the virus, the only effective tool against its spread is practicing social distancing measures everywhere and at all times. 

The virus first was discovered in China’s city of Wuhan. Located in the middle of mainland China, the metropolis is home to over 11 million people, making it roughly the same size as London, Paris, or Los Angeles. Despite some measures taken to contain the spread of the virus, it still escaped from China into other Asian countries, followed by Europe and the United States. 

Later on, the focus moved onto another southern European country. Spain became the new global epicenter of coronavirus. Yet, it tackled the problem much better with high recovery rates. The British Prime Minister Boris Johnson remains the most influential international personality to test positive for coronavirus. Reports about him spending a few nights in intensive care sent massive shockwaves to markets in the United Kingdom and beyond. 

The live entertainment industry shrinking amid the pandemic 

The pandemic affected various industries that were to hold conferences, events, and gatherings throughout the upcoming months. A range of international summits was postponed indefinitely or canceled amid the strict restrictions in different countries. 

Under such circumstances, the live entertainment sector is struggling significantly. Many influential artists like Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, and others had to cancel their winter, spring, as well as summer tours, losing millions of income. A long list of 

festivals and concerts was also canceled, putting the industry under tremendous pressure. 

Considering the fact that social distancing will remain in our lives for quite some time, how will such events be held in the future? The fact is that fans demand live entertainment and are willing to pay for concerts. Yet, how can it be made safe? What venues will create an adequate environment for live concerts of some of the biggest names in the entertainment industry? In this article, we have gathered some of the potential options for this purpose.

Hotels - fewer people and higher prices

We all realize that allowing hundreds of thousands of people to gather is a crazy move under the umbrella of COVID-19 pandemic this year. Therefore, the first objective when planning on organizing a concert is reducing the number of people. In this, the most effective step is to hold it at a small venue with limited capacity. 

Festivals like Coachella and Glastonbury will have to wait. However, roughly 100 people with decent food and fine clothing will still manage to listen to some live music at fancy hotels. These venues will turn themselves into an ultimate asylum for artists that are unable to perform on the big stage due to the pandemic.

Casinos placed within hotels all around the world will play a significant role in this process. Their doors might remain closed to players for years to come in an attempt to prevent close physical relations between people in confined spaces. To combat the loss of revenues, many of such venues are already looking for alternatives. In northern America, a growing number of Canada casino online platforms have appeared in a matter of weeks as gambling venues are trying to maintain the profit. 

Yet, it is expected that the space occupied by them in hotels will effectively be utilized for occasional events, such as live concerts. Big halls for slot machines and poker tables in some of the most prominent hotel-casinos, often featuring stages, will most certainly make great venues for concerts in the future. 

Big, open parks and other spaces 

Social distancing with bigger crowds is only possible if the space in which a concert is being held covers a vast area. There are plenty of legendary open-air venues around the world that usually would fit several hundreds of thousands across their premises. However, in an attempt to keep the safe distance between people, the number of individuals allowed to attend will be reduced. For instance, if the Glastonbury festival area 

could normally fit 175 thousand people, now it will only accommodate 30 thousand. 

With this constructive and careful approach, the inclusivity of the industry will remain at a high level while ensuring good health and safety of all attendees. 

Stadiums and arenas 

Just like with open spaces, stadiums and arenas offer extremely big areas with opportunities to practice social distancing without any issues. Football stadiums and arenas often host international stars and their live performances primarily due to high capacity. During the coronavirus pandemic, stadiums will effectively be used to allow concerts in safe environments. 

It is worth noting that stadiums will struggle to remain occupied with their original purpose. Sports events were even more affected by the crisis than the music industry. The setting of seats at stadiums makes safe arrangements particularly difficult during games. On the other hand, during live concerts, the stadium space itself is usually used to accommodate fans, standing on their feet throughout the performance. 

Central avenues and pedestrian streets 

Many major cities, particularly in Europe, use their central avenues and streets to foster pedestrian traffic. Such spaces in many cities are completely free of vehicle traffic on weekends, providing a much-needed public area to citizens. 

Streets like Champs-Elysées in Paris are wide and extremely long, spanning sometimes for kilometers. They are surrounded by famous landmarks and local businesses, such as cafes and restaurants. Holding concerts on such avenues can be highly profitable not only for the artists and their managing companies but also for cities and small businesses aligned along those streets. Most importantly, the vast open space provided will ensure the safety of those who would like to attend. Maintaining a safe distance of 2 meters should not be a problem when there is so much space to use.