The silence of managers and public authorities on the flirtation with tragedy at Coldplay concerts lights up a signal: in a few hours, bands, rain and crowds will once again share the same space governed only by luck
concerts at Morumbi stadium it became a bet on luck or divine providence, which also means flirting with tragedy. With accounts and recorded scenes from the Coldplay fans in recent days, revealing flood spots within the space, fainting in crowds, suspicions of selling more tickets than capacity, fans installed in makeshift areas, and confusion in the standsthe silence of those in charge and of the public power two days before Coldplay’s return to Morumbi himself, who plays his last shows in São Paulo on Saturday and Sunday, is starting to get unpleasant.
This Wednesday afternoon, the report sought out Live Nation, the producer responsible for the shows, to find out if there was any new stance beyond the “nothing to report” already stated in a previous report. But the company remains in its position. “We will not comment on the matter.” Without it and without the word of the Morumbi administration itself, which claims to have only rented the space and, therefore, had nothing to do with the flooding of its grandstands and other perrengues (a rent that yielded around R $ 6 million for São Paulo and a percentage of what is sold in drinks and food at the stadium, things like a gin and tonic at stratospheric R $), the report sought to understand if the São Paulo Public Prosecution is moving, given that Coldplay, the rain and the crowd should coexist again, with or without divine providence, in a few hours. Until this matter was closed, there was no going back.
The Morumbi, a concrete giant designed in 1952 and inaugurated in 1960, was already a powder keg long before Coldplay. The largest private stadium in the country, third in Brazil, it was born exclusively, also because the world still had nothing else to bring together so many people in the same place, to host football matches. But, in 1983, when the gymnasiums and squares started to get too small for pop music, Kiss came to Brazil to put 125,000 people in Morumbi, opening the door and the greed of other producers. Two years later, Menudos did more: even in torrential rain, they raised 150,000 on the second of two shows they played house. An audience that still registers, which has hardly played a tragedy. At the end of the show, fans invaded the floor, advanced on the Puerto Ricans and the only reason they didn’t tear them apart is because a helicopter landed on stage to rescue them.
São Januário was worse. Passing in front of the Vasco stadium, in Rio, in the same year – and it is good to remind those who sell more tickets than a physical space allows – the Menudos themselves were shocked by the death of a girl and a woman who ended up being trampled by fans. The capacity of the venue was 60,000 people, but 130,000 tickets were sold. Eighty thousand entered and the rest remained outside. In addition to the dead, 30 children were lost and 40 were injured.
As time passed and deaths occurred at concerts and football matches, international safety standards reduced Morumbi’s ability to attend. Today, a Menudo show, with 150,000 fans singing Suba em Minha Moto; Queen, with 100,000 singers We are the Champions, as in 1981; or Madonna, who was seen by 88,000 people at the height of Express Yourself in 1993, would be impossible. By law, no more than 72,039 people are allowed in on game days.
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Allianz Parque’s debut as a performance arena has raised the bar for stadium entertainment. Since the first of them, with Paul McCartney in 2014 seen by 50,000 people, its discrepancy with other spaces was evident. The Allianz are not perfect, they still have to solve the decibel dilemma outside the stadium to contain the fury of Pompeii’s neighbors and they also have to make sure that people seated in the upper rings can receive sound with the same pressure as the track. But, for many reasons, and barring worthy competitors, it’s the best physical space for a big show in town. There the accessibility, acoustics, structure, information, public flow, bar service and staff training are much better. It is there that Palmeiras beat Corinthians by WO, who failed to make their stadium viable for big shows, and beat São Paulo 7-0.
Source: Terra
Earl Johnson is a music writer at Gossipify, known for his in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the industry. A graduate of USC with a degree in Music, he brings years of experience and passion to his writing. He covers the latest releases and trends, always on the lookout for the next big thing in music.
