Stefan Lehmkuhl to book BMG’s Theater des Westens
Goodlive co-founder Stefan Lehmkuhl has been appointed to the top booker role at BMG’s Theater des Westens in Berlin.
Lehmkuhl is best-known for his two decades of success curating and producing festivals such as Melt Festival, splash!, and Lollapalooza Berlin.
He, along with co-founder Thomas Resch, stepped down from Germany’s Goodlive in July 2021, making way for a new management structure.
After a two-year hiatus from the live industry, Lehmkuhl will now book concerts, residencies and theatre productions for the historic 1,7000-capacity theatre, which BMG recently took a two-year lease on.
Working alongside him at the venue will be event producer Parker Tilghman, known in Berlin and beyond by their alias Pansy. For the last decade, they have created acclaimed underground performance events and club nights in some of the city’s most prominent institutions like SO36, Deutsche Oper, Volksbühne, KW Institute for Contemporary Art, and more.
BMG Chief Content Officer Dominique Casimir says: “Taking a two-year lease on the Theater des Westens was a statement of intent. The appointment of Stefan and Pansy shows the extent of our ambition. Stefan is known for his creative booking and for producing events with visual flair and artistic integrity. With his help we will take the Theater des Westens to an entirely new level and make it a premier entertainment destination in Berlin.”
“Early feedback from artists and managers has been positive, with particular interest in the residency format”
Lehmkuhl adds: “I am excited to join in collaboration with BMG as my first consultant and curation project after a two-year hiatus from the industry. We are offering artists completely new opportunities that have not existed in Berlin before in a truly gorgeous setting.
“We are open to collaborating with agents, managers and event organisers, internationally and nationally, even beyond music, and welcome inquiries. I am grateful for Dominique’s trust and look forward to working with her, Pansy and the team at BMG. Early feedback from artists and managers has been positive, with particular interest in the residency format.”
Pansy comments: “The new format will be of particular interest to established artists who want to present a high-end show at a beautiful venue in the heart of Berlin rather than embarking on a regular tour. We look forward to pairing them with local, underground performers that keep our city so special and unique.”
Michael Schacke, Undercover CEO and responsible for BMG’s live strategy in GSA, said: “With the opening of Berlin’s Theater des Westens for live concerts, residencies and performances, the next piece of the puzzle of BMG’s live strategy falls into place. With Undercover as tour and local promoter in GSA and the Taubertal Festival, TDW now adds one of the most beautiful and exciting live venues in Europe that gives us more opportunities to work with artists and their management in the live segment.”
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DEAG to take a ‘consolidation break’ in 2023
DEAG has announced a “consolidation break” in 2023 after acquiring 15 companies in the last two and a half years.
The Berlin-based live entertainment group’s recent purchases include Scottish promoter Regular Music, Ireland’s tickets.ie. platform, and German festivals Indian Spirit, Classic Open Air and Airbeat One.
“We have always been very careful not to take on anyone who has their backs to the wall,” DEAG CEO Peter Schwenkow told Tagesspiegel.
“We have bought 15 companies in the last two and a half years, some of which we have wanted to acquire for a long time. Covid has helped us in that some felt the pandemic was easier to endure in a group than alone. This is how we were able to grow and now have 47 companies in the DEAG Group.”
“For now, we are now taking a little consolidation break,” he added. “I still expect growth because the new holdings are making their contribution and because individual events are being rolled out further.”
“Covid has helped us in that some felt the pandemic was easier to endure in a group than alone”
DEAG’s acquisition spree came after it accepted a takeover offer from its largest single shareholder, Apeiron Investment Group, and its Malta-based subsidiary Musai Capital, in 2021.
The deal, which saw DEAG delist from Frankfurt’s Xetra stock exchange after 23 years as a public company, would provide the company with greater resources for future acquisitions, CEO Peter Schwenkow told IQ at the time.
“We have huge financial support from our investors for future acquisitions, and this support is much, much bigger than any money we could collect from the capital market,” Schwenkow explained. “So, on the one hand it gives us the freedom to do the right decisions, and on the other it gives us deep pockets.”
DEAG’s other acquisitions in the last two and a half years include CSB Island Entertainment, Fane Productions, Gigantic.com and C² Concerts.
The company produces and promotes live events in Germany, Great Britain, Switzerland, Ireland and Denmark, selling more than five million tickets are sold annually for more than 5,000 events. Last year, DEAG reported a record year with sales of around €300 million.
The company’s group includes Kilimanjaro Group (UK), Wizard Promotions (DE), UK Live, My Ticket (DE, AT, UK) and Belladrum Tartan Heart festival (UK).
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FKP Scorpio postpones Tempelhof Sounds to 2024
FKP Scorpio has postponed the second edition of Tempelhof Sounds to 2024, as the disused airport in which it takes place is “urgently needed” for refugee housing.
The Berlin-based festival launched last June in collaboration with German promoters Loft Concerts and Dreamhaus and was headlined by Muse, The Strokes and Florence and the Machine.
“Despite its successful premiere, Tempelhof Sounds will take a break in 2023 before taking place again in 2024,” says FKP Scorpio in a statement.
“Tempelhof Airport provided a great stage and impressive backdrop for us and our guests this year. Now, in the face of the ongoing inhumane war in Ukraine, it is once again providing much-needed shelter for refugees.
“In the face of the ongoing inhumane war in Ukraine, [Tempelhof] is once again providing much-needed shelter for refugees”
“The recent decision by the Berlin Senate to increase the number of emergency shelters means that, in addition to a change in the spatial layout for the placement and design of the festival grounds, there are also new requirements for noise protection, which of course applies to these people just as it does to all other residents. For us, this means that a successful approval process for our festival is unfortunately impossible under these new circumstances.
“Apart from that, we also consider it humanly imperative to show consideration in this exceptional situation to ensure that people who need refuge are not adversely affected under any circumstances. Instead, we wish that in 2024 we will come together under better circumstances to celebrate music and peace together. We look forward to starting planning for this very soon.”
In lieu of Tempelhof Sounds 2023, FKP Scorpio and Loft Concerts have organised a concert that will bring “the unique atmosphere” of the festival to Waldbühne (Woodland Stage), the 22,000-capacity open-air theatre at Olympiapark Berlin.
Bon Iver, Fever Ray and Holly Humberstone will perform at Tempelhof Sounds Presents on 2 June, with tickets starting from €75.
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DEAG sees huge returns in third quarter of 2022
Deutsche Entertainment (DEAG) continued to reap the rewards of its bullish M&A strategy in the third quarter of 2022, according to the company’s latest financial results.
The Berlin-based live entertainment group saw revenue and operating profit massively improve in Q3, compared to both last year and the pre-crisis year 2019.
Revenue rose to €101.7 million during Q3 of 2022, up 72% compared to the same period in 2019 and a six-fold increase compared to revenue of €16.7m in the same period of the previous year.
EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) increased significantly to €10.2m in the third quarter, which equates to an increase of 110% compared to the figure for 2019, or an increase of 134% compared to EBITDA of €4.3m in the same period of 2021.
DEAG says the strong financial results are driven by a significant upturn in operating activities in all of the company’s national markets (Germany, the UK, Switzerland, Ireland and Denmark).
The companies bought by DEAG since 2019 also made a significant contribution to the results. Recent acquisitions include Ireland’s tickets.ie. platform, as well as German festivals Indian Spirit, Classic Open Air and Airbeat One.
“2022 will be a record year for DEAG”
DEAG’s event portfolio now has more than 30 annual festivals across the aforementioned markets that attract more than 580,000 visitors.
Notable events for DEAG in Q3 2022 include the sold-out open-air events Belladrum Tartan Heart Festival in the UK and Sion sous les étoiles in Switzerland.
In Germany, the electro music festivals Nature One, Ruhr-in-Love and Mayday were deemed “complete successes” and drew around 100,000 visitors.
“We are extremely satisfied with our performance in the third quarter,” says Professor Peter L.H. Schwenkow, CEO of DEAG.
“Despite a challenging economic environment overall, the excellent development in the first six months of 2022 continued with high momentum in the third quarter.
“We successfully staged countless concerts and events and recorded a record summer in ticketing with three million tickets sold between June and August alone. We are experiencing unabated high demand for tickets to events and concerts. 2022 will be a record year for DEAG. The first quarter of 2023 is already characterised by high visibility. We expect our dynamic growth to continue beyond 2022.”
DEAG says it expects revenue to grow to €300 million, with a further improvement in EBITDA for the full year 2022.
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Matt Schwarz on DreamHaus’s first festival season
DreamHaus CEO Matt Schwarz has spoken to IQ about the company’s “hugely successful and record-breaking” festival summer.
Having launched in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Berlin-based promoter waited almost two years to clock in for its first festival summer and even then, it wasn’t business as usual in Germany.
“Rock am Ring and Rock im Park were the first two major festivals of the season in central Europe after two years of Covid-19 related cancellations,” explains Schwarz.
“By March we still didn’t know if we could host the festivals due to Covid-19. Almost everything happened at the last minute, including the introduction and implementation of new features such as cashless payment for both editions, new festival apps and much more.”
In addition to the time crunch, the promoter had to deal with a slate of prevailing challenges including “lack of specialised personnel, increased production costs, and inflation and recession due to the geopolitical situation and the world being upside down”.
Despite the numerous hurdles, Rock am Ring and Rock im Park went ahead between the 3–5 June at Nürburgring race track and Zeppelin Field and sold a record 90,000 and 70,000 tickets respectively.
“[Rock am Ring] was the most successful festival stream ever in Germany”
“We were all the more relieved that the festivals turned out to be a huge success with record-breaking attendances and Rock am Ring being broadcast live/live in its entirety,” says Schwarz. “Streaming numbers exceeded any expectations making it the most successful festival stream ever in Germany.”
The festival was livestreamed via German streaming service RTL+, with fans around the world able to watch performances from the likes of Green Day, Muse, Volbeat, Placebo and Måneskin – free of charge.
In addition, the festival partnered with TikTok to bring the ‘Rock am Ring experience’ to the worldwide community through hashtag campaigns, live programmes, official playlists and backstage content with popular creators.
This year marks the first time DreamHaus has organised and programmed the twin festivals (along with eventimpresents) and for Schwarz, it’s a full-circle moment.
Rock am Ring was founded by Marcel Avram and Marek Lieberberg’s Mama Concerts in 1985, while Rock im Park took place for the first time in 1995 under Marek Lieberberg Konzertagentur (MLK).
Schwarz was formerly VP of touring and festivals at MLK, before becoming MD and COO of Live Nation GSA when Lieberberg sold MLK to Eventim’s live music subsidiary Medusa Group in 2015. From 2016, the CTS-owned festivals were co-promoted with Lieberberg, now CEO of Live Nation GSA.
“I pondered a lot about what it would be like to work on The Rocks again”
Schwarz resigned his position at Live Nation GSA in February 2020 and in October of the same year, DreamHaus was launched with scant details and the ominous message “If you know you know”.
At the same time, it was announced that Schwarz would return to work on Rock am Ring and Rock im Park, but this time as head of eventimpresents (the company formerly known as MLK).
In February 2021, CTS Eventim acquired DreamHaus and it was announced that, under the Eventim Live umbrella, the promoter would be responsible for organising and programming the festivals from 2022, along with eventimpresents.
“Beforehand, I pondered a lot about what it would be like to work on The Rocks again,” Schwarz tells IQ. “Honestly, it felt like getting back on the bike – you never forget how to do it.”
While the DreamHaus CEO says that working on the marquee festivals was his highlight of 2022, the promoter has plenty of milestones to pick from.
This year also saw DreamHaus join forces with FKP Scorpio and Loft Concerts for a brand new Berlin-based festival, Tempelhof Sounds.
“Our new heavyweight domestic act Apache 207 sold over 60,000 tickets in seconds blowing out five arenas”
Touted as “an inclusive and cosmopolitan festival,” the three-day event saw the likes of Muse, The Strokes and Florence and the Machine perform on the grounds of Tempelhof Airport between 10–12 June.
On the touring side of the business, Schwarz says DreamHaus has promoted hundreds of concerts this year – mainly on the club and theatre level – and sold approximately 750,000 tickets in 2022.
“Our new heavyweight domestic act Apache 207 [German rapper] sold over 60,000 tickets in seconds blowing out five arenas,” says Schwarz. “We’re also very pleased with the ticket sales for Måneskin, Kid Cudi, Muse, Sam Smith, Lewis Capaldi and Tenacious D.”
Among Schwarz’s personal highlights for 2022 was a rescheduled concert from German superstar Marteria at the open-air concert venue Berlin Waldbühne (cap. 22,290).
“It got cancelled just minutes before doors due to a massive thunderstorm,” he says. “Luckily, we were able to return to the venue a few days later when Marteria caught up on the show and delivered a terrific concert.
“Another highlight was the beautiful James Blake show at Verti Music Hall, booked by Pana [Ioannis Panagopoulo] from our team. He is one of my favourite artists and it was such a special night.”
DreamHaus’ touring numbers are all the more impressive given Germany’s fractured and sluggish reopening, which has seen the market trail behind its European counterparts.
“2023 is going to be an uphill battle; the worst is yet to come”
“There was a lot of uncertainty around the varying Covid restrictions in the individual federal states,” says Schwarz. “And when a lot of the western world opened up, we still had to deal with these restrictions. This certainly had an impact on the potential ticket buyers who are still wary.
“People tend to wait and buy their ticket much later in the campaign and closer to the show date for most of the tours unless it’s blockbuster content. Outdoor shows are getting more popular.”
Schwarz expects that consumer trepidation will continue next year, prolonging the business’ full recovery.
“Everyone thought 2022 to be the transition year after the pandemic,” he says. “Now it turns out that 2023 will be the transition year. We will have to face inflation and recession which have an impact on how and what people will spend their money on. It’s going to be an uphill battle; the worst is yet to come. Our modus operandi, therefore, is “less is more” in regard to show count and risks.”
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The New Bosses 2022: Resi Scheuermann, Konzertbüro Schoneberg
The 15th edition of IQ Magazine’s New Bosses was published in IQ 114 this month, revealing 20 of the most promising 30-and-unders in the international live music business.
To get to know this year’s cohort a little better, IQ conducted interviews with each one of 2022’s New Bosses, discovering their greatest inspirations and pinpointing the reasons for their success.
Catch up on the previous New Bosess 2022 interview with Maciej Korczak, co-founder at Follow The Step in Poland. The series continues with Resi Scheuermann, promoter and organiser at Konzertbüro Schoneberg in Germany.
Born and raised in the countryside near Würzburg in Bavaria, Scheuermann spent her youth either in dance studios and concert halls/clubs, or reading everywhere possible. After school, she spent one year in Australia and New Zealand, working as an au pair, learning English and travelling.
Back in Germany, she moved to Berlin and studied literature and cultural studies with a focus on cultural management and marketing and – more importantly – got to know the Berlin nightlife of live music.
After graduating she undertook some internships and helped electronic music collective O Mato to organise a festival in the Brazilian Amazon, as well as some parties in Berlin. She then landed a marketing and communications job at Konzertbüro Schoneberg but quickly moved back to her strengths of booking and organising concerts, thus kickstarting her promoter career.
Today, she leads Konzertbüro Schoneberg’s Berlin office where she promotes her own growing roster, booking tours for Germany and organising most of Konzertbüro Schoneberg’s shows at all capacities in Berlin.
Scheuermann is also a co-founder of the feminist association fæmm, which aims to bring more female power and support to the male-dominated music business.
Did you deliberately go to Australia to improve your English, knowing that you wanted to work in the music business, or was that just a happy coincidence?
Mainly I went to Australia to experience new adventures (and improve my English). In Australia, I was surrounded by so many musicians and singer-songwriters, as the country has such a big and great (street) music culture. This experience had a big influence on me: it made me listen to new kinds of music and I got interested in new genres. But to be honest, I didn’t know yet that I would be part of the music scene in my future, but this trip definitely shaped the idea.
Fæmm sounds like a fantastic initiative. Can you tell us more about it?
In the beginning of 2020, four inspiring women and I, all of us working in the German music business, founded the queer-feministic initiative fæmm. We strive to give FLINTA (female, lesbian, intersex, trans, and agender) persons who work behind, on, and in front of the stage a platform to be seen and heard. We want to create a network for FLINTA persons in the cis-male-dominated music scene. That’s why we offer networking events in cities and during festivals (Reeperbahn Festival in Hamburg and c/o Pop in Cologne).
We also have different social media formats such as interviews, we curate playlists, have (party) cooperations, podcasts, and panels (e.g. I spoke at Reeperbahn Festival 2021 at ARTE stage on the panel Sex, Drugs and Rock ’n’ Roll). We have our own radio show fæmm.fm, a newsletter with FLINTA event tips for Berlin, and an electronic music channel on Soundcloud called “anders.” where FLINTA sets are promoted. We want to create awareness, solidarity, and equity in the music business and help other FLINTAs to get connected.
“I can only be a good promoter if I am 150% into the music and into the artists who I work with”
Can you give us an idea of what acts you already have on your roster and how you have helped develop their careers in Germany?
I only have acts in my roster that I personally really love. I can only be a good promoter if I am 150% into the music and into the artists who I work with. My roster shows my love for different genres: I have some lovely acoustic artists (Ocie Elliott and Penny & Sparrow) as well as some very cool (female-fronted) indie rock/pop/synth acts like Mattiel, and and Jasmyn.
To develop these artists in Germany, I use my growing and very diverse network. As I belong to the “younger” generation, I try to work with them as well as with very experienced colleagues. I also push my artists beyond the mainstream media and try to work with independent (social) media and partners to reach a high range and variety of audience.
What has been your biggest career highlight to date?
The biggest highlight was when I became a promoter as I [originally] started with marketing at Konzertbüro Schoneberg. Next to my job, I also do some freelance work in my “leisure time” and this year I had the honour of booking the RAW+ Festival in Berlin with my friend and fæmm colleague Marie. We managed to book a very cool and diverse 90% FLINTA line-up, which made us very proud and happy. I also worked for The Rolling Stones show in Berlin as a backstage manager.
As a new boss, what one thing would you change to make the live entertainment industry a better place?
We need equality in all aspects, not only in gender. The entertainment industry is still led by white cis men, but we need to include humans in all positions – not only as interns – with different/all gender, origin, religions, believes and looks, to make the industry equal and safe for everyone.
“We all need to make proactive efforts in our thinking and work to change the gender imbalance”
If you could offer the 18-year-old Resi one piece of advice, what would it be?
You can work in the music business. When I was a teenage girl and went to concerts, I didn’t really know what efforts and work lie behind the shows. I could only see a stage with an artist who I loved to see. I didn’t know how the industry works and that I could be part of it – it seemed like a completely different planet. I could never imagine the variety of jobs behind the stage. That has to change – we need to tell the youth what they can become besides the classic dream jobs like teacher, doctor, or firefighter.
Gender imbalance (mostly at festivals) has been an issue again this year. Are there any proactive efforts that promoters can make to help address these problems?
Yes, it is a question of will, money, and attitude. Give them chances, stages, and believe in them. But not only promoters need to change their attitudes, even the media like [radio stations] and artists themselves do. (FLINTA) artists need to build up their core teams [to be] more diverse. Media needs to give FLINTA and other marginalised groups the opportunity to get heard and seen. We all need to make proactive efforts in our thinking and work to change the gender imbalance.
As a young promoter, are there any particular events or forums that you visit to try to discover the next big act, or where you can grow your network of business contacts?
Yes, I am travelling to several festivals with work and/or [voluntarily] to participate actively in networking events, workshops and to visit lots of concerts. I am also in touch with several other initiatives, associations, and agencies, trying to visit their networking events, showcases, and concerts. I read lots of music blogs and magazines and listen to podcasts, playlists and lots of music on several platforms. And, of course, I use social media.
Berlin has some unique venues. Which one is your favourite and why?
That’s difficult. I think my favourites are Lido, Privatclub, silent green and Tempodrom. They are all very different and very unique and that is exactly the taste of Berlin – you never love one thing – you love the whole package.
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The New Bosses 2022: Benji Fritzenschaft, DreamHaus
The 15th edition of IQ Magazine’s New Bosses was published in IQ 114 this month, revealing 20 of the most promising 30-and-unders in the international live music business.
To get to know this year’s cohort a little better, IQ conducted interviews with each one of 2022’s New Bosses, discovering their greatest inspirations and pinpointing the reasons for their success.
Catch up on the previous New Bosess 2022 interview with Agustina Cabo from Move Concerts here. The series continues with Benji Fritzenschaft, a talent buyer at Dreamhaus in Germany.
Whilst studying sports journalism in Hamburg, Fritzenschaft began a hip-hop podcast that opened a door for him into the music industry. He started working as a social media creator at Sony in 2019, and shortly after applied for a job at Goodlive, where he landed a job as part of the splash! Festival booking team, which resulted in his move to Berlin. He also helped promote the German tours of Goodlive’s hip-hop artists such as Stormzy, Skepta, Dave, and Trippie Redd & Suicideboys, and the company used his expertise for booking its domestic hip-hop festivals (Heroes).
In May 2022, Fritzenschaft was hired by DreamHaus as a talent buyer, working on tours for 070 Shake, Aitch, Kid Cudi, and Jack Harlow. He also books talent for DreamHaus’s festivals and helps develop new events.
You studied sports journalism at university. Are there any lessons from your studies that have been useful in your career?
I feel like my time at university helped me prepare for this job – especially the journalism part. For example, I learned how marketing works, how to get the information you need, and how important a good network is. In addition to that, there is lots of competition in sports and journalism, as well as the music business, so in hindsight, I feel like this prepared me.
Your podcast opened doors for you. What advice would you give to anyone trying to find a job in live music?
If you are passionate about music and want to work in live music but cannot seem to find an entrance, go the extra mile: Start your own project (podcast, blog, etc.) and invest your time. Show the world you have expertise and why you would be a good addition to any team.
As a new boss, what one thing would you change to make the live music industry a better place?
I feel like, for my generation, sustainability is more important than ever before – mental health, diversity in festival line-ups, as well as in the office, and taking care of the environment… We all know there will be competition in the live music industry, but I have a feeling that sometimes people take it too far. I believe it should never be taken personally, as business is never personal.
“If you are passionate about music and want to work in live music but cannot seem to find an entrance, go the extra mile”
What has been the biggest challenge for you and the DreamHaus team as the business has emerged from the pandemic restrictions?
You probably know Germany’s way of handling the situation with loads of restrictions, so finally being able to have shows again was great. There is uncertainty about the upcoming winter, so hopefully we can continue having regular concerts throughout the colder times. Let me be fully honest: after months in my home office, it took a while for me to get used to the regular office workflow again.
Where would you like to see yourself in five years’ time?
I got into the industry three years ago and just moved from Goodlive to DreamHaus. With that move, I also got promoted from assistant to promoter, so I just want to keep my momentum going and build my roster. In general, my goal is to continue to do my work, learn, and evolve – personally as well as career-wise – and then who knows what the future will bring.
What has been the highlight of your career, so far?
There have been a couple: After years of attending splash! as a fan, the moment I was backstage at the festival as an official was pretty cool. The first big shows were nice as well: Stormzy before Covid, Dave on the first day after restrictions were gone, and selling out our Kid Cudi show within a couple of days. In addition to that, LUIS – the first domestic act I signed – just started his first tour, which is basically sold out.
“My goal is to continue to do my work, learn, and evolve – personally as well as career-wise”
Where is your favourite venue?
The splash! Festival site at Ferropolis will always have a special place in my heart. For concert venues, there is of course Berghain in Berlin where we had great shows with Little Simz and Bas. A concert at Berghain is always special. Uebel & Gefährlich in Hamburg and Club Bahnhof Ehrenfeld in Cologne are also among my favourites.
The hip-hop world is a tight community. Who are your best friends or allies at other companies in your day-to-day work?
I am still friends with a lot of people at Goodlive and Bomber Der Herzen. I am also constantly speaking to Cedric Icaasain who manages artists and runs a club in Cologne. I also want to mention Malte von der Lanken and Andrej Malogajski from Mainland Music. Regarding domestic acts, Greg from ARKTIK Management and Steph from Atlantic Germany are my guys. Special shout-out to Thomas ‘The Don’ Schlett as well.
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BMG books out Berlin venue until 2024
Berlin-headquartered music company BMG has booked out the German capital’s 1,600-seat Theater des Westens (TdW) every night until the end of 2024 to provide a home to its growing live events business.
The renowned record label and music publisher entered the live business in 2020 with the acquisition of a majority stake in promoter/event production firm Undercover.
BMG’s shows at TdW will include a series of residencies by domestic and international recording artists, as well as BMG’s growing roster of stage musicals.
“The Theater des Westens is arguably the greatest theatre in the German capital,” says BMG CEO Hartwig Masuch. “As a Berlin-born company, and the only German-owned and managed global player in the music industry, we are proud to make this investment in the musical life of our hometown.”
“We see a particular opportunity for established artists who want to present a high-end show in a beautiful venue rather than embarking on a regular tour”
The TdW is operated by Netherlands-based live entertainment firm Stage Entertainment, while the building is owned by the city of Berlin.
“We are committed to making the Theater des Westens the premier venue for entertainment in Berlin,” says BMG chief content officer Dominique Casimir. “Taking such a long lease on a venue is a first for a music company. We are starting with two great shows – Ku’damm 56 and now Romeo & Julia – but there is a lot more to come.
“Bringing high-end artist residencies to Berlin is a first for Germany. We see a particular opportunity for established artists who want to present a high-end show in a beautiful venue rather than embarking on a regular tour.”
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Festival heads talk costs: “There is trouble ahead”
European festival heads discussed the impact of spiralling costs on the 2022 and 2023 festival seasons at last week’s Reeperbahn Festival in Hamburg, Germany.
Stephan Thanscheidt (FKP Scorpio, DE), Catharine Krämer (DreamHaus, DE), and Codruța Vulcu (ARTmania, RO) were among the pros discussing higher expenses during the Festival Season 22/23 panel.
Thanscheidt told the panel that while Hamburg-headquartered FKP Scorpio sold out 27 of its 28 festivals, the margins were “complete shit” due to higher expenses.
“Production costs are up 25–30%,” he said. “It depends on the department because some [costs] are up just 10% but others were like 120%. This year we were put into a corner where we could either say yes [to the increase] or just not do the festival.”
The company’s festival portfolio includes Hurricane (DE), Southside (DE), Provinssi (FI), Sideways (FI), Greenfield (CH), Best Kept Secret (NL) and new festival Tempelhof Sounds (DE) – some of which were €30 to €50 more expensive to attend this year.
While FKP Scorpio sold out 27 of its 28 festivals, the margins were “complete shit” due to higher expenses
“We’re trying to [increase ticket prices] in a very smooth way,” said Thanscheidt. “If we get to €400–500 for normal festival tickets, we’ll have a problem. We’re trying to be very sensible in setting the prices. So we’re very happy that the audience was fine with that and we sold all the tickets without getting a shitstorm on socials or something.”
In Romania, rising costs are only exacerbated by the country’s close proximity to the war in Ukraine.
“The inflation rate is 15.5% which is extremely high so everything from production to personnel was completely out of proportion,” said Vulcu, CEO of ARTmania, Romania’s longest-running rock festival.
Vulcu told the panel that many of the festival’s partners backed out of supporting the 2022 event but the main sponsor, German hypermarket chain Kaufland, offered to make up the slack.
“They said ‘Okay, let’s give you some more money to survive. Can we take extra costs from you that we can put on our budgets?’ So it was a positive and totally unexpected turn but apparently, they were they are wanting to be the saviours of festivals,” she said.
“The inflation rate [in Romania] is 15.5% so everything from production to personnel was completely out of proportion”
Looking towards next year’s ARTmania, which is already on sale, Vulcu says it’s hard to see how the festival can spread skyrocketing costs.
“We book mainly internationally and the prices that I’m getting from some artists are not low but we can’t put the ticket prices so high that the young people can’t come,” she explained.
DreamHaus’ Krämer says the Berlin-based agency is facing a similar stalemate situation for next year’s festival season after their production costs increased 25–30%.
“No supplier will ever say ‘We’re going back to the prices that we had in 2019’,” she said. “So we could lower the cost of the whole festival experience but this would have a significant impact on the whole quality of it.”
CTS Eventim-backed DreamHaus is jointly responsible for organising and programming the Rock am Ring and Rock im Park festivals, which have a combined attendance of 150,000, among other events.
“We could lower the cost of the whole festival experience but this would have a significant impact on the quality”
Referencing Thanscheidt’s earlier point, Krämer added: “There are not that many suppliers that can supply festivals of our size so we’re also in a corner, where we can take it or leave it.”
Thanscheidt says the crisis will only get worse ahead of next year’s season, though he’s bullish about the industry’s ability to come up with solutions.
“Costs will not go down next year,” said Thanscheidt. “Gas and electricity prices are doubled now and they will be tripled in a few weeks. Inflation might go up again.
“There are some months of trouble coming up and the result is yet to be seen. But of course, we will all stay very positive because that’s what we always do in an industry in which most of us have a DIY background. So let’s see how we solve this but it will not be easy.”
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Ole Hertel upped to MD of AEG Operations
Ole Hertel has been promoted to vice president and managing director of AEG Operations, operator of the Mercedes-Benz Arena (cap. 17,000) in Berlin, Germany.
Per the role, the former general manager will also formally assume overall operational responsibility alongside Uwe Frommhold, VP and COO of AEG, who was previously registered solely as MD of Berlin’s largest arena.
Commenting on Hertel’s appointment, Frommhold says: “Ole Hertel is one of the most proven and competent managers in the German event industry. He helped open the Mercedes Benz Arena and played a decisive role in its continued success. Therefore, I am personally very pleased to be able to hand over responsibility to him now.”
“Ole Hertel is one of the most proven and competent managers in the German event industry”
Hertel adds: “Both the recent past and the immediate future represent probably the greatest challenges that not only the Mercedes-Benz Arena, but the entire industry has had to and will have to face. I would like to express my gratitude for the trust placed in me by AEG, but above all, I value it as recognition of all the employees of the Mercedes Benz Arena.”
Hertel has been working for AEG in Berlin since 2008 and was initially responsible for the events division of the Mercedes-Benz Arena before taking over the position of general manager in 2020.
Before joining AEG, he headed event management at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin from 2004 to 2008.
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