The entertainment community is going on red alert.

The King Center in Melbourne will be illuminated with red lights Tuesday night. So will Surfside Playhouse in Cocoa Beach. The theaters, like many across the country, have been closed or working with limited capacity since March because of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

#WeMakeEvents, a national coalition of entertainment industry professionals, is asking live event venues across the country to light up in red for the #RedAlertRESTART campaign from 9 p.m. to midnight Tuesday.

The goal is to bring light to the effect that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the struggling live entertainment industry, and to urge Congress to vote for the RESTART Act (S.3814), which calls for loan programs and other economic relief for shuttered businesses.

In addition, advocates want to support #ExtendPUA, an extension of the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, to provide financial help to those currently unemployed due to COVID-19

Since March 2020, 77% of people in the live events industry have lost 100% of their income, according to a news release from #WeMakeEvents.

Brad Nelms, the North American director of #WeMake Events said in a news release, “The group has managed to gather incredible support for this important movement, signing on more than 30 regional directors to lead the initiative in markets nationally.” 

When the COVID-19 pandemic began, live event venues were some of the first to shut down. Theaters shut their doors, and concerts and festivals were canceled. Workers were laid off or furloughed indefinitely. As the pandemic continues, the entertainment industry could be among the last to reopen, according to advocates.

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The King Center has had to cancel, postpone or reschedule more than 60 events since March. Part of the challenge of reopening includes negotiating with acts to perform at houses with reduced capacity.

“Given the current CDC guidelines, it makes it difficult financially on all sides to bring an event to the King Center with a limited capacity,” wrote Katie Koerber, Marketing Manager for the King Center. “For a lot of artists, they love seeing a full theater with fans and that is currently limited to what the CDC mandates for live entertainment spaces.”

It will take time to return to normal. Even if capacity restrictions were fully lifted, data suggests that audiences are slow to return to large group gatherings. 

According to Know Your Own Bone, a website that shares data-driven research about how visitors to cultural organizations think and behave, performance-based organizations can expect only 23.3% of their 2019 attendance, even if they could open at full capacity. That means organizations should plan based on lower volume and fewer ticket sales, even in a best-case scenario.

For information about joining the Red Alert event, email wemakeeventsnorthamerica@gmail.com, or visit wemakeevents.org or facebook.com/WeMakeEventsNorthAmerica.

Christina LaFortune is the entertainment and TgIF editor at FLORIDA TODAY. Follow her on Facebook at facebook.com/christinalafortune, on Twitter at @lafortunec, or send her an email at clafortune@floridatoday.com.

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