John Rech;
Chronicle.lu recently got the opportunity to speak with John Rech, Booking Manager at Ville de Dudelange, Director of the opderschmelz cultural centre and organiser of Zeltik, the only festival in the Greater Region dedicated to Celtic music.
John Rech, who also boasts a decades-long musical career (most notably as the lead singer of Luxembourg 90s pop icons T42 and his project "dream catcher"), discussed how event organisation has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and how organisers in Dudelange have responded to these challenges.
Adapting to COVID-19
John Rech recalled that the opderschmelz cultural centre closed its doors to the public back when the first lockdown restrictions were introduced in Luxembourg in spring 2020. As soon as it could reopen (in summer 2020), it did, and the team have been working non-stop ever since. He noted that they have had to be "inventive" and "adapted to every situation".
In late summer 2020, the Ville de Dudelange and opderschmelz, together with various partners, launched the "Ënnert dem Wassertuerm" (under the water tower) open-air film and music festival as an alternative to the traditional Fête de la Musique, which had been cancelled due to COVID-19 restrictions. This festival was renewed for a second edition in 2021, although it will not return this year since, as Mr Rech explained, there is already a jam-packed programme linked to Esch2022 – European Capital of Culture and other events, including two Zeltik events (12 March – plus the prelude the day before – and 19 June), the highly anticipated Kings of Leon concert (11 June) and the ever popular Fête de la Musique (18 June).
This year, the Zeltik festival, which is traditionally held (indoors) in March but was postponed last year to July (and held outdoors) due to the pandemic, is being organised as two separate events (plus a prelude) – the first in March will see the Danceperados of Ireland, Kíla and The Paperboys take the stage at opderschmelz; the second in June will take place outside in Dudelange town square and will bring together various acts, from Breton rockers Red Cardell to multi award-winning Scottish group Mànran.
Financial support and staffing
As the cultural service of the Ville de Dudelange, the budgets of opderschmelz have been "safe" in this regard, according to John Rech. Beyond finances, however, the most important thing during the pandemic has been to "exchange with everyone in order to have the best possible conditions to work in".
He explained that putting on a show for 100 people at the cultural centre requires more effort from staff than a show with 500 people would in "normal" times. "It costs a lot of energy", he said. "You are a lot more tired when the show starts in the evening than before!".
Due to the pandemic, there have been "so many new aspects of the job" and staff have been unable to get into a routine since the rules are always changing. There is the added challenge of having a cultural centre (opderschmelz), the Centre National Audiovisuel (CNA), a cinema (Ciné Starlight), a music school (École de Musique Régionale de Dudelange) and a restaurant (Amarcord) all in one place, since different COVID-19 rules applied to the cultural, education and hospitality sectors. Consequently, the team have had to "juggle and find a solution that fit all the rules… and make it easy for visitors". According to Mr Rech, they succeeded because of "good exchanges" between the various partners.
Eased restrictions
John Rech emphasised that the organisers have worked together throughout the pandemic to ensure that audiences and artists feel safe and comfortable. "We want to work in a safe environment", he said, adding that everyone’s health remained "at the centre" of event organisation. Even now, with events of up to 2,000 people allowed, not everyone is ready to attend big festivals. Recognising this continued reticence, the organising teams have limited capacities and continue to organise outdoor events where possible. He noted that his general motto as a promoter was to "reinvent yourself all the time".
He also explained that, apart from the big names, ticket sales were in general "not too high", both for events in Luxembourg and abroad. "People got used to staying at home", he noted. "Others are waiting until the last minute for any date changes [...] so there is a very late presale".
Festival organisation
Even in "normal" times, organising teams are working year round on festivals, John Rech explained. He noted that preparation for the Zeltik festival normally kicks off in September the year before. That being said, the team only finished the programming last week, as things are constantly changing and the team are "reacting to what’s happening outside". For instance, the team had to find a replacement for the initial headliner for the March edition of Zeltik after their tour was cancelled.
During COVID-19 times, however, a lot more work has had to go into smaller events, namely regarding CovidCheck and finding the right venue. The Zeltik team looked at presales and audiences and decided now was not the right time to hold a festival with 1,500 people indoors. With these two events in March (indoor but with limited capacity) and June (outdoor), they have "now found a solution that is nice for everyone".
International restrictions
In addition to national COVID-19 restrictions, event organisers have been constrained by international restrictions over the past two years. However, John Rech recognised that travel is not as difficult now (but still not easy) as it was a year ago. What has proven a challenge for them is the fact that "tours cannot happen the way people imagine". Certain international acts have had to cancel their tours due to COVID-19 restrictions; others have cancelled them because of poor ticket sales.
Zeltik: 25th anniversary
John Rech joked that the Zeltik organising team had been so busy adapting everything to COVID-19 and the needs of artists and audiences that they had almost missed an important milestone: this year marks the 25th anniversary of the Zeltik festival. To celebrate this occasion, the organisers decided to hold a big open-air event in summer (i.e. the June event), free of charge. There will be two stages and many artists.
As someone who fell in love with Irish (and later Scottish) music at a young age, Mr Rech expressed his hope that more Irish and Scottish visitors will attend the festival in future.
Contingency plans
Although John Rech and his team(s) are "dreaming of some kind of a normal summer", they do have a Plan B for both Zeltik and Fête de la Musique. If needed, these events will go ahead under the same set-up as that planned for the Kings of Leon open-air concert at USINA22 / Neischmelz (i.e. within a closed area, with an entrance fee). "We expect CovidCheck will still be there [in summer]", he added.
Other plans for 2022
It is certainly shaping up to be a busy year for event organisers in Dudelange. John Rech noted that, in addition to their usual programme, they have the Dudelange2022 programme (as part of Esch2022). For the latter, the organisers are all set for their first big event: "The Assembly", a virtual reality (VR) experience opening at opderschmelz this Friday 25 February 2022.
Further details on upcoming cultural events in Dudelange (including those discussed above) are available at: https://opderschmelz.lu/.
