Legitimate question about LouFest
I’m as excited as the next guy about the LouFest announcement, but something about the line-up seems a little strange: there’s only one stage. I don’t think I’ve ever been to a music festival with only one stage - festival organizing 101 seems to dictate having one main tent with at least one or two smaller sideshows running to attract curiosos and more eclectic artists.
Aside from giving audiences a chance to listen to a wider array of talent, having two (or more) stages serves some pretty basic festival logistics. With one stage, after a band finishes, they’ve got to load off, have the next band load up, tune their guitars, double-check their Korg plugs, etc. Even with the best stage techs available, that’s a lot of dead air.
Plus, what about crowd flow? With multiple acts going at the same time, people are moving about, crowds are dispersing, reforming… there’s movement. With one stage, everyone’s focused on that one thing. (I mean, I know there’s the “eco” center and kid’s tent, but, c’mon.) You just know there’s going to be a gaggle of annoying teenagers and glib alt-dads in captain’s chairs who are going to set their stakes first thing in the morning and not budge all day. So basically, if I don’t want to see Jeff Tweedy from a football-field-and-a-half away, I’ll have to push to the front at noon with a portable catheter for my bladder woes.
Not trying to rain on anyone’s parade, y’all, just thinking in real time. I’m still going to buy my tickets. But they’ve obviously got the space for it, anyone know why LouFest is going the one stage route?
EDIT: Nevermind, I’m an idiot.
