IMPACT INTERNATIONAL: UK/EURO

Carme Lanuza

Director

Palau Sant Jordi & Olympic Stadium Barcelona

Manager

Parc del Fòrum

 
Spain’s live entertainment professionals, those in the Catalan capital of Barcelona specifically, were among the most active in Europe when proving to policymakers that live events could take place safely even during a pandemic. When the sector was first hit with an employment ban mid-March 2020, Carme Lanuza immediately started working with event promoters and producers to find solutions to resume business.

“In the very year we increased Palau Sant Jordi’s capacity, we were having to find options for concerts with 400 people, the permitted capacity in July 2020. We’re all facing a difficult situation that requires a great deal of energy and resilience. It’s hard to keep our spirits up all the time, but it’s the only way to keep going,” Lanuza said.

It was her team’s “conviction that we needed to move forward” that changed the whole energy entering 2021. In collaboration with promoters, institutions and scientists, Palau Sant Jordi hosted a 5,000-capacity pilot concert in March, no distancing but with face masks, which resulted in no significant outbreaks.

“We truly believe that the procedures established at this event have contributed to the recovery of music activities. A set of standards to ensure a ‘safe event’ have been created. We want to highlight the full involvement of the public, without whom we couldn’t have done it,” Lanuza said.

Looking ahead, she’s comforted by the fact that “live music has always been able to reinvent itself and adapt to circumstances, and this time will be no different.”

“In my career I’ve dealt with a variety of challenges in various industries,” she said. “I’ve always been committed to defining a strategic plan that destroyed the past. This requires the team’s complicity. Doing everything the way it’s always been done before is not an option. A change and new visions enrich the team and result in better achievements. I’m proud to lead a set of people who have shown that they’ll stop at nothing, without losing their hope and enthusiasm. It’s very rewarding to feel this unconditional support. This is what drives me.”

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​​“I’ve dealt with a variety of challenges in various industries. I’ve always been committed to defining a strategic plan that destroyed the past.”