Drinking, dancing bans leave Adelaide’s night economy on edge of ‘valley of death’

A ban on dancing and singing has left Adelaide’s night economy on the edge of a “valley of death”, as industry leaders plead for the return of stand-up drinking in the lead-up to Christmas.

A ban on dancing and singing has left Adelaide’s night economy on the edge of a “valley of death”, according to a collective of entertainment industry stalwarts.

The laws – far stricter than those imposed on other states without community Covid-19 transmission – are discouraging patrons from attending events and leaving musicians, technicians and venues on the brink of collapse, they say.

OPINION: WE ARE AT A COVID CROSSROADS AND NOW WILL BE A TRUE TEST OF STEVEN MARSHALL’S LEADERSHIP

The group’s members say the rules, and the resultant loss of income, are having a toll beyond the financial.

“With the entertainment sector economy crumbling, rising mental health issues are running rife, with many now looking at leaving the industry,” group member, guitarist and promoter Rob Pippan said.

“Additionally, a disastrous ripple effect is being felt by the 25,000-plus hospitality industry workers and hundreds of venues across South Australia that they work with.

“And with the removal of any significant support subsidies or grants, and over 570 days of sector losses, the financial and mental health crisis is now at cataclysmic levels. A valley of death is imminent.”

DJ Idyllwild looking down Hindley St on Friday night. Picture: Matt Loxton

The collective wrote an open letter to Premier Steven Marshall and the Covid transition committee last month asking why SA’s laws appeared to be stricter than other comparable states, but say they have received no reply.

They say with the busy summer period approaching, the government needed to fall in line with other states or offer financial support.

“The problem now isn’t necessarily Covid, it’s the inability and unwillingness of the government to offer leadership, consultation and offering of practical business solutions to a multimillion-dollar industry that’s at the heart of SA culture and community,” music­ian and collective member Jesse Catalano said.

For musician Ben Whittington, an unprecedented lean period over recent months has seen him forced to sell eight of his guitars just to cover basics such as the electricity bill.

He said he’d gone from four or five gigs a week to sometimes none, with the dance ban dam­pening people’s desire to go out.

“I did a gig a month and a half ago where I played Under the Bridge by the Red Hot Chili Peppers,” he said.

“There was a bunch of young blokes singing along, and the manager told them off. Then he turned on me and said ‘You shouldn’t be playing this stuff’. I thought that was my job.”

Adelaide musician Ben Whittington. Picture: Supplied

Mr Whittington said that in many cases venues were tired of trying to enforce the rules and had instead scrapped live music.

“Everyone seems to be going back to work but us,” he said.

“We’re at a point where we need to speak up and say ‘Hey, we’re not after handouts, we just want to go back to work’.

“The only way that can happen is if there’s a return of singing and dancing.”

Kaelee McKay, better known to Adelaide clubbers as DJ Idyllwild, agrees.

She said the industry was perplexed by the return of large crowds to events such as the AFL while the entertainment industry remained in a state of semi-lockdown. “I don’t want to believe that we’re being victimised, but it’s hard to ignore when you just see it over and over,” Ms McKay said.

“We’re not being heard out or offered a considered response. It just feels like we’re being fobbed off.”

Ms McKay said she had seen several venues go under, a situation that would leave a gaping hole when restrictions were finally wound back.

“While we’re worried about what could happen, people are losing everything. To me, that seems unbalanced.”

One venue that is struggling is Hindley St institution Enigma Bar, the home of rock, metal and punk in Adelaide for more than 20 years.

Supplied Editorial Fwd: Eric Ott/Enigma Bar images

Founder and licensee Eric Ott said the venue said he was currently staffing the venue with friends and family and had launched a GoFundMe campaign to cover costs, including eight months of rent incurred while the bar was closed at the start of the pandemic.

He said on top of interstate and overseas cancellations, the dancing ban had hit hard.

“A lot of the local bands don’t want to play to seated crowds, so we’re having a lot of trouble there, too,” Mr Ott said.

“It’s interesting to watch a hardcore show – which is usually pretty energetic – play to seated people with masks on.”

Mr Ott said if restrictions were staying then compensation was vital. “I think they should look at helping all live venues instead of giving one venue a tonne of cash,” he said. “Even loans would be better than nothing.”

Adelaide DJ and producer Motez. Picture: Supplied

Platinum-selling electronic music producer Motez, aka Moutaiz Al-Obaidi, said he found it ironic that the government wasn’t doing more to help entertainers in Adelaide, a UNESCO City of Music.

Motez, who has started a hashtag campaign called #letusdance, said everyone in the industry respected the need to keep the community safe.

“We’ve always been committed to closing if anything happens and using the rigorous contact-tracing systems,” he said.

“We just want to be viewed from a leadership perspective as the vital industry that we are. We want to be brought into the fold when it comes to planning.”

In a statement to the Sunday Mail, an SA Health spokesman said: “Restrictions are currently in place for different public activities due to the significant threat of Covid-19, and the ongoing high risk of potential community transmission. We cannot afford to become complacent as we work towards our 80 per cent vaccination target.”

A benefit show for Enigma Bar will be held at the venue on November 13. See their Facebook page for more details.

Plea to rescue Christmas drinks

- Antimo Iannella

The SA hospitality industry is pleading for the return of stand-up drinking in pubs and bars in the lead-up to Christmas.

Struggling venue operators say current Covid restrictions, which prohibit vertical consumption of alcohol inside licensed premises, are crippling businesses during the traditionally profitable festive season.

Simone Douglas, co-founder of industry group, Hospo Owners Collective, said allowing standing-up Christmas drinks could boost bar revenue by up to 30 per cent. “Not all venues are geared towards seated consumption … which means that even with 75 per cent (venue) capacity, they’re still turning patrons away when they’re under capacity,” she said.

“What you’re missing are those knock-off drinks in the lead-up to Christmas when people want to casually walk in and stand at a bar and have a chat with their co-workers and they can’t right now.”

Australian Hotels Association SA chief executive Ian Horne said the three months leading up to Christmas were vital for hospitality business owners, especially during the pandemic.

“Pre-Christmas trading last year was effectively wiped out – we’re now facing a similar thing this year,” he said. “The contribution that these three months make to the viability of a business is immeasurable.

“Increasingly people are staying away from bars and pubs … and we’ll be seeing a lot of staff (Christmas parties) being held in-house because they’ll be able to stand up in their boardrooms and lunch rooms.”

Current rules only allow stand-up drinking of alcohol in outside areas such as beer gardens. However, standing-up consumption is allowed in private functions capped at 150 people.

The “confusing and mixed messaging” surrounding the rules were leading more consumers to drink at home with friends, Mr Horne said.

Ms Douglas, who owns the Duke of Brunswick Hotel, said she’s been forced to cut about 30 hours of casual Christmas work as a direct result of the restrictions.

“That means we aren’t creating the jobs that we normally would,” she said.

Originally published as Drinking, dancing bans leave Adelaide’s night economy on edge of ‘valley of death’