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I remember reading about this incident a few weeks ago, and the Olivia Rodrigo incident as well. These incidents made me think about the risks of being a performer, and the stamina and presence of mind required to be able to recover from a slip like that in front of a large audience. I also think they highlight the importance of clear communication amid many moving parts when it comes to the stagehands and technicians. The safety of everyone that walks on the stage should be the top priority, and clearly establishing hazards and alerting the artist is extremely important. This was a real life example of what could go wrong when precautions aren't followed and small details aren't accounted for. In the worst case scenario, performers and/or audience members could be put in serious danger. In the future, I may be working on the production of these shows, and it will be my job to ensure the safety of everyone involved.
What is it with Melbourne and artist falling through the stage. when I first read this headline I got deja vu from when just a few weeks ago artist Olivia Rodrigo fell through a hole in the stage at a different venue in Melbourne. Much like what I said when that incident happened this trend of having artists descend through the floor during performances although call from an audience perspective needs to be treated with as much or more caution as an artist flying above the stage. I admire the crew member who decided to break Chris Martins fall but this incident should not have happened at all nevertheless twice in only a couple of weeks. When I first read that this incident took place in Melbourne I though it may have been at the same Venue Olivia Rodrigo fell through the stage at which led me to think it may have been an issue with the automation tech in the venue. Now that I know these similar incidents took place in 2 separate venues it is abundantly clear that this technology and the people who run it need to be held to a better standard.
From Olivia Rodrigo and Taylor Swift to Billie Eilish many videos have been circulating with often dangerous stage malfunctions. I have seen a lot more of this happening lately. I wonder if it’s a new problem with the stages, the stagehands, or an already existing issue that is being talked about more than usual these days. If something can go wrong eventually it will go wrong, this phrase seems to be made for performance art and theater. It is incredibly important that and stage malfunctions are noticed and reported to not only those in charge of a performance but also those on the stage so they can be aware of hazards they may face on the stage, in severe cases stopping a show can be helpful to keep everyone safe while fixing potentially disastrous issues. I Know that there is very much a “the show must go on” mentality within the live event industry, but this can be dangerous and potentially fatal especially if this trend of stage and scenery malfunctions continues to rise along with the complexity of shows and the scenery itself.
I think this is so ironic because Olivia Rodrigo just fell through a stage as well, also in Australia. Maybe it is a coincidence that this has happened twice now in the last month or so, but I think that the stages and stagehands really need to figure out what the root cause of this issue is because it is happening more than it should. It should not have happened once, let alone it happening twice in the same city. I’m sure that this is not one person’s fault, and it is probably the automation malfunctioning that caused this to happen, but regardless of that, something needs to be done to make sure that people stop falling through the stage. We are super lucky that nobody was hurt. The singer that fell through the stage this time was the lead singer of the band Coldplay, Chris Martin. All that being said, he was okay but these accidents are definitely preventable, and measures should be taken to make sure this does not happen for a third time.
It’s a pretty crazy coincidence that this incident happened just a few weeks after Olivia Rodrigo fell through a trap in a stage, not to mention that they happened within the same city. This probably isn’t a great look for Melbourne stagehands, since this is the second touring performer to suffer this accident. It makes me doubly curious to know why these holes were on the stage without the performer’s knowledge, planned or unplanned. More than likely, it’s just an unlikely and unfortunate coincidence, but there could be something that relates the two events. It seems like Martin was lucky that there were two stagehands standing under the trap to break his fall; he might’ve been seriously injured if they hadn’t caught him. Hopefully, this is the last accident of its kind that we see for a while. At least, you would think some union or safety organization would start thinking about implementing stricter regulations following these two accidents.
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