Virtual and drive-related events kept us connected
When the coronavirus pandemic hit in March 2020 and in-person gatherings were shut down entirely to slow the spread, myriad industries quickly pivoted to livestreaming or socially distanced drive-in or drivethru events.
As event and concert promoters, county fairs and other venue operators navigated the everevolving county and state health department COVID-19 protocols to ensure the safety of their patrons, these activities became more innovative and began to pop up consistently throughout Southern California.
Here’s a look back at what was done to keep us together, even when we were forced to be apart and which virtual or socially distanced events we could still see after the pandemic ends.
DRIVE-IN LIVE ENTERTAINMENT» Drive-ins were a big hit in 2020. Since the weather is nice year-round, Southern California has always had drive-in movie theaters, but they definitely saw a sharp increase in attendance during the pandemic. Since movie studios weren’t able to put out new releases in indoor theaters, what wasn’t streamed on demand was made available at select drive-in locations.
Such places as Paramount Drive-In Theaters in Paramount, Vineland Drivein in the City of Industry and Rubidoux Drive-in and Van Buren Drive-In in Riverside all screened classic, family-friendly films and double features to attract audiences. Some independent movie houses, such as Frida Cinema in Santa Ana, switched to streaming movies and created its own drive-in and mess hall at Flight in Tustin.
Drive-ins weren’t just re
served for movies. Concert and festival promoters turned parking lots into well-spaced out venues, such as OC Fair’s Autosonic Concerts or CBF Productions’ Concerts in Your Car at the Ventura and Del Mar fairgrounds. City National Grove of Anaheim’s Drive-In OC hosted more than 60 concerts in 2020, and Beverly Hills-based electronic music festival production company Insomniac has put on dozens of Park ‘N Rave shows now at the NOS Events Center in San Bernardino.
“This gives people a sense of normalcy,” City National Grove of Anaheim’s general manager, Jordan Harding, said during an interview about continuing to produce drive-in concerts into this summer. “People are tired of sitting at home, staring at their walls, and they are anxious to get out and do something. I think this provides a release that’s really important for our society, and it’s important for our communities that experiences like these are available to them.”
Since clubs were also shutdown, promoters created Drive ‘N Drag on the lawn at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, and the Improv comedy clubs held drive-in comedy nights at the Irvine Spectrum Center and Silver Lakes Park in Norco.
THE DRIVE-THRU EXPERIENCE» Walk-thru experiences had become a huge market in Southern California in previous years with art installation pop-ups such as I Like Scary Movies, The Museum of Ice Cream, Happy Place and Candytopia. Creators took that blueprint and let their imaginations run wild as they turned those types of experiences into COVID-19 safe drive-thru spectacles.
The Stranger Things DriveInto experience in downtown Los Angeles sold out well beyond its expected Halloween run and is still going strong into April. Instead of the theme parks doing big Halloween events, smaller drive-thru pumpkin patches and more family-friendly spooky events took over.
For the holidays, an Elf on the Shelf themed attraction popped up at Fairplex Pomona, and Night of Lights OC covered the OC Fair & Event Center in Christmas cheer. To celebrate the Dodgers winning the World Series,
Dodger Stadium even hosted a special drive-thru holiday festival with extravagant lights and a Dodgers championship theme.
Insomniac created an immersive drive-in experience using props and lighting from its various EDM festivals for the Electric Mile experience at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, which extended its run numerous times due to popular demand. Promoters of these events all mentioned in interviews that even post-COVID-19, the drivethru experience could augment regular walk-thru attractions and in-person experiences.
Though county fairs were sidelined by the pandemic, foodies were able to get their fix and pick up jumbo turkey legs, funnel cake and myriad deep fried treats by attending numerous fair food-focused drive-thru events at Del Mar Fairgrounds, OC Fair & Event Center, Angel Stadium in Anaheim and the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.
A VIRTUAL WORLD » Now that promoters have more of a grasp on livestreaming events, once things do return to “normal,” plenty of people will continue to use a variety of programs and apps to work from home, attend meetings, livestream concerts, attend church services, participate in city council meetings, join in book club events or take online courses.
Pivoting to a virtual experience has also allowed everyday people into places they’ve never been able to go to before, such as the annual NAMM convention, which is typically reserved for badge-holders only in-person, or the impossible-to-getinto panels at Comic-Con San Diego.
Major artists did livestream concerts to entertain the masses during the pandemic, including Billie Eilish, Dua Lipa, Slipknot’s Corey Taylor, Machine Gun Kelly, Todd Rundgren, Bad Religion, Dropkick Murphys, Foo Fighters and more.
Musician and Roxy Theatre co-owner Cisco Adler, who cofounded livestream production company NoCap last year, said artists should seriously consider adding streaming concerts to their normal business model since it is a cost-effective way to reach the currently underserved live events markets around the world.