A few weeks ago, I was part of the audience at the standup performance of comedian John Muleini. In the moments when I didn’t laugh, and those moments were few, I found myself lost in thought. This was the first live show I was on in just over two years in the middle of an ongoing pandemic.
See: 15 cheap, nice places to retire
Find out: The best cities to retire with a budget of $ 1,500 a month
I’ve been a Mulaney fan since I was in my twenties and I’ve always had a quiet dream of seeing him live. Somehow I blinked and found myself in my thirties, having lived countless chapters of life - both expected and unexpected - and found myself sitting in a full space surrounded by comedy fans from all walks of life. It felt surreal, but incredibly satisfying, to experience live entertainment again after such a long period outside.
Live entertainment is something we usually take for granted. We think he will always be there, but that is not true. Sometimes global events have the power to separate us from these events, for years at a time, and it takes a much-needed reunion to remember why we are eternal fans of live concerts, standup performances and festivals. If you’re thinking about whether to buy a concert ticket or a VIP pass, here’s what makes a live entertainment worth the money.
A shared experience
Linda Williamson is a PR specialist in Newsroom PR who loves live music. Williamson regularly attends concerts and once flew from Los Angeles to New York just to see LCD Soundsystem live.
Williamson said that a big part of what makes live entertainment special is that it is a shared experience. Consider the experience of watching a movie on a streaming platform in relation to the cinema. The experience of going to the cinema is full of elements, such as audience laughter or panting during a dramatic revelation, which can never be completely repeated at home.
“It can be a very powerful shared experience to feel touched by music, side by side, with a bunch of people who all feel equally touched,” Williamson said. “People are common beings, and we are progressing on common experiences. And when you can share your emotions with other people, it multiplies them. ”
Explore our survey: How much do you expect to spend on travel this summer?
Live entertainment is emotional
We scream with excitement, we sob, we scream until our voice is hoarse. Live entertainment is emotional, a special experience for every fan, even in the moments when we least expect it.
Williamson recently went to a small local bar well known to professional musicians. Three 70-year-old musicians came out on stage and blew everything in the room. He almost brought Williamson to tears.
“I was just amazed at what I saw. And I felt privileged. “These were people who have been involved in music since childhood and who have reached an untouchable level of skill,” Williamson said.
Many years ago, Jillene Luce - pianist, composer, singer and performer - went with a famous girl named Lea to a concert of the upcoming artist: “Ziggy Something”.
Only about 200 people were present in the huge dirty concert hall, with a capacity of 5,000 people. Luce and Lea went straight ahead and stood right under the feet of musician David Bowie.
“There I watched - with awe, open-mouthed - what was soon to be my biggest idol and inspiration in music for a very long time,” Luce said.
At that moment, Luce was not only emotional but also incredibly inspired. Bowie showed the whole generation, including that small crowd of 200 people, that it can be fun and fantastic to be unique and push boundaries.
Never regret it
It was a night to remember when Luce saw David Bowie live. Williamson will never experience the exact moment when he sat in that bar and watched those musicians come on stage again. And I will always remember John Mulani as the first show I had confidence when I watched in the middle of a pandemic. There is excitement.
And we do not regret it. Rachel Blank, the founder and CEO of Allara, is a passionate concert goer who has seen Bon Jovi and the Red Hot Chili Peppers live several times. Blank does not regret any of the shows she saw or the amount of money spent on them.
In fact, Blank has an affirmation for these kinds of boasting: “I affirm, ‘I’m releasing this money with joy, and I know it will come back to me multiplied in wonderful ways.’
“Life is all about having different experiences, so we all need to live it while we can!” Blank said.
More from GOBankingRates
This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Live Entertainment: Why It’s Worth Spending On