International Event Perspectives - Coursework Example

International Event Perspectives Entertainment and arts have been cardinal elements of human history since the prehistoric times. All cultures from the earliest of times have had their unique ways of performing and visual arts. Likewise, entertainment industry is a multi-billion dollar industry in the modern age. However, the artists bringing entertainment to the masses often have to pay heavy price for showcasing their talent, particularly when it is not in line with the norms and values of the audience. Numerous cases illustrating the control of prominent conservative groups and officials on media and entertainment industry have surfaced in the past. Even certain fairytales and children’s story-books have been banned on the basis that they have been perceived to promote topics that are considered taboo in the society. For example, despite the tremendous box office success and wide scale publishing, Harry Potter films and novels have spurred a lot of controversies among religious groups and many conservative educators and parents (Soulliere, 2010). The portrayal of witchcraft and wizardry in the Harry Potter series has led to banning of the book in many school libraries as well as homes. Performing artists need to take certain precautionary measures while contemplating a concert. This paper provides guidelines for safer concert experience of the performing artists and evaluates the possible consequences of not following those guidelines. The Guidelines You (the artist) should provide me with a complete list of the tracks that you intend to perform in the concert along with their intended sequence. Not only is it important to scrutinize and carefully build the track-list considering the norms and culture of the host country but also it is equally important to prudently place the numbers one after another so that the audience’s tendency to be offended is minimized. Starting a show with a controversial number is never recommendable because it may end the show even before it has actually begun. On the other hand, placing such a number after a very engaging and motivating song lessens the audience’s tendency to react to the odds. Once the proposed plan has been received, I shall start advertising the concert on the television and the Internet. The Internet can make or break the event; the power of social media in such cases cannot be overemphasized. We shall render the services of some of the most reputable advertising agencies in the host country to maximize the audiences’ interest in the event. However, even after all due precautions have been taken, whether it is advisable for the artist to proceed with the concert or change the plan truly depends upon the response received to the advertising campaign. It will take few weeks after the advertising has commenced that public’s acceptability for the concert can be gauged. In order to maximize the opportunity of success, advertising should be quite sophisticated and should be started as early as possible. This will provide the organizers with an opportunity to cancel the concert without investing significant amount of money in it in time, should the response be negative. You should convey to me what you intend to wear at the concert well in advance. Ideally, you should appear wearing the dress and rehearse one or two songs the way you have planned. This will help me customize the dress or theme, if required, to match the taste of the audience. Create a personal page on Facebook for the event and share your plans with the members. The feedback received from the audience in the comments will not only educate us on the potential areas that need to be improved in terms of security, but also provide us with a clear insight into the prevailing norms and culture of the host country. Meanwhile, it is also advisable for the artist to study the host culture and developing deep understanding of it. Good understanding of the host culture will help the artist reflect the desired and hide the unwanted aspects of performance at the concert. In addition to that, once the artist is aware of the underlying issues of a society, the artist can develop a good image among the masses by becoming associated with a cause or agency that the people of the host country appreciate. Many artists have created a place for themselves in the hearts of people before following this strategy. One such example is Angelina Jolie’s visit to Pakistan to meet the victims of flood (UNHCR, 2010). The people of Pakistan respect Angelina Jolie for showing concern and care for the flood victims and the poor in general. Since concerts are not organized very frequently in such countries, an artist can expect to find compromising safety and security measures. Among the major issues of public health at public assembly places is fire safety. Performance spaces in general and theatres in particular often fail to meet the fire codes whereas many are often overcrowded. Many cases of disastrous fire outbreak and resulting fatalities at the musical clubs are reported in the news every few days. One of the most recent cases of fire outbreak at a musical club was the one that happened at popular Lagos night club, Quilox (Splendor International Magazine, 2014). Theatres and similar spaces of public assembly are especially vulnerable to fire outbreak because smoke and fog is used in such places for creating special effects and capturing the interest and attention of the audience (McCann, n.d.). Lack of adequate exhaust ventilation facility in a theatre increases the danger posed by smoke and fog to the public as it may cause asthma attacks. So always prefer to have the stage set in the open and do identify a secret escape passage in advance with the organizers. Lastly, you need to be very careful in your attitude, speech, and dialogue. Your demands from the organizers and other concerned officials should be legit and realistic. It has happened with Madonna and you should learn a lesson from that. Madonna was launched an extraordinary attack upon by the president of Malawi who accused Madonna of bullying and blackmail because Madonna “who has adopted two children from the impoverished African country, wanted the Malawian government to "roll out a red carpet and blast the 21-gun salute in her honour"” (Laing, 2013). Two Countries To Be Specifically Careful In Pakistan Pakistan is one of the countries that are not for concerts of this sort. Being a developing Muslim country, it is rare for the people of Pakistan to visit the concert of an international star in their own country. Although many people in Pakistan are highly educated and many among them are fans of the contemporary pop stars, yet the risks associated with conducting the concert there cannot be overlooked. However, with certain precautionary measures, the experience of conducting a concert in Pakistan can be made memorable. There can be no compromise on appearance, so an artist cannot consider himself/herself safe while dressing anyway he/she wants in the public. You should ideally wear the national dress of Pakistan i.e. Kurta Shalwar. This will serve two purposes; develop the rapport between the artist and the audience, and diversify the style of the performing artist. People of Pakistan are generally very good-natured and accommodating toward the foreigners, though nudity and revealing clothes are disliked and may bring out the beast in some of the audience. People of Pakistan are generally educated, though their thoughts, views, and opinions are greatly influenced and determined by the teachings of Islam. Even though not many people actually practice Islam, yet the standard in almost every walk of life is determined by Islamic teachings. The artist needs to be careful not to be offensive to their religion as the people are very sensitive and possessive about their religion. The real threat to a foreigner live performer in Pakistan is not from the people of Pakistan, but from Taliban and other agencies operating underground that launch attacks on foreign embassies in Pakistan, foreigner cricketers, and other foreigners in an attempt to tarnish the image of Pakistan in the international media. Taliban have, in the past, taken responsibility for many attacks launched on the foreigners in Pakistan; “We did it and we claim responsibility for this attack…We want to convey to the world that this is our reply to US drone attacks” (Ehsan cited in Al Jazeera, 2013). Indonesia Indonesia is another country where an artist needs to be very careful with what he/she is wearing and doing in performance because the Indonesian Muslim community has become less tolerant and more conservative over the years. In Indonesia, two laws passed by the government in 2008 are some of the prominent outcomes of inclusion of religious intolerance and conservatism among the elites; the “Law No. 44 on pornography” and the “Law No. 11 on Information and Electronic Transaction” (Hamayotsu, 2013). The anti-pornography law was supported by both Islamic and secular political parties with an overwhelming majority. Both of these laws have provided the government authorities with immense power to decide what may be considered as moral and how to control the means and content of communication in order to regulate morality. Owing to the growing conservatism in the Indonesian society, it has become very risky for the contemporary pop stars to conduct shows and concerts in Indonesia with the themes of sex and pornography in their performances on the display. Concerts have been canceled by artists a lot of times in the past. One such incident was canceling out of a sold-out concert in Jakarta by Lady Gaga that was scheduled for 3rd June 2012 as a result of violence threats from religious groups. The conservative Muslim groups in general and the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) in particular staunchly opposed the organization of Lady Gaga’s concert in Indonesia. Some threatened the artist that they would purchase the tickets to the show and create havoc inside the stadium. Indonesian Muslims deemed it as their victory when Lady Gaga decided to cancel the concert. “Thanks to God for protecting us from a kind of devil” (Atlas cited in Rauhala, 2012). In addition to this specific incident, journey of the American pop star across Asia has spurred controversies, finger-pointing, hand-wringing, and talks of devil worship. The Born This Way Ball tour was intended to be banned through campaigns by the Filipinos, though they eventually made a small-scale protest. Lady Gaga’s shows have not only been criticized by the Muslims, but are equally infamous amongst some conservative Christian communities. Her show was deemed pornographic by the concerned Christians in Seoul and the show was pushed into becoming an event only meant for adults. Possible Consequences of Ignorance Possible consequences of not following the aforementioned guidelines can be horrendous. Media in Pakistan or Indonesia is free to a large extent in spite of all the conservatism in these countries primarily because a common man does not have control over media; a common man cannot approach the officers in charge of the channels and take them to task for showing vulgarity, nudity, or other morally substandard elements of everyday life in the dramas, ads, and films. However, the same does not apply to a live stage performer. Surrounded by thousands of people all around the stage, a live performer cannot tell a fan from a foe. Even after being checked for weapon possession at the entry, an enemy never falls short of tools and equipment to cause harm. Just an empty bottle of Pepsi shoved in the face of the live performer from a distance is enough to cause a permanent damage to the face. The real damage apart from the obviously apparent one caused emotionally and psychologically is far greater and irreparable. The following image posted on Facebook shows the bruised body of the legendary musician Lester Chambers who was attacked on the stage after he dedicated a song to Trayyon Martin (Zimmerman, 2013). Lester Chambers bruised from attack on stage (Zimmerman, 2013). The threat does not end after the performer has left the stage. Some foes follow the stage performers to their residence to cause them harm. Only few months ago, the sister-in-law and security guard of a stage performer in Lahore, Pakistan were shot dead at the residence of the stage performer (News247, 2014).   References: Al Jazeera 2013, Pakistani Taliban claim attack on foreigners, [Online] Available at http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia/2013/06/20136234309866467.html [accessed: 6 January 2015]. Hamayotsu, K 2013, The Limits of Civil Society in Democratic Indonesia: Media Freedom and Religious Intolerance, Journal of Contemporary Asia, pp. 1-20, DOI:10.1080/00472336.2013.780471. Laing, A 2013, Malawis Joyce Banda attacks Madonna for bullying trip, The Telegraph, [Online] Available at http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/celebritynews/madonna/9985591/Malawis-Joyce-Banda-attacks-Madonna-for-bullying-trip.html [accessed: 6 January 2015]. McCann, M n.d., Entertainment and the Arts, [Online] Available at http://www.ilocis.org/documents/chpt96e.htm [accessed: 6 January 2015]. News247 2014, Stage performers attacked in Lahore..!!! [Online] Available at http://news247.com.pk/6544/entertainment/stage-performers-attacked-in-lahore..!!!.html#.VKwZDSuUeyo [accessed: 6 January 2015]. Rauhala, E 2012, Lady Gaga, Deemed Satanic by Conservative Groups, Is Bullied Out of Indonesia, Time, [Online] Available at http://world.time.com/2012/05/28/lady-gaga-deemed-satanic-by-conservative-groups-is-bullied-out-of-indonesia/ [accessed: 6 January 2015]. Soulliere, DM 2010, Much Ado about Harry: Harry Potter and the Creation of a Moral Panic, University of Windsor, Journal of Religion and Popular Culture, Vol. 22, Issue 1, [Online] Available at http://www.nabilechchaibi.com/resources/Soulliere.pdf [accessed: 6 January 2015]. Splendor International Magazine 2014, Photos: Fire outbreak last Night at popular Lagos night club, Quilox, [Online] Available at http://www.splendormag.com/2014/12/photos-fire-outbreak-last-night-at.html [accessed: 6 January 2015]. UNHCR 2010, Angelina Jolie in Pakistan to highlight needs of flood victims, [Online] Available at http://www.unhcr.org/4c8609926.html [accessed: 6 January 2015]. Zimmerman, N 2013, Soul Singer Attacked on Stage for Dedicating Song to Trayvon Martin, [Online] Available at http://gawker.com/soul-singer-attacked-on-stage-for-dedicating-song-to-tr-785398779 [accessed: 6 January 2015]. Read More