News Story 8

Event Center Begins Booking More Shows

BSU Student Surveying to Help Determine Prospective Performances

By Amy Borgman

The Bemidji Regional Event Center has been completed for over a month now, and many college students and residents are anticipating the upcoming concerts it will host. So far, the Event Center has hosted multiple men’s hockey games and a few successful performances including one by Larry the Cable Guy. The person in charge of booking talent is Bob LeBarron, executive director for Venuworks. LeBarron has worked for talent agencies in Minneapolis, at the University of Massachusetts, San Jose State University, and the University of New Hampshire. Now, he is using that experience to provide an entertainment outlet for Bemidji residents.

LeBarron stands outside of his office near Gate 2 at the Event Center.

photo by Amy Borgman

The Event Center has been open to the public for about a month and a half, and with the exception of hockey games, future talents are beginning to take shape. Will they all be country? Will they all be family oriented like the upcoming Sesame Street On Ice? LeBarron said he plans to craft a survey for students to participate in either on Facebook or on-campus at BSU that would indicate what type of music college students are interested in and how much they would be willing to pay for a ticket. They would even attach an incentive to taking the surveys like the chance to win free tickets to a show or a hockey game. His goal is to host acts at the event center that everyone can enjoy seeing at some point. Right now, the main focus is still men’s hockey but before the one-year anniversary mark, he hopes that everyone has had an opportunity to see a performance that appeals to them.

Venuworks is a national management and consulting firm in charge of contacting promoters and talent to fill certain arenas. “Excluding the hockey games, we work with outside promoters to bring in events,” said LeBarron. “We’re not talent buyers – we don’t buy shows. We utilize promoters to help mitigate the risk of booking certain shows. The building is almost like a rental.” Lebarron’s job is to work with local and national promoters that may be interested in doing performances at the Event Center. The shows need to fit the approximate size of audience they’re expecting, and fit the approximate price range that is comfortable for the people of the area. For example, Blake Shelton, a modern country music singer, is performing at the Event Center in January, and is paying a much smaller fee to rent the building than he would for a larger venue such as New York.

LeBarron has worked in the entertainment business for 15 years and has connections with independent promoting companies like Police Productions, Outback Concerts, and Rose Productions. The small size and population in Bemidji is not enough to attract shows from larger national promoters like Live Nation and AEG, which host concerts for artists like Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber. Also, due to Venuworks research, country is a seemingly well-received genre of music in Bemidji, which makes it wise for LeBarron to book independent upcoming country musicians like Blake Shelton.

Beaver Hockey is the major source of income for the time being, but LeBarron hopes to change that within the coming months.

photo by Amy Borgman

            Since Venuworks is still very new to Bemidji, it is still trying to find that main demographic, and college students are definitely in the running. “I’ve worked on college campuses before, and whether it’s The University of Massachusetts or Bemidji State,” he said “it’s difficult because, generally, college students have very eclectic music tastes, so it’s hard to reach everyone in mass for a concert.” His experience on colleges and working with campus organizations is advantageous for reaching the students at Bemidji State University and understanding their desires.

Posters for upcoming performances line the halls of the Event Center.

photo by Amy Borgman

Venuworks has, however, began to dabble in certain online media like Twitter and Facebook in an attempt to show college students what’s available. Until they receive some more feedback and plant their feet in Bemidji-related social media outlets, the shows will continue to be promoted with posters around town, and word-of-mouth.

Price is also a major factor in the process of acquiring certain talent. The large price of construction for the Event Center was a major deterrent for some residents. The entire South shore development cost around $85 million and the arena itself cost around $45 million. Residents are left wondering, will the profit from events ever pay back the tremendous amount of money it cost to build the facility? LeBarron’s guess is, yes, two to four years down the line he assumes the profits will surpass the initial construction amount and will begin to bring profit into the community. Another factor that helps the financial state of the Event Center is that it has recently merged with the Sanford Health Center and will receive sponsorship funds once they change the official name to the Sanford Center.

The high cost and immense production of the Event Center will put Bemidji on the map for talent promoters.

photo by Amy Borgman

LeBarron is hopeful that they will book some exciting, new talent for Bemidji. “Bemidji is an untapped market unlike Minneapolis, so it’s going to take some chances for new musicians to want to perform here.” He also understands that college students make a large part of the population in Bemidji and that they are getting income and willing to go out and spend their income. Venuworks pledges to do its best to book acts that will entertain college students and local Bemidji residents alike.

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