It's Under The Southern Stars time !!

After two postponements and a few years of uncertainty the time has finally come for Under The Southern Stars. In March, UTSS kicks off and will see the international tour play 12 shows in regional towns and capital cities across the country. The man responsible for bringing us the first national tour with international acts since Covid began is long time promoter and event organiser, Andrew McManus, a man that like the rest of the world wasn’t prepared for what was to come when boarders shut, lockdowns were put in place and events were cancelled on mass. Jump forward to 2022 and we are only weeks away from Bush, Stone Temple Pilots, Cheap Trick and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Rose Tattoo & Electric Mary being on stage, smashing out some of the best rock and metal music ever written and Andrew can mark it off as another successful tour completed. MFA were fortunate enough to be given the opportunity to ask Andrew a few questions about the Under The Southern Stars, the issues Covid created for his tour and the opportunity to join Adelaide’s Fringe Festival.

Andrew, you are responsible for bringing some of the music industry’s biggest names to Australia, Whitney Houston, Kiss and Motley Crue just to name a few, safe to say the events of 2020/21 must have created issues never considered before. How hard have these Covid years been for you both personally and professionally?

It’s been very difficult on both sides, keeping the faith and team working whilst working thru the occasional doubt….but we can see the light at the end of the tunnel and hopefully all our had work is paying off. As Winston Churchill famously stated ‘You never, ever give up’ - a great moto.

At times you would of been forgiven for thinking this tour would never happen, was it hard not to give up and just cancel it altogether? did you ever think the country would get to a point were this tour could go ahead?

There has been mornings I’ve woken and asked myself that question, yet too many people directly and indirectly are relying on us and in particularly these festivals. At no stage have I ever believed we wouldn’t get to the finish line. We have too much financial and emotional currency invested for me to walk away

Was it difficult to realign all the act’s and their calendars to reschedule days or were tentative dates discussed, when the first and then the second lock down took place?

Considering its been three times - initially it wasn’t that tough as US wasn’t doing a lot, these dates coming in March took a bit of maneuvering yet the bands want this all to happen just as much as my team does.

Cheap Trick and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club have been added to the original 2020 lineup, They are both headliners in their own right so is this a reward for ticket holders patience and support of the UTSS event?

I agree wholeheartedly ….and thank you.

What has been the reaction of ticket holders to the Cheap Trick and BRMC addition announcement?

Been good, yet still a bit of reticence around getting into the country, They will be here, trust me, then I feel once people see them here in Oz, more confidence will be shown.

The Under Southern Stars tour has been years in the making and after the two postponements due to Covid, Restrictions and Boarders Closures, is there a sense of relief that the time for UTSS is now here? Is there a personal satisfaction seeing it all come to fruition finally especially as other international tours happening around March are still postponing?

Very much so, actually other tours cancelling or postponing (one of my own with KISS….. sorry about that) has actually made life more difficult as its take the confidence out of the market….can’t wait to get the show on the road.

You have had to swap out some venues from the original tour announcement, is this due to the laws for gathering sizes and to provide an open air environment to allow the tour to go ahead?

Only real change was from Timberland side show to Marg Court Arena to give us more capacity, especially under Covid rules, adding the extra Adelaide’s was a no brainer getting to close out the Fringe Festival.

What has been the hardest Covid-19 rule/regulation to plan for or accommodate in organizing the UTSS events besides the basic social distancing?

Mainly South Australia and the need for Pods / Q Codes on each Pod, each pods own coloured wrist band/ Covid marshal and security - yet the patron can then leave the pod and go to the bar our general toilets…..just doesn’t make sense to me.

Given the support and lack of obstacles sports and other non music based events have received, how frustrating has it been jumping through the hoops to get the UTSS Tour back up and happening?

It’s an interesting question, some would say it’s not fair, yet all forms of entertainment have been affected (I include sport) and I applaud those administrators being able to keep their brand alive, as we are trying to do.

Does being the first National tour featuring International acts add an extra layer of pressure, given that the whole country is watching? What sort of impact would you like UTSS to have on international touring here and around the world?

All the eyes are on us and I thank my 4 international acts for having faith in me and my team to keep them safe and healthy and return them home on the 28th March.

What do ticket holders need to know for Under the Southern Stars 2022?

It’s a changing feast daily….keep an eye on our website and tune into what’s going on in each state.

To purchase tickets and for detailed information about all shows, visit
www.underthesouthernstars.com.au

Interview by Michelle Symes

February 2022