The Weeknds Super Bowl halftime show will take place in the stands
- 3 years ago
The Weeknd innovative Super Bowl halftime show on Sunday will be performed in the stands, as a way to put on a blockbuster live show and observe COVID-19 safety precautions.
The show will be “only in the stands and nothing in the field,” said a source. “It’s really phenomenal, different and historic.”
Another source confirmed the stage and sets will all be in the stands — but added that The Weeknd could step onto the field during the show.
The stages and equipment for Super Bowl shows are usually assembled by close to 5,000 staffers in 13 minutes, including the performance, an insider said. This year, the show will be put together by a fraction of that number, we hear.
Meantime, a source in Tampa — where the Buccaneers will take on the Kansas City Chiefs — said of the precautions in place for the game, “The amount of COVID-19 policy and safety protocols that have been set up here is unbelievable. They really have an incredible system in place. Roger Goodell and the league have done an amazing job.”
The source added that Goodell was also a driving force in finding an innovative way to safely keep the show inside the stadium.
Jay Z’s Roc Nation is executive producing the show. Last year’s halftime show, starring Jennifer Lopez and Shakira, drew about 102 million viewers. For Sunday’s show, The Weeknd put $7 million into the production himself, saying, “We’ve been really focusing on dialing in on the fans at home and making performances a cinematic experience, and we want to do that with the Super Bowl.”
Super Bowl executive producer Jesse Collins had previously hinted to Entertainment Tonight of the halftime show, “We’re gonna use the stadium to present the show in a way that it’s never been presented before… Instead of focusing on what we can’t do due to the pandemic, it’s like, look at what the opportunities are because of the cards we’ve been dealt.”
Reports have said that 22,000 fans will be admitted to Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla., which is about one-third of capacity. The NFL has already invited 7,500 vaccinated health care workers to the Super Bowl for free. Miley Cyrus is playing a NFL TikTok Tailgate pre-game show exclusively for vaccinated health care workers.
The show will be “only in the stands and nothing in the field,” said a source. “It’s really phenomenal, different and historic.”
Another source confirmed the stage and sets will all be in the stands — but added that The Weeknd could step onto the field during the show.
The stages and equipment for Super Bowl shows are usually assembled by close to 5,000 staffers in 13 minutes, including the performance, an insider said. This year, the show will be put together by a fraction of that number, we hear.
Meantime, a source in Tampa — where the Buccaneers will take on the Kansas City Chiefs — said of the precautions in place for the game, “The amount of COVID-19 policy and safety protocols that have been set up here is unbelievable. They really have an incredible system in place. Roger Goodell and the league have done an amazing job.”
The source added that Goodell was also a driving force in finding an innovative way to safely keep the show inside the stadium.
Jay Z’s Roc Nation is executive producing the show. Last year’s halftime show, starring Jennifer Lopez and Shakira, drew about 102 million viewers. For Sunday’s show, The Weeknd put $7 million into the production himself, saying, “We’ve been really focusing on dialing in on the fans at home and making performances a cinematic experience, and we want to do that with the Super Bowl.”
Super Bowl executive producer Jesse Collins had previously hinted to Entertainment Tonight of the halftime show, “We’re gonna use the stadium to present the show in a way that it’s never been presented before… Instead of focusing on what we can’t do due to the pandemic, it’s like, look at what the opportunities are because of the cards we’ve been dealt.”
Reports have said that 22,000 fans will be admitted to Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla., which is about one-third of capacity. The NFL has already invited 7,500 vaccinated health care workers to the Super Bowl for free. Miley Cyrus is playing a NFL TikTok Tailgate pre-game show exclusively for vaccinated health care workers.