The long performance of rock fans has finally come to an end: in excellent late summer weather and under strictly controlled corona rules, around 15,000 fans are currently celebrating the Nova Rock Encore in the Wiener Neustadt stadium. The visitors prove that the longing for live music on big stages is enormous among all parties involved. At the real Nova Rock, the party should then continue in June 2022.
For days the fans have been looking forward to performances by the local superstars Seiler and Speer and Parov Stelar as well as the Italian song contest winner Maneskin (see photos below) – since the end of August the municipality of Wiener Neustadt gave the green light for the event. Mayor Klaus Schneeberger (ÖVP) emphasized the efforts of the organizing team to make the festival as safe as possible in times of the Corona crisis.
Many had come because of Maneskin
A look at the t-shirts soon revealed: One of the most important reasons for going to the festival were apparently the Italian song contest winners, who played in the afternoon. At the end of the gig, after a tight 60 minutes, a good two dozen fans who could hardly believe their luck were brought onto the stage. And although encores are rather uncommon at festivals, especially at this very early point in time, Maneskin insisted on it and shot “I Wanna Be Your Slave” into the crowd a second time.
86 percent of festival goers vaccinated
In addition to a comprehensive Covid prevention concept, the 2G rule applies to access – fans must be vaccinated or PCR-tested. There were no delays with admission and the associated controls, despite the great demand for “Krone” information. Organizer Ewald Tatar spoke of a “great result”. 86 percent of the visitors who were in the stadium in the late afternoon were vaccinated, the remaining 14 percent had a negative PCR test.
Nova Rock Encore is scientifically supported
The Nova Rock Encore was set up as a replacement event for the Nova Rock, which was canceled again this year, in Nickelsdorf in Burgenland. The festival is scientifically supported and is intended to become the “flagship” for the upcoming concert season.