The entrance to the concerts of the Kultuuritalo is crowded, some of the spectators were left outside the doors

Helsinki The long entrance queues for events at the Kultuurtalo have caused irritation among the public. The queues formed on the sidewalk of Sturenkatu have stretched to more than 150 meters at their worst and reached close to the intersection of Porvoonkatu.

The bottleneck in the entrance is the ticket check and the security check, which ensures that the public does not bring prohibited items or their own snacks. After that, we still have to wait in line.

At the Sibelius high school’s Christmas concert on Tuesday, the hall doors were closed before everyone had gotten inside.

Tuesday was in the audience of the concert Anni Elonen says that the entry was slow, because there were two lines for the security check of the bags and only one employee handled the ticket check.

Kulttuuritalo’s Aalto hall can accommodate more than 1,400 people when all places are seats. When the permanto is standing room only, there are 1,800 people in the sold-out event.

On Tuesday, just before the start of the concert, the doors of the hall were closed, although the audience was still queuing for the clothes storage downstairs. Elonen says he was among the last to get in.

“There must have been dozens of people left outside,” says Elonen.

He wonders why there was a festival-style security check upon entry. Elonen thinks that the inspection and long lines came as a surprise to many others as well.

“I understand that with some concerts there may be a need for inspections, but here was the Christmas show of Sibelius High School, everyone in the seats, minors performing and families watching.”

Culture house the website says that upon entry, a security check is carried out to make sure that no one brings prohibited items or their own drinks and snacks. The instructions do not specifically state that sufficient time must be reserved for entry.

On Instagram and Facebook, the public is requested to arrive one hour before the start of the event.

The doors are usually opened to the public an hour and a half before the start of the event. The house has attracted the public to come early by offering half-price drinks at the bar for the first half hour.

CEO of Kultuuritalo Emilia Mikkola says that the entry congestion is basically due to problems with the flow of information and the high popularity of the events.

“We apologize for the possible traffic jams, and we are trying to inform those who purchased the ticket to arrive on time. We have urged them to come at least an hour before the announced start of the event, so that we can ensure smooth entry,” says Mikkola.

Social in addition to the media, those who purchased tickets have been reminded of this via an e-mail, which lists various instructions for those coming to the event. HS has seen the messages sent to those who bought the ticket, where the last thing on the list is the hope that everyone will arrive on time and be prepared for the security check.

The security check performed upon entry is based on the instructions of Legends Global, the international company responsible for Kulttuuritalo’s operations. Inspection is done in all events.

Mikkola says that the security check and the ticket check are not the cause of the traffic jams, because more staff can be brought to the door to help if necessary. He himself says that he has watched the situation at the door at about a hundred concerts.

“A large number of people still only come 10-15 minutes before the announced showtime, and that’s when the queue forms.”

Mikkola emphasizes that the decision on the concert’s start time is always the performer’s, not Kulttuuritalo’s. At Saimaa’s concert last Friday, the band was asked if they wanted to delay the start of the gig until everyone could get in, and it suited the band. At Tuesday’s Sibelius high school concert, the organizer delayed the start of the concert somewhat. Spectators who were left outside were allowed in during the first intermission applause.

“From now on, we could urge event organizers to start weekday gigs later than 7 p.m. That’s a very early start time for a weekday, and causes a late arrival at Kulttuuritalo,” says Mikkola.

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