Pre-Show Entertainment at Concerts?

I remember when I was younger, sitting in a movie theater and watching everyone in the theater stare ahead in the same direction at a black screen.  I thought to myself, “why isn’t someone capitalizing on this opportunity and putting some advertising in front of this audience?”  Not surprisingly, pre-show entertainment in movie theaters soon started greeting movie goers as they arrived early in the movie theater.  Pre-show entertainment now includes advertising, commercials, trivia, and even short films.

Is anyone doing anything like this at concerts in traditional venues like concert halls? Why not? At a time when the event experience for the consumer is becoming ever more important, couldn’t we improve the experience for audiences from the moment they enter the hall?

I’m not necessarily suggesting we put up advertising on a screen before the concert starts.  But what I am suggesting is that we think harder about how we can make the concert experience as compelling as possible, from the moment the audience walks into the hall, until the moment they leave.