Woodstock: Investor bolts, Lang persists

May 01, 2019 at 09:08 am by Observer-Review


Woodstock; Investor bolts, Lang persists ADVERTISEMENT

Woodstock: Investor bolts, Lang persists

WATKINS GLEN--Monday was a roller coaster day for the planned Woodstock 50th anniversary celebration at Watkins Glen. Is the event canceled or will it go on? That question depends on who you ask.
Organizers of the beleaguered event say Woodstock 50 will go on despite the loss of a major financial partner.
In a statement released late Monday, Woodstock 50 co-founder Michael Lang and Woodstock LLC said that they were "committed to ensuring that the 50th anniversary of Woodstock is marked with a festival deserving of its iconic name and place in American history and culture."
They said that would continue despite the announcement earlier in the day that a financial investor was dropping out of the event, scheduled for Aug. 16-18 at Watkins Glen International.
"Although our financial partner is withdrawing, we will of course be continuing with the planning of the festival and intend to bring on new partners," the statement read. "The bottom line is, there is going to be a Woodstock 50th Anniversary Festival, as there must be, and it's going to be a blast."
Questions of the festival's fate began last Friday, April 19, when stories of a ticket delay began the leak. Tickets were originally supposed to go on sale Monday, April 22, but that was put on hold. A Department of Health (DOH) permit application filed April 15 showed an attendance number of 75,000, less than organizers had previously stated. Tickets could reportedly cost $450.
However, the biggest obstacle yet came on Monday, April 29 when its major investor pulled out.
"Despite our tremendous investment of time, effort and commitment, we don't believe the production of the festival can be executed as an event worthy of the Woodstock Brand name while also ensuring the health and safety of the artists, partners and attendees," Dentsu Aegis Network's Amplifi Live said in a statement.
That led many to assume the event was canceled. The Poughkeepsie Journal reported a response from Woodstock organizers saying, "Woodstock 50 vehemently denies the festival's cancellation and legal remedy will (be) sought."
Jay-Z, Dead & Company and the Killers were announced as headliners at the concert series, to take place about 115 miles northwest of the original site. The event is separate from an anniversary concert planned at the site of the original festival in 1969.
More than 80 artists, including John Fogerty, Miley Cyrus, Santana, Imagine Dragons, Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters, Chance the Rapper and Janelle Monae, are expected to perform on three main stages.
The original concert was held on a farm in Bethel, New York, that is now run as an attraction by The Bethel Woods Center for the Arts. The venue has its own anniversary event Aug. 16-18 with performances by Ringo Starr, Fogerty and Santana.

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