College graduations, Alice Cooper, Beach Boys, Kings of Leon, Foreigner, 311, Brothers Osborne. Other announcements coming. Do you like what you see so far for the rollout of events at the Hartford HealthCare amphitheater?
If not stay tuned because concerts are not designed to be all things to all people. They are market and demographic driven.
The meowing, whining, complaining on the amphitheater Facebook page is creating entertaining exchanges from selective groups of devotees. Hey, what about Alice Cooper (fan got the wish)? Goo Goo Dolls? Willie Nelson and family? REO Speedwagon? 311, is that a band or ticket prices?
Eeeeeeeee!
REO, by the way, has ties to Bridgeport, having cut early recordings at the late Paul Leka’s Connecticut Recording Studio on Main Street Downtown. Leka co-wrote with Gary DeCarlo the anthem sensation “Nah, Nay, Hey, Hey, Kiss Him Goodbye.”
To be fair, there are also positive comments from fans receiving what they want.
Concert promoter Jim Koplik weighs in occasionally with some Facebook teasers of what’s on the horizon.
The Covid-delayed 6,000-seat boutique amp is a joint venture of the city which owns the venue and entertainment entrepreneur Howard Saffan in association with Live Nation.
The concert announcements to date are largely compressed in late August leaving plenty of room for venue dates starting late July running into September.
The University of Bridgeport’s commencement over the weekend was the affiliated public’s first chance to check out the amp.
Saffan has engaged several local food and drink entities to join the hospitality choices.
Ticket prices, depending on the show, run from low end $29 and $39 to triple-digit ticket packages.
The iconic tensile roof membrane is being installed for final completion in June.
How many free tickets will each City Council members get for each show and how many free tickets will Mario Tests get to give to DTC donors?
Ron, the city has a suite, as it did with ballpark, as part of the arrangement. But, yes, that line should be long!
Beach Boys, Kings of Leon, Foreigner, 311, Brothers Osborne. Does this mean No Black people allowed?
No. Just Blacks who like white music.
Donald, maybe they want to keep shootings down to a minimum.
Anything that brings people into Bpt for a night is a good thing,not sure it will translate into any extra $$ for local businesses but we’ll see I guess…And Don,I’m sure there will be some shows that everyone will enjoy…
How quickly they forget.
The arena had The Who the first year and they had the traffic jams and people stopped coming. These acts were selected to make sure that we won’t have traffic jams to worry about!!
Bob,the arena can hold 10,000 for a concert,this place holds 6000 or so,.there will be alot less traffic.And I don’t care what venue you go too,there are always traffic issues..
All I was saying is that it did not take a lot to sour people on a concert venue in Bridgeport.
Ok Lennie,
Which of these talented acts will you lay down good money to hear? Be honest now.
Lennie’s a big Tom Waits fan! The old 55
I went to see Hall and Oates a few years ago and they just weren’t that good any more.
May be so Bob, but then neither are we.
Bob,negative much?..lol…Give this a chance,we don’t have much,we need to get behind this ,it’s all we got for now.
Harvey, I agree that anything is better than nothing and I hope that it’s a success as well. My wife and I went to the arena many times when it was something of interest and we always went early and had dinner at Ralph & Ritchie’s.
Yes,R&R is the first restaurant you come to when you walk from the arena,that place gets very crowded when there is an event,I’m sure it will be the same with the AMP…
Was thinking,maybe the downtown merchants assc could run a bus and have it stop at a couple different intersections from about 2 hours before the event till the time of the show.That way maybe more of the restaurants/bars would get some buisness,A Vucchella,Joseph’s,Metric,etc etc..If people had a way of getting to and back to those places before an event,they could get some of that buisness also…
That would be a great idea. A shuttle bus that would stop at all the restaurants and the brewery before and maybe after the concerts
for a small fee of course………lol…….
Free, no fee!
*** Alice Cooper, what is Alice about 80-yrs. old now? This acts are for korean war & vietnam war time white baby-boomers! No alcohol sales, just geritol smoothies, cappuccino’s, hash-brownies, expresso’s, cokes & pepsi, Pez candies, cotton-candy, good-humor ice creams & Tums for the tummy, etc. Maybe by the fall if all goes well they might bring in acts like Elvis, the doors, jimmy hendrix & the dead, or have they passed? ***
I’m taking out a vending permit to sell Bengay.
Joel, if they want to keep shootings down to a minimum they won’t bring Pit Bull, Marc Anthony or Carlos Santana here!
*** All 3 of those acts you mentioned only attract an older crowd, 30’s up except for a few younger here & there. Whom they won’t bring are gangster rap artist like, Polo G, Lil Baby, Pop Smoke, Dababy or Lil Uzi Vert, just to name a few! ***
Marc Anthony is an A-Lister would be in the arena