Last month, the Woodstock 50 event reportedly ran into serious financial and logistical issues.
The event, meant to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the iconic 1969 festival, faced multiple problems, ranging from an inability to raise enough money to venue capacity issues. At present, Woodstock 50 remains scheduled to take place August 16th to the 18th at Watkins Glen in New York.
Dismissing the notable problems – including the festival’s serious delay announcing its lineup – Michael Lang, the festival’s co-founder, explained,
“There’s always been lots of rumors around Woodstock. We have excellent partners and an incredible talent lineup of over 80 artists which will be announced within the next couple of weeks. We’re preparing a once-in-a-lifetime event.”
Now, with less than a few months to go, Woodstock 50 has run into even more problems. And, this time, they may mean the end of the overhyped event.
Farewell, Woodstock 50 — we hardly knew thee?
Organizers have indefinitely pushed back ticket sales for the upcoming festival, scheduled for today.
An e-mail sent to ticket agents reads,
“There’s currently a hold on the Woodstock 50 on-sale date. We’re waiting on an official press statement from [organizers] regarding updated announce, ticket pricing, and overall festival information. We’ll get this information to you as soon as we receive it.”
Organizers have yet to explain why they pushed back sales for the upcoming event. According to one report, promoters have simply failed to obtain the required permit from the New York Statement Department of Health (DOH).
Tim O’Hearn, Schuyler County Administrator, explained,
“The health department is reviewing to determine if a conditional permit may be issued that would allow for ticket sales to commence.
“At this point, there is no on-sale date set.”
Without a formal permit, or even a conditional permit, organizers can’t sell tickets.
This immediately sparked fears the event will soon be canceled, something Lang has struggled to spin. In a press statement, he simply dismissed the cancellation fears as “rumors.”
Most artists have reportedly received their deposits for the event. Yet, some have already canceled their scheduled performances. Most notably, The Black Keys.
‘Confirmed’ performers include JAY-Z, Miley Cyrus, Chance the Rapper, and Imagine Dragons, along with Robert Plant, Santana, David Crosby, John Fogerty, and Dead and Company. That’s quite a line-up, one that requires some serious upfront guarantees.
Other reps for the event have yet to respond to the cancellation rumors.
Speaking about the behind-the-scenes disaster, one agent told Billboard,
“No one knows what the hell is going on, but there’s clearly a problem.”