Harsh winter weather across much of the United States has led to a high number of event cancellations this year. The cancellation problem has been particularly bad in the Southeast, where many cities simply weren’t prepared for snow and ice conditions.
Venues in Atlanta were hit twice as two major ice storm events — one in January and another last week — effectively shut down city streets, leading to a state of emergency throughout Georgia.
The Fox Theatre in Atlanta lost three important performances because of the snow — a media preview and the opening night for Book of Mormon (Jan. 28-29) had to be canceled and rescheduled for Feb. 3. Two weeks later, a second storm hit, leading to the cancellation and eventual rescheduling of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre.
“The cancellation of the Book of Mormon was unfortunate because it was the opening night and there was a lot of buzz about the show,” explained Russell Sauve, E-Commerce and Social Media Manager at Fox Theatre. Disappointed fans lit up Twitter and Facebook complaining about the cancellation (in both cases, it was the promoter’s decision), but Sauve said he “responded to every single comment and explained the situation. Once people saw that we were being proactive, they were a little more understanding.”
In fact, the massive traffic jams caused by the first winter ice storm in Atlanta likely influenced many show managers to be more aggressive when canceling events during the second storm on Feb. 12. Other cancellations included Atlanta Ballet’s performance of Romeo and Julliet, Buddy Guy’s concert at Symphony Hall and a Feb.12 performance of Feld’s Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey's “Built To Amaze!” at Philips Arena.
“After the experience of the first winter storm just a couple weeks before, we knew it didn’t make a lot of sense to ask people to go out on the roads and brave the conditions a second time,” said David Helberg, GM for the popular Tabernacle nightclub, which canceled a Feb.13 concert for Lauryn Hill. “We had an opening the following Monday (Feb.17), so we moved the show. Thankfully, it worked out for us.”
Atlanta wasn’t the only metro area affected by the cancellations. In Charlotte, a Feb. 13 concert by Phish frontman Trey Anastasio's at The Fillmore was postponed until Feb.17. The city also saw cancellations from its Charlotte Folk Society series, and the Blumenthal Performing Arts Center was forced to postpone four performances. An Evening with MSNBC’s Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough scheduled for Feb.13 at Knight Theater was postponed until April 17. Same with a concert for recent Grammy winners Snarky Puppy, who had to move their Feb. 14 concert to March 1 after they were unable to travel to the city’s Neighborhood Theatre.
Other cities that saw a large number of cancellations included Nashville, where Kenny Rogers had to cancel his annual Valentine's Day concert. In Athens, Ga., a concert by Joshua Bell at the UGA Performing Arts Centre had to be canceled, while a concert by Christian Tour Winter Jam had to cancel a performance at James Brown Arena in Augusta, Ga., because fans couldn’t make the show. At the Greensboro (N.C.) Coliseum, Luke Bryan's Thursday, Feb. 13 show was postponed due to Winter Storm Pax to Monday, Feb. 17.
Interviewed for this article: Russell Sauve, (404) 881-2085; David Helberg, (404) 659-9022