Mark Twain once said, "When the end of the world comes, I want to be in Cincinnati because it's always twenty years behind the times." Well, that statement does not hold true for the announcement made today by Riverbend Music Center. Cincinnati is now home to the first amphitheatre in the country to feature a state-of-the art Synthetic Concert Lawn.
The 16-week, $750,000 project was made possible, in part, due to the generosity of the Patricia and J. Ralph Corbett Riverbend Endowment. The Endowment was established by Pat Corbett for the continued improvement of Riverbend Music Center as a high quality performing arts facility.
The Synthetic Concert Lawn provides a safe, clean, dry and comfortable lawn seat regardless of the weather. In addition to the fan benefits, the environmental benefits are numerous. Riverbend Music Center will significantly reduce its carbon footprint by eliminating the use of fertilizers, pesticides and fuel consumption from lawn equipment. 600,000 gallons of water will be saved each year from being consumed by lawn irrigation, and the synthetic lawn fabric, backing, and fibers are 100% recyclable.
Mike Smith, CEO of Riverbend Music Center said, “We are always trying to improve the overall experience for our patrons. As lawn ticket sales have increased, maintaining the lawn seating area from normal wear and tear became increasingly more difficult. The new Synthetic Concert Lawn ensures a consistent, perfect, lawn seat every night. The addition of the Synthetic Concert Lawn gets us one step closer to creating that unbeatable concert experience.”
Concert-goers will get to see the new lawn for the first time on May 20th when Brad Paisley comes to town on his Virtual Reality tour, at which time a new promotion will be rolled out giving the first 1000 concert attendees a free lawn chair to use at every show this season. In addition, special reduced-price lawn tickets will be available for most shows during on sale weekends, making it even more affordable for fans to see their favorite artists.
The addition of the Synthetic Concert Lawn is just one of many improvements made by Riverbend Music Center over the past 10 years.
- The addition of PNC Pavilion, a 4,100 seat boutique amphitheatre in 2008 makes it possible for audiences to see artists in a more intimate setting.
- Construction of the Time Warner Party Plaza, providing a location where fans can come early to listen to local bands, and prior to select shows, be treated to free wine and beer tastings as well as cook-outs.
- The number of concession points of sale have been tripled, and the number of restrooms have been doubled in capacity.
- Eliminating service fees at the Riverbend Music Center box office as well as the downtown satellite box office located at the Taft Theatre.
“It’s all about our customers,” said Marketing Director Rosemarie Moehring, “We want fans to come to Riverbend to see their favorite artists and have a perfect experience all around.”
The 2012 summer concert season is already shaping up to be jam-packed. Below is a list of shows that have been announced to date. Many more shows will be announced in the coming weeks.
May 20 Brad Paisley with The Band Perry & Scotty McCreery
May 29 Dave Matthews with Carolina Chocolate Drops
May 31 Lady Antebellum with Darius Rucker & Thompson Square
June 15 Miranda Lambert with Chris Young & Jerrod Niemann
June 22 Phish
June 26 Styx and REO Speedwagon with Ted Nugent
July 08 Big Time Rush with Cody Simpson & Rachel Crow
July 21 Rod Stewart and Stevie Nicks
July 22 Rascal Flatts with Little Big Town, Eli Young Band & Edens Edge
July 24 Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival feat. Slipknot & Slayer
July 28 Toby Keith with Brantley Gilbert
July 29 Chicago with The Doobie Brothers
July 31 Vans Warped Tour
Aug 03 Sugarland with Canaan Smith & Lauren Alaina
Aug 16 Jason Aldean with Luke Bryan
