RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) – It’s been more than a year since residents of Richmond have been able to stand side by side or sit next to each other in their lawn chairs and enjoy their favorite musical artists in concert .
But it’s all about change as some big names like Brad Paisley, Ludacris, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Foreigner will soon be taking the stage at the Meadow Event Park in Doswell.
EventMakers-USA, the promotions company that produced and managed the Innsbrook After Hours concert series, has announced a new lineup of After Hours concert series and named the Meadow Event Park in Doswell its new home.
While the Innsbrook After Hours location in Henrico County remains open, a note on their website reads, “We look forward to seeing you in 2021!” – this EventMakers-USA concert series has moved to a new location.
“It’s been a very, very difficult 14 or 15 months,” EventMakers-USA president Larry Creeger told 8News. “I’ve been in the professional events industry for 35 years and I’ve been through all sorts of complications and hardships. But nothing compares to that. We have worked very, very hard over the past 10 to 12 months to make this happen.
The live event industry in Virginia has been crippled for the past year due to the COVID-19 pandemic and restrictions put in place by Governor Ralph Northam. Many local concert halls are still closed, although the eased restrictions are expected to come into effect on April 1. But Creeger said that because he and his company continued to book talent and random shows even during the height of the pandemic, they were well prepared to mount a series of concerts when the conditions were right.
“We were hoping to have shows last year,” Creeger said. “We were constantly moving the shows. We came to August, September and October, then moved on to September, October and even November, but it became apparent at some point that we weren’t going to have any shows. Luckily, the talent groups we work with, by-and-by, just picked up the shows and moved them to 2021, which has taken a while.
“We were optimistic going forward that May would be a best-case scenario, not the best,” he added. “But we decided to launch it in May and June. We have moved some of our shows from May to later in the year only because of the restrictions we are required to impose on ourselves in May.
The opening night of the new After Hours concert series at Meadow Event Park is scheduled for May 14, where country singer Jamey Johnson will perform. Back-to-back shows will take place May 21 and 22, with concerts scheduled throughout the summer and fall months.
Creeger said Meadow Event Park will be able to accommodate 8,500 people on 12 acres of land for shows this year. That number seems huge for a gig given the ongoing pandemic, and it is. But Creeger also said the venue will allow the space to draw concertgoers well away from the concert.
“We’re going to be extremely careful and tight with our social distancing and mask wearing, we have all of that in place,” he said. “There will be people who will be a good distance from the stage, but they will have big screens so they can also watch, and I hope people will enjoy being outside and listening to live music. .”
The timing of the venue change was opportune. Creeger knew at the end of 2019 that they would probably have to find a new home as the owners of the Innsbrook land were looking to build a new mixed-use development.
But for those sad to see this series of concerts in Innsbrook disappearing, Creeger said to look on the bright side. Not only will the new digs be able to accommodate more people when things return to normal, but the new setting will make getting in and out easier than ever to catch a big show in the West End. .
“I’ve had people tell me they live 10 minutes from Innsbrook, and on a big show night it would take them an hour, an hour and a half to get in and an hour to get out,” he said. -he declares. “Well here it will take them 15 minutes to get in and 10 minutes to get out. So it will be a completely different world.
“After such a challenging 2020, we are excited about the After Hours Concert partnership and look forward to the continued growth of the facility,” Caroline County Board of Supervisors Chairman Reginald L. Underwood said in a statement. communicated. “The impact of events held throughout the year continues to be positive for our county and our business community.”
Tickets for some shows are already on sale, and tickets will go on sale for other concerts on April 2. For more information on concert programming, to purchase tickets and season passes, visit www.afterhoursconcertseries.com.
Editor’s Note 3/31/21: This article has been updated to reflect that Innsbrook After Hours remains open as a venue.
