The Grand Ole Opry has posted a notice on their Facebook page that future Grand Ole Opry shows will be held at the Ryman Auditorium until further notice.
Looking at the Ryman schedule, there could be a couple of issues. Next Friday, May 14, there is a sold-out Norah Jones concert. On Saturday May 15, there is a performance by Rickey Smiley.
On Tuesday May 18, Swell Season is scheduled and on Saturday May 22, Dierks Bentley is scheduled.
I am sure that the Ryman will try to reschedule those shows to different dates based on the artist's tour itinerary. Sometimes, that can easily be done.
What I don't know is whether the contracts are written in a way that gives Gaylord first priority in using the building for one of their own shows, and if that is grounds for cancellation.
If not, the Opry could be on the road, rotating to different locations, and I am sure that is not "Plan A".
UPDATED------
The Tuesday Night Opry has just started, about 15 minutes late due to the crowd. Colin Reed, the CEO of Gaylord is there and he just announced that it will be at least 3 months until the Opry can return to the Opry House. He said that there is 4-6 feet of water in the Opry House. Until then, he said the Opry will be moving around at different locations in Nashville.
They are treating tonight as a historic night for the Opry, which I was sure they would do. They just announced Marty Stuart as the first act, and he started it off with a special song and was talking about Patsy Cline and Dottie West... "Let the church roll on."
This could also be bad news for the Opry if this stretches into June. That is when Opry attendance really picks up, especially with the CMA Music Festival in town and there tend to be stronger Opry line-ups.
I know that the articles always reference the 1975 floods, but that reached just the parking lot and the outside of the building and if I remember right, the Opry was only at the Municipal Auditorium for one week.
The start of the Tuesday Night Opry is being delayed by about 15 minutes because of the large crowd, this according to Mike Terry.
ReplyDeleteI am sure that there is some confusion at the different location and I am not sure how they are handling the ticket situation.
On a different note: Hoot Borden, longtime bus driver for Ernest Tubb and a legend among entertainer coach drivers, passed away suddenly at his home in Lebanon, Tennessee, on Saturday. His funeral will be held on Thursday in Mount Juliet. If there was a place in the Country Music Hall of Fame for bus drivers, Hoot would certainly be the first one in.
ReplyDeleteOne article about the show I saw said the Auditorium was about 2/3 full. Kudos to the radio station for having wsmonline.com up and running tonight. Enjoyed the show. Kind of evoked memories of simpler times. Looks like from a couple of pictures I saw, they didn't use the Ryman barn backdrop but a lighted background with a Opry logo. They did use the present Opry mike stands. They are stating officially in a article I saw tonight that it is yet to be determined how much of the Acuff collection, Opry Museum collection and Archives were lost.
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