When fans cry
Legendary musician Prince
Wednesday June 11 2008
THIS is what it sounds like when fans cry.
Unpredictable pop genius Prince last night left tens of thousands of Irish fans disappointed after he pulled out of next Monday's Irish gig without even offering an excuse.
The American legend gave no reason for cancelling the near sell-out show due to take place in Croke Park.
Fans were expected to fly in from abroad as well as throughout Ireland for what was to be Prince's only European date this summer, having cancelled two gigs in Paris and Milan last month.
Many of them, gearing up for what was expected to be one of the highlights of this year's music calendar, will lose money having booked flights, trains and accommodation for the night.
Promoter MCD, which was granted a licence for the concert less than three weeks ago, said the show was cancelled for reasons beyond the control of both Prince and itself.
Brisk
Tickets, ranging in price from €66 to over €140, had been selling briskly with 55,161 of the 62,000 total already gone and with more expected to be snapped up in the final days before the concert.
MCD said ticket holders would be refunded the full price including the booking fee.
This can be obtained from the Ticketmaster outlet where it was purchased from 9am on Friday morning.
Construction of the stage at the GAA arena had already begun, but crew were told to bring their work to halt after Prince's management contacted promoters to cancel the Irish trip.
One insider claimed that it was Prince's decision alone not to travel for the concert despite eight months of planning that had gone into the night, including a garda traffic management plan.
The concert had been heavily advertised as the last time the hugely influential artist would play his greatest hits in Ireland.
An MCD spokesman said the company was "devastated" when it learned late on Monday night that the gig would not be going ahead as planned.
Rumours had circulated earlier in the day that Prince, who recently turned 50, was considering pulling out of his first performance in Ireland for six years.
There are hopes that the pop singer will reschedule the Irish concert some time next year. However, he has not yet confirmed any alternative date.
In a statement released yesterday, the promoter said: "It is with great disappointment that the Prince concert scheduled to take place at Croke Park next Monday, June 16, will no longer be taking place due to reasons beyond the control of Prince and MCD Productions.
"MCD and Prince wish to apologise for the inconvenience caused to the 55,161 patrons who purchased tickets, to Croke Park, their customers and all the individuals who have worked tirelessly to bring the show to Dublin," it added.
The concert was due to be one of four major music events to be held in Croke Park this summer. Canadian singer Celine Dion and boyband Westlife have already played sold-out shows in the stadium while Neil Diamond takes to the stage on Saturday.
The promoters applied to Dublin City Council for a licence for the concert on January 2.
Because three concerts had already been granted permission for Croke Park -- the maximum allowed in any year for the stadium under planning regulations -- the promoters applied for a special licence for the Prince gig.
This public events licence was finally granted to MCD on May 22.
Prince sold out a 21-night run at London's 20,000 capacity 02 Arena last year.
But he has cancelled numerous concerts in the past, including two dates in London's Wembley Arena which were apparently axed because of a poor weather forecast.
However, disappointed Prince fans may be able to still get their groove on with extra tickets being released for Iggy Pop's concert next Monday in the Royal Hospital in Kilmainham.
- Breda Heffernan
