What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
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8 WHAT'S UP! APRIL 18-24, 2021 COVER STORY AMP'd Up JOCELYN MURPHY NWA Democrat-Gazette D o you hear that? The sounds of guitars, drums, your favorite song and 10,000 screaming fans echoing out over the Ozark hills once again? OK, so maybe those familiar sounds are just sweet memories of the before times. But they're starting up once again — and SOON! Facilities staff members at the Walmart Arkansas Music Pavilion in Rogers are preparing to get people back in seats, artists back on stage and music ringing through the night as concert announcements begin again. Every show on the 2020 season, of course, was either postponed or outright canceled. Luckily, 10 of those postponed concerts have already set a 2021 date for this summer, and one has moved to the summer of 2022. Late last week, two brand new announcements for the 2021 season were released, to be followed by several more over the next few weeks. "It's exciting to say we're going to have more shows to talk about," Brian Crowne, vice president of the AMP, says with a touch of relief. "Four or five months ago, I wouldn't have bet a dollar on it. So it's exciting for us." "That tells us that people are ready to get back out on the road," adds Wendy Riggs, vice president of operations for Walton Arts Center and general manager of the AMP. And AMP employees are ready to welcome music lovers back to take advantage of all the new perks and amenities the venue offers following its $17.2 million renovation and expansion completed in the spring of last year. There are so many changes that make the experience so much better, Riggs reveals. To name just a few: There are now more bathrooms and more concession stands. Lawn chairs (legless and low-sitting) are available to rent. New metal detectors at entrances aim to expedite lines. Handicapped seating is available at the top of the lawn for the first time. The brand new Choctaw Plaza at the top of the lawn also offers space to enjoy a drink and a great view. Patrons can purchase a Fast Track ticket add-on to bypass long entry lines. And that's all just from the patrons' side. The back of the house amenities for touring artists and crews, the hospitality capabilities — including laundry, catering space, dressing rooms, expanded Green Room — were also conspicuously expanded, Crowne says. "We added a loading dock extension. That isn't real sexy to some people, but that means we can unload five or six trucks at once, and they have a working dock. Before we were loading straight into the stage," Crowne demonstrates. "And that makes my job of programming easier for some bands, because a lot of times they're going to look and say, 'How easy is it to get in and out of that building? Can we do it and be on the road by 3:30 in the morning and still make our next show?' That loading dock extension makes production capabilities expand exponentially." "Venues like this sometimes are looked at as blue collar," Riggs reveals. "And the reason is because you just come in, the artists bring everything, and we're just the shell. But this venue is so much more. "There's these beautiful public spaces that I don't see in other venues — and I've toured these venues all over the country. I've worked at several different ones," she continues. "And it's a higher class look; it's cleaner; it's sharp with its signage, and the way that we think of everyone when they come in. So I think that we've really accomplished what we wanted to do, which was treating our patrons and our artists first class." Those venue improvements, accompanied by increased seating — which translates to more ticket sales — have moved the AMP up the radar Rogers venue prepares to welcome back live music On April 15, the first new touring show in more than a year was announced as the Walmart Arkansas Music Pavilion in Rogers added to its summer lineup, which includes 10 shows rescheduled from the 2020 season. More announcements are coming soon. (Courtesy Photo)