Having encountered a wealth of organizational setbacks since the month of April, the beleaguered Woodstock 50 festival has now been officially cancelled.
"We are saddened that a series of unforeseen setbacks has made it impossible to put on the Festival we imagined with the great line-up we had booked and the social engagement we were anticipating," co-founder Michael Lang said in a statement. "My thoughts turn to [original Woodstock site, Bethel, NY] and its celebration of our 50th Anniversary to reinforce the values of compassion, human dignity, and the beauty of our differences embraced by Woodstock."
Woodstock 50 principal Greg Peck added, "The unfortunate dispute with our financial partner and the resulting legal proceedings set us off course at a critical juncture, throwing a wrench in our plans and forcing us to find an alternate venue to Watkins Glen. The timing meant we had few choices where our artists would be able to perform. We worked hard to find a way to produce a proper tribute—and some great artists came aboard over the last week to support Woodstock 50—but time simply ran short."
Rumblings for a 50th anniversary Woodstock event were first reported in 2016, with organizers revealing the complete lineup for the event in March of this year. The bill featured the likes of the Killers, JAY-Z, Santana, the Ranconteurs, Imagine Dragons and many more.
In late April, festival financier Dentsu Aegis Network announced that the entire event was cancelled before jumping ship, while organizers pushed back against the claims. In May, festival production partner Superfly also pulled out of the event, while organizers launched a lawsuit against their former financiers.
After securing new investors before the month of May came to a close, June saw Woodstock 50 lose its festival site in Watkins Glen, NY. The festival looked to move operations to New York "racino" Vernon Downs near Utica, but had their application for a festival permit denied.
Last week, the festival sought to relocate to Maryland venue Merriweather Post Pavilion, despite lineup artists pulling out of the event. There was even talk of the event being free of charge, after festival tickets never went on sale throughout the troubled timeline.
"We are saddened that a series of unforeseen setbacks has made it impossible to put on the Festival we imagined with the great line-up we had booked and the social engagement we were anticipating," co-founder Michael Lang said in a statement. "My thoughts turn to [original Woodstock site, Bethel, NY] and its celebration of our 50th Anniversary to reinforce the values of compassion, human dignity, and the beauty of our differences embraced by Woodstock."
Woodstock 50 principal Greg Peck added, "The unfortunate dispute with our financial partner and the resulting legal proceedings set us off course at a critical juncture, throwing a wrench in our plans and forcing us to find an alternate venue to Watkins Glen. The timing meant we had few choices where our artists would be able to perform. We worked hard to find a way to produce a proper tribute—and some great artists came aboard over the last week to support Woodstock 50—but time simply ran short."
Rumblings for a 50th anniversary Woodstock event were first reported in 2016, with organizers revealing the complete lineup for the event in March of this year. The bill featured the likes of the Killers, JAY-Z, Santana, the Ranconteurs, Imagine Dragons and many more.
In late April, festival financier Dentsu Aegis Network announced that the entire event was cancelled before jumping ship, while organizers pushed back against the claims. In May, festival production partner Superfly also pulled out of the event, while organizers launched a lawsuit against their former financiers.
After securing new investors before the month of May came to a close, June saw Woodstock 50 lose its festival site in Watkins Glen, NY. The festival looked to move operations to New York "racino" Vernon Downs near Utica, but had their application for a festival permit denied.
Last week, the festival sought to relocate to Maryland venue Merriweather Post Pavilion, despite lineup artists pulling out of the event. There was even talk of the event being free of charge, after festival tickets never went on sale throughout the troubled timeline.
