Slow sales lead to cancellation of Vic Galloway night in Mareel
Poor ticket sales have forced Shetland Arts to cancel the first ever “Vic Galloway Presents…” showcase concert, which was to have taken place in Mareel on Saturday.
The gig was to have been headlined by Glasgow six-piece The Phantom Band, with garage rock duo Honeyblood and local band The Last also on the bill.
The first in what was planned to be a series of events compèred by well-known BBC radio DJ Galloway, it had originally been due to take place in September before being postponed.
It will come as a disappointment following last weekend’s official opening of the venue, which saw excellent turnouts for gigs including the Shetland Meets Appalachia concert and an outing from legendary Scottish songwriter Dougie Maclean.
Anyone who has purchased a ticket for the event can get a refund from the Shetland Box Office in Mareel or at Islesburgh.
Shetland Arts marketing officer Lisa Ward said: “We planned this gig with the aim of filling a gap in the market for quality visiting artists performing alongside original local talent. However, sadly and unexpectedly given the amount of requests we’ve had for events of this type in the past, it hasn’t generated the interest we hoped it would.
“We are keen to hear from music fans in Shetland, particularly young music fans, as to what kind of events they would prefer to see us put on, so we can better meet demand and avoid disappointment in future.”
Galloway had said he hoped the events would be a “new and fresh” addition to Shetland’s cultural calendar, providing audiences with something different from the traditional music the isles are famed for.
Ron Stronach
Perhaps it is the ‘Traditional Stuff’ that we like, maybe that’s why the Lounge is so popular?
A bit more market research required I fear!
ian tinkler
Mareel “officially opened” at the weekend of the 20th. First Saturday gig, scheduled after official opening, cancelled at short notice due to lack of interest. It would not be believed if you made it up. I am sorry but if Mareel is to have any hope at all of commercial success, new management is desperately needed. The commercial aspects such as restaurant, bar and cinema should be sold to commercial interests. That would at least recoup some of the funds so squandered by the Shetland Arts cash drain. Talk about managing a P!”£ up in a brewery, what is the overspend now, do not ask Shetland Arts, they have not a clue, or are too embarrassed to say.
Dorothy Harcus
I have not been to Mareel, and have no plans to do so.
After unbelievably unfavourable reports rgarding the cafeteria and bar, plus all the bad publicity from the beginning, i don’t even feel motivated to look at the building.
Living as I do, on an outer island where we are facing all kinds of cuts to our lifeline services, we have other things to think about!
ian tinkler
How very sad. Everything I said about “The Mareel White Elephant and Shetland Arts extravagant Empire build” has come true. No doubt our schools will still close and assorted our arty idiots will advocate more funds to keep this folly going. Shetland Arts and Mareel stakeholders should hang their heads in utter shame, decency stops me voicing the true feelings and the total contempt I feel for you. On a bright note, your cinema ticket sale and bar profits may allow a commercial enterprise to take over some of this enterprise and prevent this whole idiocy going belly up. If a word spouted by your every more ludicrous and laudatory PR propagandists can be believed, I am sure funds could be raised by normal Bank loans. That should stop this parasitic enterprise wasting more precious public funds. We have endlessly heard how fantastically well Mareel is doing; commercial backers should not be a problem. That is a very, very bad joke, just like this Shetland shambles!