The beleaguered Woodstock 50 festival has hit another hurdle. A little over two months ahead of the planned August event at Watkins Glen International, the venue has pulled out of its contract with its organizers.
“Watkins Glen International terminated the site license for Woodstock pursuant to provisions of the contract,” a rep for the racetrack said in a statement. “As such, WGI will not be hosting the Woodstock 50 Festival.”
A rep for Woodstock 50 did not comment on the decision.
Over the last six weeks, the festival has faced a number of unexpected obstacles. A week after tickets was supposed to go on sale in late April, the festival’s financier, Dentsu Aegis, pulled its funding and ostensibly canceled it; a justice of the New York Supreme Court later ruled that the festival did not have the right to cancel it but that it also did not need to return money it had taken from a festival bank account. Shortly after Dentsu backed out, the festival’s production partner, Superfly, also canceled its contract with Woodstock 50; that company also produces Bonnaroo and Outside Lands.
Despite these losses, the festival attempted to stay afloat by finding a new financial partner, Oppenheimer & Co. It also continues to work toward securing a necessary mass gathering permit from New York State. Additionally, in late May, a rep for the New York State Police told Rolling Stone that the festival had yet to address a number of concerns one of its troopers had about the planning of the festival.
With just 67 days to go before Woodstock 50 was supposed to start, on August 16th, and no tickets on sale yet, the festival’s future is unclear. If it does go forward, headliners (as announced) include the Killers, Miley Cyrus, Santana, Dead & Company, Chance the Rapper, Jay-Z, Imagine Dragons and Halsey, among others.
On May 17th, when Woodstock 50 announced Oppenheimer coming on board, its organizers were optimistic. Michael Lang, who cofounded the original iconic festival, said the show would go on. “We look forward to putting on an incredible festival,” he said. “Words cannot express how appreciative Woodstock 50, the artists, the fans and the community are to Oppenheimer for joining with us to make W50 a reality.”
This story is still developing.
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