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Counting Crows to usher in new era at Packard Hall
COUNTING CROWS TO USHER IN NEW ERA AT PACKARD HALL
By GUY D’ASTOLFO
WARREN
Counting Crows will come to Packard Music Hall on Dec. 6. The concert heralds several changes coming to the building now that it is under the helm of Eric Ryan and his JAC Management Group.
Tickets go on sale Friday at 10 a.m. at the Packard box office, online at ticketmaster.com, at all Ticketmaster outlets, and by phone at 1-800-745-3000. All seats are $56, except the first 15 rows of floor seating, which are $72.
The concert is part of a tour Counting Crows mounted after the September release of its latest album, “Somewhere Under Wonderland.” The opening act is Twin Forks, which is fronted by Chris Carrabba, best known for his prior band, Dashboard Confessional.
Counting Crows debuted in 1993 with multiplatinum album “August and Everything After.” The band, fronted by dreadlocked singer Adam Duritz, would go on to sell more than 20 million albums worldwide.
The Dec. 6 concert will be the band’s first appearance in the Mahoning Valley.
It is also the first manifestation of changes at Packard Music Hall.
Ryan, director of Covelli Centre in Youngstown, and JAC Management took over operation of Packard in September, under a contract with the city. The Counting Crows concert is the first one promoted by Eric Ryan Productions, which is Ryan’s promotion company, at the venue.
It also marks the first show at Packard for which ticket sales will be handled by Ticketmaster. All future shows will also go through the national ticketing firm.
Another reflection of the changes is the venue’s updated website, which is being launched today.
The auditorium already has a significant number of events booked this season. Full slates of music and theater productions that mostly cater to older audiences are being promoted by Ken Haidaris of Warren and the Warren Civic Music Association.
Haidaris brought Judy Collins-Don McLean to the hall last week, and his upcoming events include Vicki Lawrence and Mama (Oct. 18), the Broadway tour of “Mama Mia” (Nov. 10), and Michael McDonald (Dec. 10).
The WCMA’s 2014-15 slate includes Vivace (Tuesday), The Company Men (Nov. 13), Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis (Dec. 16), and Exile and Juice Newton (March 26).
The Counting Crows concert indicates the type of show that Eric Ryan Productions will bring to the mix. “We want to produce more active-rock or country music shows there,” said Ryan, who called the Counting Crows concert the most relevant show at the hall in a long time.
“It’s a very unique theater,” said Ryan. “A 2,200-seater that can scale down to 700 or so to make it a club show. There is a lot of versatility. We could also do a half-house show with 900 seats — a curtain comes down the middle.”
Packard has no fixed seats on its floor, but temporary seats will be in place for the Counting Crows show, which will utilize the entire building.
The hall has a liquor license, and will sell beer at stands in the lobby for the concert.
Ryan also said he is working to enhance the sound system and soundproofing for the show and future events.
Having a smaller theater in addition to Covelli Centre helps Eric Ryan Productions secure concerts at both venues.
“It helps us [at Covelli], too, because we deal with a lot of the same agents [for shows of varying sizes],” he said. “It gives us more buying power. Counting Crows are doing a theater tour, and this is a perfect opportunity to book them. They don’t want to play in a cut-down arena.”
Ryan was referring to a configuration sometimes used at Covelli in which the stage is moved forward, with the sides blacked out by curtains, to create a smaller seating area.