A widely publicized but not-so-eagerly anticipated university event has been cancelled, and students can’t help but laugh. Less than an hour after the official announcement, Winthrop’s students and meme pages began poking fun at the university for cancelling the highly promoted Alessia Cara concert, originally scheduled for Friday, October 4. After rumors of a pending cancellation, the official cancellation message from executive director of university events Neal Miller was sent out to all students on the afternoon of October 2, including that all students who purchased tickets will be automatically refunded. According to Winthrop communications manager Nicole Chisari, the university waited to announce the cancellation until it had been confirmed by Cara’s management team.
The meme pages, such as @wonthorp_eagles, @winthropbrickburglarz, @winthorp_seagulls and @campuswalkofshame cite the ticket price, which was widely said to be around $100 but according to promotional emails, could be as low as $32.40 with the student discount. On a post by @winthropbrickburglarz, the meme account mocked the common tagline of “Grammy Winner Alessia Cara”, saying “They really thought a Grammy would impress us”.
The cancellation rumors began early in the week, after promotional videos for the concert were pulled from social media and the women’s basketball team practice was moved from the West Center back into the coliseum. “We were told that we were practicing at the West Center so the concert could get set up on Thursday and Friday, but they moved us back to the coliseum due to the cancellation of the concert,” says women’s basketball manager Morgan Alexander.
Some students, such as sophomore dance major Danielle Owen blame the aggressive advertising of the concert for its low popularity. “I think they over-advertised it so much that people got annoyed and were like ‘I’m not gonna go’.” Owen says. Junior theatre performance major Emily O’Regan agrees, saying “This was so over-advertised. We got emails almost every week saying ‘hey, did you know Alessia Cara is coming?’ And everyone got annoyed. So maybe don’t promote it as much if you want to do a big show like that in the future. Don’t bother people.” O’Regan says.
Sophomore dance education major Claudine Victorin cited the timing of the concert as one reason tickets did not sell. “They could’ve done it during homecoming, maybe more people would’ve gone. I know I personally would’ve gone. I think it was just a weird time, so I think everyone just kind of disregarded it.”
“I know maybe one song from her, so I wouldn’t spend that money to go see her and I think that’s how a lot of students felt,” says junior early childhood education major, Ashleigh Stenger. “And they scheduled it on the same day as ‘Addams Family’ and there was a lot of hype with ‘Addams Family’. It sucks for Alessia Cara, I don’t want her to think that she can’t come here or that she got dissed by Winthrop.”
Some students responded to the cancellation and the memes by encouraging students to attend performances of “The Addams Family” instead of the concert. Senior musical theatre major Neifert Cornejo-Ordonez who plays Gomez in the show agrees, saying “They should come see ‘Addams Family’ instead, because we’re doing a great job!” In regard to whether the musical had a part in the concert’s cancellation, Cornejo-Ordonez says, “Well, we are sold out tonight and tomorrow, so there might be some truth to that. But I don’t know what might have happened or not have happened.”
Junior psychology student Madison Merrill says she and a friend bought tickets, but attempted to sell them due to a scheduling conflict. “We were trying desperately to sell the tickets, and couldn’t sell them because no one wanted them. Then, the concert got cancelled and we got our refunds.” Merrill adds that she and her friend were the only ones entered into a raffle for meet and greet tickets, which they planned on giving away or selling.
According to Neal Miller, the university chose to book Alessia Cara because she was already touring in the area and was available to perform during Family Day Weekend. “When booking a concert, it is often advantageous to consider artists who are already planning to be on tour, as you can often book these artists for a lower rate. Alessia Cara was one of the biggest artists already going on tour in fall 2019. She was also available on October 4, a target date for a concert on campus given that it was Family Day weekend.” Miller says.
“The university plans on holding future events at the coliseum, and upon completion of the renovation, in Byrnes Auditorium.” Miller adds. “A survey will be sent out to gather information on the types of artists that students would like to see, acceptable ticket prices for our students, and overall student interest in hosting concerts at Winthrop.”
For more information on refunds for those who purchased tickets, students can contact the Office of University Events at universityevents@winthrop.edu.
Memes courtesy of @wonthorpeagles and @winthropbrickburglarz
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