Parksville Beach Festival Society is encouraging music fans in the region to support community arts by picking up some tickets to the inaugural Rock the Park event Aug. 5 to Aug. 7.
The music festival, to be held in the new outdoor stage in Parksville Community Park, will feature 14 acts over three days. It will be a celebration of old-time rock and roll, according to Lloyd Derry, entertainment chairman for the society.
“Our goal is to rally the community to support us and buy tickets to this event,” said Derry. “The profit we make off that is going to set up our society to operate the theatre, which is a pretty big undertaking.”
The music festival will also allow the society to keep the rental rates low for local arts and cultural organizations, he added. There will also be the usual free summer concert series.
Parksville Beach Festival Society is trying to sell a total of 4,500 tickets. Concert-goers are encouraged to bring their own lawn chairs or a blanket to sit on.
Rock the Park will include world-class tribute bands playing the music of Bad Company, the Beatles, Buddy Holly, the Eagles, Heart, Joe Cocker, Linda Ronstadt and Pat Benatar. Also in the lineup are Johnny Inappropriate, Kenny & The Cruisers, the Apollos, the Time Benders, Time Well Wasted and Younger Than Yesterday.
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A one-day pass is $30, a regular three-day pass is $60 and the VIP three-day pass, which includes a front-row seat and chair, goes for $85, according to Derry, who added the VIP passes are close to sold out. Teenagers 13 to 18 can get in for $10 a day and children are free. Tickets are available at the McMillan Arts Centre (MAC) website. Wristbands can be picked up at the MAC or at the concert gate.
The area will be fenced off for the festival, which will include food trucks and washrooms.
The outdoor stage is owned by the city, but the society has undertaken management and operation of the theatre under an agreement with the city for next three years, Derry said.
The society hopes to hold several ticketed events each summer on the new stage.
The event is sponsored by Parksville Beach Festival Society and Mid Island Co-op, which is holding a contest until the end of June.
— NEWS Staff