UPDATED: The concert has been rescheduled for May 25th. The cause of the trouble is, once again, visa issues. Your tickets and your seats will be honored. Reassuring for all you fans excited to go!
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We’re hearing that tomorrow’s concert from Spanish pop star Monica Naranjo, has been cancelled. We were excited – we had a ticket giveaway going and everything – but like another concert we were excited for a year back, this one’s been cancelled, which begs the question: what’s going on with Arteria’s concerts in Manhattan Grand Ballroom?
The first time Arteria’s LFNY concert series failed, we were crushed. The lineup had us totally jazzed: Miguel Bose, Concha Buika, and Mala Rodriguez. We were playing their music in the office. We were planning our outfits. And then…they cancelled, reportedly for visa reasons. We cried salty, salty tears. La Oreja de Van Gogh’s concert actually occurred, but ticket sales were low, leading to a Buy One Get One Free deal that didn’t make up for much. Now, after Monica Naranjo tix went BOGO, too, her show was cancelled. So what gives, Arteria?
The fact of the matter is that these Spanish artists are not as well known in the US as Arteria would like them to be, particularly amongst New York’s entrenched Latino populations, where the target audience might be second and third generation Nuyorkers. So on top of all that, you’re asking $100 a ticket? Back when they were gearing up for the Miguel Bose/Concha Buika/Mala Roriguez/crippling disappointment concert a little over a year ago – we broke the news of the cancellation on 2/16/11 – Arteria described its LFNY effort this way:
This is their first big concert to introduce a wider mainstream audience to music from Spanish-speaking countries, starting with Spain.
So if the mission is to introduce new audiences to music they may not intimately know, do not ask a $100 commitment – that’s the kind of money you only shell out when you’re a huge fan.
Arteria’s next concert is a Spanish flamenco artist by the name of Pitingo. Tickets, right now, are – wisely – cheaper, at $63. I don’t think that’s low enough.