May 6th, 2008
Superstar Elton John to perform in Fairbanks
The Rocket Man is headed to Fairbanks.
Sir Elton John will perform at the Carlson Center on May 29, according to Joe Wooden, the regional general manager for SMG of Alaska, which manages the venue. The pop superstar — who boasts more than 200 million in album sales, membership in the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame and knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II — is making his debut in Alaska.
With a career that spans nearly 40 years, John is famous for his flamboyant style, piano prowess and songs like “Rocket Man,” “Daniel” and the best-selling single in history, “Candle In the Wind.”
Wooden said he expects the show to sell out in a matter of hours. “This is by far the biggest concert that I can ever remember coming to Alaska,” he said.
Carlson Center box office manager Kristin Baysinger said Alaska is benefiting from a stopover that John is making following a concert in Hong Kong. He’ll perform on consecutive nights in Anchorage and Fairbanks before continuing to Las Vegas.
Baysinger said specific details of the concert are still being worked out, but she expects at least eight sections will be opened on the Carlson Center floor, using a configuration the arena has never used before. The venue will do its best to maximize space while maintaining good sight lines, she said, with an expected capacity of about 6,500 seats.
“Basically, we will have every seat available that we can get,” Baysinger said.
Ticket prices for the event are set at $115 and $75, not including fees. Tickets for the event go on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday, and will be available at Fred Meyer Ticketmaster outlets, the Carlson Center box office, 456-4800, and www.ticketmaster.com.
Sounds like a heck of a deal. $115 to see the a middle aged prima donna sing a few songs in an acoustic nightmare of a venue, and tell us what crappy people Americans are. On second thought, I think I’ll just go somewhere and drop a rock on my foot. Less painful.
Tags: anchorage, elton, john, tickets