Now don't everyone get all mad and jump on me for saying I am just asking here but....I don't understand how they can advertise all the shows without making sure first that everything is in place before putting dates on the tour page or was GC maybe jumping the gun who is responsible for updating the tour page? All these people made the plans and arrangements to go because they have been up for weeks or months now, and all of a sudden we are told today that it has been cancelled or rescheduled don't they know that some people have put a lot of money into going to the shows? I am just wondering how something like this happens!

Dayna wrote:
Becky- it isnt ground controls fault or martina's- the promoters cancelled the shows in norway- therefore it doesnt really pay just to go over and do 4 shows... they prob cant reschedule due to the fact that martina's summer is pretty full so there is really no one at fault here-

I wonder why the norway shows pulled out- ticket sales,?? money?? im curious to know

Well, with the prices those Norway tickets were going for, it wouldn't surprise me if the sales were poor... Not sure whose idea it was, but those prices were almost ridiculous and considering the fact that Martina is not really a huge star there or anything, I don't see who would want to pay that much money to see her. Obviously her die-hard fans would, but as far as the rest of the people, I just don't see that happening. I have no idea if that was indeed the reason for the cancellations, but really it wouldn't come as a shock to me.

----------
Polish volleyball ROCKS!!
2009 European Championships gold and bronze medalists!!! Thank you guys and gals!!!

Well if this is all down to the Norway shows being cancelled, I really don't see why they can't just add 2 extra dates here in the UK. If they were going to be travelling those dates anyway, it wouldn't make a huge difference? It seemed to work out just fine last year :(

Dayna wrote:
Becky- it isnt ground controls fault or martina's- the promoters cancelled the shows in norway- therefore it doesnt really pay just to go over and do 4 shows... they prob cant reschedule due to the fact that martina's summer is pretty full so there is really no one at fault here-

I wonder why the norway shows pulled out- ticket sales,?? money?? im curious to know

That's the reason why the whole tour got cancelled?? Hah, won't say I'm too proud to be a Norwegian right at this moment...

I'm guessing the reason why they had to cancell the shows over here is that they are trying to pull to concerts in a really small country with a headliner no one has ever heard of (seriously, they don't even sell her CD's in the stores), and their ticketsprices are almost as high as to see Andrea Bocelli or Lady Gaga. There's no way that' going to work. Also, I don't know about the Stavanger-show, but the Skien-show she was going to play was supposed to be this huge new festival which was going to be the biggest thing in this area this summer. Turns out the whole thing is just a joke, it's just a really unserious failure, because they still haven't even got their webpage up and running, and I tried e-mailing them two months ago, when I discovered Martina was going to play there, and they still haven't answered me!

There is festivals everywhere here during the summer, and one of the biggest one's is happing the same weekend, just like 30-45 minutes from where Martina was going to play... AND they have Brad Paisley! I really don't get what the arrangers were thinking. But it's really sad they had to cancell the whole European tour just because of some stupid Norwegians.

Someone somewhere needs their arse kicking and should be accountable to those people who are going to be out of pocket. I don't blame Martina at all for this fiasco,but this is going to leave a bad impression with many people and I can only wonder how this might hinder ticket sales if the shows are re-scheduled. True Martina fans will still buy a ticket and I for one will be there come hell or high water.

I wonder if adding 2 other dates was a consideration ? I'm guessing not, and that behind all this lies a rather complex situation. So, although we're all upset and frustrated, we need to show Martina we're still there for her and put out positive encouragement and support in the hope that she will return to the UK as soon as she is able.

Bad ticket sales equal cancellations.If the money isnt there neither will she.

Dayna wrote:

i dont think ticket sales have anything to do wiht martina getting cancelled.. I believe- and correct me if im wrong- its the promotors who pay regardless of how many tix they sell.


martina and crew get paid whether or not the place is sold out- its the promoters that lose the money...

im just thinking this festival in norway isnt real stable or organized....

how much were tickets to those shows.. i thought the tix to ireland were fairly cheap- i mean i had a ticket to all three shows and my total was 157. :)

Yeah, and a ticket for one show over here is about 100. It's not like we are gonna get the fans from other countries when we offer ticket prices that are twice as high. Also, no one can buy tickets to a festival they don't even know exists. The promotion is like zero, and there's no way you can find out that there even is a festival, unless you "heard of it from someone" and look into it yourself.

Maan, I hate this!!

I'm actually still surprised that they attempted to go over there twice during the same current album after taking nearly 10 years in between visits over there.

I also wish that she was on the Opry more, but since it's not on TV anymore... her being on that would be of no good unless you can attend the Opry and not have to spend $500 to get there.

Concrete Angel wrote:
It is no different to touring the states while promoting the same album. Sure the audience is a lot smaller, but the McBride's know this.

Quite true. John was very honest when he said in conversation that they were in uncharted waters when they toured Europe last year. They really didn't know what to expect - or even if people would come out to see them.

Well we all know what happened, the audiences loved Martina, she and the band thoroughly enjoyed their time over here. So much so that they were talking about coming back before they were half-way through the tour.

I truly believe Martina when she says the postponement/cancellation came out of the blue. Less than three weeks ago I asked John how was it that Norway got two shows but England only got one? They made a good offer but he hinted that they were trying to fix up an additional date in England.

Could they have just dropped the Norwegian dates and played the other four? Probably not. I's not just the fact that you've lost 1/3 of your appearance fees but your touring costs remain fairly constant. No doubt travel arrangements had already been made and suddenly you would need to book a lot of people and equipment to fly to London on a different date.

Like a lot of people, I'm disappointed and out of pocket but I do believe that Martina will find a way to return to Europe - the schedule seems open from late September.

Ross