Another Woodstock 50th anniversary concert is happening in August and this one will be closer to us.
Woodstock 50, organized by one of the producers of the original event, Michael Lang will be hosted at Watkins Glen International August 16 through 18th. Woodstock 1969 was held August 15 to 17th.
Chris Banker is the Director of Public Relations for Watkins Glen International and says it’s been incredible to partner with an iconic brand like Woodstock.
"Certainly we've had a pretty good history of concerts ourselves her and to have an opportunity to add a Woodstock, much less the 50th anniversary event is unimaginable almost."
The Bethel Woods Music and Culture Festival will be held the same weekend at the original site in Sullivan County, but that event is not associated with the original Woodstock brand like this one.
Banker says it may seem like the news came out of left field but they’ve been planning this for two years , and they’re estimating the festival will bring nearly $50 million dollars to the area, through hotels, restaurants and more.
When asked how this Woodstock concert ended up 150 miles from the original site, Banker says he has never spoken directly with Lang, but thinks that he might have picked Watkins Glen to host the festival, to get some of the feel of the original Woodstock.
"You know they’ve turned that into a fantastic amphitheater type place and there’s kind of limited seats.…but I think he kind of wanted to bring it back to his roots and that’s a massive field with a big stage and tons of camping.”
While no ticket or lineup information has been announced yet, those should be coming in February.
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