This spring Alpine Valley Music Theatre, the 27,100-capacity amphitheater in East Troy which has hosted acts like Pearl Jam, Radiohead and the Dave Matthews Band, shocked Wisconsin concertgoers by announcing that it would remain closed for the year. The reason, according to Live Nation, the promotions company that runs the venue, was they simply couldn't book any acts. Mainstay performers like Dave Matthews and Jimmy Buffet either sat out their usual tours this year or opted to play elsewhere.
It was hardly the way Alpine Valley had hoped to celebrate its 40th anniversary year, but Live Nation promised it wasn't writing off the venue.
“When we were faced with the difficult decision of whether or not we'd be able to open this season, and the decision was made to stay closed, we started (recruiting acts for 2018) right away,” Live Nation Vice President Jon Reens told the GazetteXtra in October, explaining that the company had also spent the summer "sprucing up" the venue.
Today the company made it official in an email sent out to customers: Alpine Valley will be back next year.
Of course, how full the venue's calendar will be remains to be seen. Live Nation has not revealed any headliners for its 2018 season yet, even though the Alpine Valley website is advertising season tickets and premium VIP seats for these mystery shows. Still, it's good to know that one of the country's oldest amphitheaters still has some life left in it.
