Vanilla Ice takes a selfie with a fan at the I Love the 90s Grandstand concert on Saturday.--NEWS PHOTO FERNANDO MORENO-PRADO
mhnews@medicinehatnews.com
It was a typical trilogy of Night Shows this year at the Medicine Hat Exhibition & Stampede. The Grandstand hosted a series of artists on Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday with Dean Brody (more than 2,200 attendants), Joe Nichols (more than 1,200) and Vanilla Ice (topping 2,000) respectively.
“We haven’t got the final count yet,” says Rob Ritchie, chairperson of the Night Show committee.
Attendance has gone down in comparison to figures from 2019.
“People still might be hesitant to be around big groups,” acknowledges Ritchie.
Ritchie attributes this to possibly being related to economic issues such as the value of the American dollar leading to higher ticket prices.
“Medicine Hat has always been a last-minute city to buy tickets,” says Ritchie in regards to the unpredictable weather and option of early ticket purchases. People have tendency to want to buy tickets at at time they feel more sure especially in regards to weather.
A portion of the stands were filled and the infield was bustling with activity of dancing and social drinking in spite of the lower turnout.
People generally enjoyed themselves and no significant complaints are known yet.
“I would say the biggest draw was 90s music icon Vanilla Ice,” says Ritchie. The stage had to be moved back to accommodate the 800 patrons in the infield.
Audience members were treated on Saturday with the opportunity to dance and take selfies with Vanilla Ice on stage in a very drenching show of spectacular stage props. The fans were very much part of the show. People of various ages wore 90s themed attire.
It was about catering to different generations.
Joe Nichols came out to mingle with the crowd.
“He said he had a great time,” tells Richie.
Overall, there were no notable problems reported by security.
“Our security’s been very good,” says Ritchie. “We’ve been very fortunate over the last few years to have Patman, they know what their doing.”
Ritchie shares how thus far people have said positive things about the shows to him with only one person feeling “iffy” about Thursday’s show.
“You always want to see more tickets sold,” says Ritchie. “I just hope that everyone who went to the show enjoyed it.”
