CLEVELAND, Ohio – Did you attend the DEVO 50th Anniversary Tour or Indigo Girls at TempleLive at Cleveland Masonic Auditorium earlier this summer?
If so, here’s some bad news: those shows might be your last at the venue, at least for a while.
The TempleLive company that has operated venues in Cleveland; Columbus; Fort Smith, Arkansas; Peoria, Illinois, and Wichita, Kansas, has apparently gone under — leading ticketholders for performances by pop duo Sparks and other acts to receive cancellation notices.
The news was first reported in a story by 25 News Now inPeoria yesterday that the company “has pulled out of operating at [Peoria’s Scottish Rite Theater] and that all future shows have been canceled.”
In that story, TempleLive vice president of programming Robert Thomas did not confirm when the decision had been made, nor why the company was ceasing operations in Peoria. Thomas did say that buyers with tickets would be refunded via point of purchase.
Sparks’ “Mad!” tour concert scheduled for Monday, Sept. 15, at the Cleveland venue appears to have been moved from TempleLive to the Cleveland Agora. That follows a change in venue for Waxahatchee (aka rootsy singer-songwriter Katie Crutchfield), who was scheduled at TempleLive with Bill Fox the following night. Her date is now at The Roxy at Mahall’s in Lakewood.
Both House of Blues and Globe Iron are said to be taking on some of the shows that were on TempleLive Cleveland’s docket as well.
Industry insiders say that it’s likely all shows will need to be canceled, refunded and re-ticketed—a headache for promoters on both sides.
As of press time, Ticketmaster has halted sales for some TempleLive Cleveland shows, while others appear to still be on sale—including those for Apocalyptica, Cage the Elephant, the Australian Pink Floyd Show and X & Los Lobos, a show that was just announced.
More changes could come over the next few days.
TempleLive has been operating entertainment venues in historic former Masonic temples across the United States for the past few years.
The concept started in Fort Smith, where a large 1920s-era Masonic temple was converted into a multipurpose performance hall, bar and event space.
Since then, TempleLive’s brand has expanded to other cities—with adaptive reuse of historic Masonic buildings for concerts, comedy, weddings, private events and more as the company’s calling card.
The venue vibes are usually a mix of ornate, old-world architecture (grand ballrooms, theaters, lodge halls) with modern staging, sound and hospitality.
The idea was to preserve the buildings by giving them a new life as cultural-entertainment hubs.
Cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer have reached out to TempleLive for comment.
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