Sunday, September 10th, 2006

The Who hold a private run-through concert at the Harbor Yard in Bridgeport, Connecticut.

 

From the NY Times:

The British rock band, the Who, featuring Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend, briefly came to Bridgeport last weekend to rehearse for their tour at the Arena at Harbor Yard for its North American tour.

Lynn Carlotto, the general manager of the arena, said the band played for a few hours on Sept. 9 and 10, using the same lighting and sound systems it will use on tour. The rehearsals were closed to the public, and only workers at the arena saw the shows, Ms. Carlotto said.

"Secrecy was something we had to commit to," she said. "They wanted the rehearsals closed to the public and the media, and that's what we provided."

Ms. Carlotto said the band drove to Bridgeport from New York on both days. She said about 20 crew members arrived in Bridgeport a week earlier to set up the equipment and conduct technical rehearsals.

Ms. Carlotto said she began trying last year to bring the Who to Bridgeport for rehearsals after learning that their tour would coincide with a slow time for events at the arena, which seats 10,000.

"It gives us a chance to employ a lot of our people for a week and to introduce our building to an incredible band, their production people and their management," she said. "It might help us secure future events."

Ms. Carlotto said it was strange to watch the band in an empty arena.

"When you see them sing and perform with all the power and creativity that they have onstage, and there are all these empty seats, there really was kind of a disconnect," she said.

The Who's tour began in Philadelphia last Tuesday. The group will perform at Madison Square Garden in Manhattan on Monday and Tuesday and at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville on Dec. 1.