Organisers of the dance music concert that was cancelled at the last minute this weekend have said they were “deeply saddened” by the circumstances surrounding the concert and have offered a full refund to all ticket holders.
Flash Entertainment, who were due to host the Dutch DJ Tiesto on Friday night in Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC) said they were informed that the venue was unfit for a live stage concert at 6pm.
It was "a serious technical problem", said managing director John Lickrish in a statement issued today. During a radio interview this morning he said it was due to an electrical problem on the stage that could not be resolved.
They were forced to cancel the sold out concert and turn away thousands of ticket holders. Mr Lickrish said, "We know how many people were looking forward to seeing Tiesto, but our utmost priority is the safety of attendees and under no circumstances will we ever risk or compromise this. He said he had spoken directly to the musician, who is one of the world's most popular DJs and was due to perform in the capital as part of his 14 month Kaleidoscope world tour, and said he was disappointed not to be able to perform.
Mr Lickrish said he was in constant negotiations to try to reschedule the date for Tiesto's performance but those not wanting to wait for such announcements could get a full refund for the tickets which cost between Dh130 and Dh350.
A spokesperson from ADNEC would not confirm the details of the electrical problem but said they were carrying out a thorough internal investigation.
Abrahim Wakim, 23, who bought his ticket as soon as the concert was announced said he wasn't going to wait for a new date.
"Tiesto is one of the biggest DJs in the world and I'd been hearing rumours on trance blogs that he would be coming to Abu Dhabi for about a year. I don't think they will be able to get him a second time. I'm going to demand my money back as soon as possible."
Sarah Taylor, 30, an IT manager in Dubai said she had driven to Abu Dhabi to see Tiesto and was upset not to have seen the concert.
"I was really looking forward to it and I'd made plans to come to Abu Dhabi for the whole weekend. "I will just have to look forward to Creamfields now instead."
Flash said that all Tiesto ticket holders were eligible for a 40 per cent discount on the Dh250 tickets for Creamfields Abu Dhabi, the dance festival which will take place in December in the grounds of the Emirates Palace. The offer is valid until midnight on the 13th October.
In an unrelated incident the weekly pool party at the Atlantis Hotel in Dubai was also cancelled on Friday. Organisers of Pacha at Nasimi have given no further details.
aseamen@thenational.ae
