WHAT TO KNOW: new "Macon Mall amphitheater" opening this weekend

A press conference was called at the Macon Mall, previously the Christmas shopping headquarters and back-to-school headquarters for folks all over Milledgeville and the rest of middle Georgia.

That was Sept. 15, 2021, and Macon Mayor Lester Miller announced the city's ambitious plans to construct a 10,000-seat amphitheater at the site, one that would be the second-largest amphitheater in the entire state of Georgia.

"Yeah, right," thought many people around Milledgeville.

Then, though, it actually happened.

Now, the Atrium Health Amphitheater is all set to host its first concert. The "Lynard Skynard and ZZ Top: The Sharp Dressed Man Tour" show begins at 6:30 p.m. Sunday. Tickets remain on sale. 

For this concert or any concert at the amphitheater in the future, always try TicketMaster first, and avoid the secondary market. Earlier this week, for example, tickets on some of the secondary ticket market websites began at $200-something. The same tickets on TicketMaster were $33.50. The prices on the secondary market have come down as the concert draws nearer, but there's still a disparity. On TicketMaster, lawn tickets began at $33.50 and "pit" tickets start at $93 on Friday morning. Compare that to StubHub (StubHub BAD), where the same tickets cost $54 and $112, respectively.

A soft opening actually was held on Tuesday, allowing the public to see the venue for the first time. "Surpassed my imagination" and "awesome" and "it doesn't even feel like we're in Macon anymore" were a few first responses. Also, the seating capacity was increased to 12,000, at some point in the design/construction process...

Here'a a nifty Atrium Health Amphitheater overview and cheat sheet, thanks to the people at the Macon Newsroom and Center for Collaborative Journalism...

A number of other concerts already have been lined up for the spring and summer. Among the artists scheduled to perform between now and Septembers are Riley Green, Anthony Hamilton, Johnny Gill, Leela James,Lil Boosie, Glorilla, Turnpike Troubadours, Keith Sweat, Silk, Monica, Ashanti, Mya, Dwight Yoakam, Keyshia Cole, Trey Songz and Lauren Daigle.

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