VANCOUVER, BC — On Aug. 1, Cheap Trick canceled a show set for Sept. 1 at the PNE (Pacific National Exhibition). The band, which had been performing shortly before a squall blew down the main stage at the Cisco Ottawa Bluesfest on July 17, injuring their driver, said they would not be performing on stages made by Groupe Berger/Mega-Stage until they could be convinced they were safe. Groupe Berger spokesman Stéphane Berger issued a response to the cancellation; the full text follows:
“We understand the safety concerns of the performers at the Bluesfest and the trauma that they must have felt at the time. However, Mega-Stage has confidence in the designing, engineering and manufacturing of our stages.
“We have engineering stamps for most Canadian provinces and most US states and we do hundreds of setups every year.
“Since the Ottawa incident, Rod Stewart, Elvis Costello, Eminem, Flaming Lips, Tragically Hip, Karkwa, Sam Roberts Band, Bran Van 3000 and KISS have all performed successfully on our stages.
“Like the Producers that we work with, Mega-Stage has the safety of the Artists and the Public foremost in our minds when we install our mobile stages. We work closely with Producers during the events to maintain the security of all involved.
“We thank our long term Producers for their continued support with their sustained bookings since July 17th.
“We thank all of our clients continuing vote of confidence in Mega-Stage with regards to your events this summer.
For more information, please visit www.cheaptrick.com and www.groupeberger.com.
