The Fox Valley Park District has announced that the 11th season of its Live and Uncorked outdoor summer concert series will begin Thursday at Blackberry Farm, 100 S. Barnes Road in Aurora.
Gates open at 6:15 p.m. and shows run from 7 to 9 p.m. on Thursdays through Aug. 1 at Blackberry’s Performance Pavilion located in the middle of the park. There will not be a concert on Thursday, July 4.
Tickets are $8 before the day of the show and $10 on the date of the concert. A season pass is available for $56, which allows access to all eight performances.
Officials said more than 150 season passes have already been sold.
Last year, the series drew a total of more than 5,300 guests for its eight shows, the largest number of concerts in the history of the series.
“We added an eighth show last year and at this point that’s about as big as this can get as things get a little bit tricky at the beginning of August with school starting and staff issues,” said Becky Harling, facility manager at Blackberry Farm.
While there are other outdoor concert options available in the area, Harling said the Blackberry concert series differs due to its location as well as its price and food and beverage options.
“Ours is a little bit different obviously because our location is secluded and nice and our price point is very friendly to all budgets,” she said. “Also, people can bring in their own food and alcohol which I think is a big game-changer for people.”
Due to alcohol being allowed at the site, the concert series is open only to those 21 years old and older, and all guests will have IDs checked, Harling said.
In a press release, Harling noted that over the years, “the event has evolved from coolers and snacks to full-blown spreads with wagons, collapsible tables, charcuterie boards and sandwiches.”
“People sit on blankets, stadium chairs and even collapsable couches,” she said.
New this year will be an on-site food option including cheeseburgers, hot dogs, fries, ice cream bars, soda, water and freshly-squeezed lemonade.
“We are using our own concessions vendor who is here during our normal operating hours,” Harling said. “They are just going to stay open for Live and Uncorked. Generally, people bring their own food and we tried to offer items in the past, but the vendor we had before just didn’t see enough revenue that made sense to remain open. But over the years, people have been more and more interested in having on-site food, so we thought we’d give it a go this year and see if people are interested. People can just come from work and not worry about food.”
Harling said this year’s concert lineup will include “staples that we continue to bring back from feedback that we get from our concert-goers” including Billy Elton, featuring the songs of Billy Joel and Elton John, Libido Funk Circus performing disco favorites and Semple playing 1970s rock and modern pop.
“We try to keep our staples in our lineup but then mix it up with some new options each year,” she said. “We are always open to concert-goers’ suggestions, but we try to keep a variety of genres at the same time.”
Concerts are offered rain or shine. In the event of really bad weather, district staff members will meet and decide if a show needs to be rescheduled.
“Last year we didn’t even have to worry about that but if we need to be concerned about weather-related things, we keep our Facebook updated and try and update our season pass holders,” Harling said.
The concert lineup this summer includes Billy Elton on June 6; 7th Heaven playing rock and pop on June 13; Libido Funk Circus on June 20; R Gang with R&B music from the Motown era to today on June 27; Dancing Queen offering a salute to ABBA on July 11; Buckle, a country-rock band, on July 18; The Breakfast Club playing 1980s music on July 25; and Semple on Aug. 1.
Guests are encouraged to purchase tickets online or in advance at Blackberry Farm, Vaughan Athletic Center, Prisco or Eola community centers or the Cole Center.
For more information, go to https://www.blackberryfarm.info/special-events/live-uncorked-concert-series/
David Sharos is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
