It is time to fix the Municipal Auditorium.
Yes it would be nice to patch the ceiling. But that's not critical.
Sound is.
If you can't hear a performance, it degrades the experience. Especially a performance that's all about sound. Like Michael Feldman's "Whad 'ya Know?" radio show on Saturday.
My wife and I regularly listen to Feldman on West Virginia Public Radio. We were so looking forward to his visit, I bought tickets a month in advance.
Alas, the tickets - which cost $25 plus a $1 facility fee each - were a big disappointment. Feldman's opening monologue was muffled. We only caught a word here and there. We just could not hear. We decided to leave.
We were not alone. During the monologue, several people in the audience shouted that they could not hear. Some people began moving or leaving. Fortunately for us, one of the ushers suggested we try the balcony. We did. Thanks to an extra speaker installed there, we could hear. We enjoyed the second half of the show.
This is not the first time I've been disappointed because of the poor sound in the Municipal Auditorium. But it will be the last. I won't attend another event there until the sound is improved.
n n
It is time to fix the Municipal Auditorium.
Yes it would be nice to patch the ceiling. But that's not critical.
Sound is.
If you can't hear a performance, it degrades the experience. Especially a performance that's all about sound. Like Michael Feldman's "Whad 'ya Know?" radio show on Saturday.
My wife and I regularly listen to Feldman on West Virginia Public Radio. We were so looking forward to his visit, I bought tickets a month in advance.
Alas, the tickets - which cost $25 plus a $1 facility fee each - were a big disappointment. Feldman's opening monologue was muffled. We only caught a word here and there. We just could not hear. We decided to leave.
We were not alone. During the monologue, several people in the audience shouted that they could not hear. Some people began moving or leaving. Fortunately for us, one of the ushers suggested we try the balcony. We did. Thanks to an extra speaker installed there, we could hear. We enjoyed the second half of the show.
This is not the first time I've been disappointed because of the poor sound in the Municipal Auditorium. But it will be the last. I won't attend another event there until the sound is improved.
n n
Some friends gave us vouchers that said they were good for box seats at either the Saturday or Sunday Power baseball game.
We went Sunday but were told at the box office that there were no box seats available. The lady said the only remaining seats were general admission. I said we didn't feel like sitting for two hours on bleacher seats with no backs. So we went home.
Andy Milovich, executive vice president of Palisades Baseball, said on Monday that if we had exchanged the vouchers for general admission tickets, we would have found available seats with backs.
Milovich said he subsequently asked Power Box Office Manager Dan Cudoc to make sure that any ticket seller who has an unhappy guest ask for Cudoc's assistance immediately. "As a full-time employee, he has a full understanding of our operation and can often solve any problem or answer any question more thoroughly," Milovich said.
Sunday was one of the season's 17 Community Day promotions and those guests occupied just over 1,000 of the approximately 1,500 seats set aside for the event, Milovich said. Also, American Electric Power drew more than 1,500 guests for a picnic at the ballpark. "When added with season ticket holders, other fans, and groups, it quickly gobbled up the remaining 2,500 seats," Milovich said. "I can assure you that it's the only game that will reach a 'sellout' level on a Sunday or Monday when we hold the Community Days."
Our vouchers were related to a FestivALL-themed art promotion and about 40 of them were redeemed, Milovich said. "To my knowledge you are the only guest that we lost for the evening," he said.
Milovich concluded, "I value the feedback and commit to you that we will not stop trying to improve the show, our service level and commitment to the community."
Contact business editor George Hohmann at 348-4836 or busin...@dailymail.com.
