The parties involved in the extraordinary consolidation of summer shed services in Chicago are keeping the details close to the chest. A bombshell agreement has just eliminated the debilitating competition between Jam Productions and the Nederlander Organization and put them in bed together for the summer concert season. But Nederlander’s position is a firm no comment; Jam’s not talking; and none of the World Music Theatre’s other owners are responding to press inquiries.
Best of Chicago voting is live now. Vote for your favorites »
As a consequence the details are vague. If you haven’t heard the news, Jam has been forced to sell part of its suffering World to archrival Nederlander after four years of booking battles with the Nederlander-controlled Poplar Creek. Despite a record-breaking season receiptswise and what seemed like a genre-based detente between the two operations (Jam bringing harder-edged and alternative acts to the World, Nederlander handling the Barry Manilows and Jimmy Buffetts at Poplar), neither company was happy with the situation.
“There aren’t very many markets where there are competing amphitheaters,” he continued. “I’ve never seen a situation where both are prospering. It often happens that it gets to the point where whoever wins [a bidding war for a particular act] has the honor of losing money.”
