INVERNESS, FL — Pat Benatar and husband Neil Giraldo, who were scheduled to perform June 21 at WalkerFest 2013 at the Citrus County Fairgrounds here, refused to perform, citing concerns about the integrity of the staging structure. The event was to be a fundraiser for three charities — the Wounded Warriors Project, Habitat for Humanity and the United Way.
Benatar and Giraldo, who were paid for the show, said they would keep the money in a separate account and pledged to reschedule “with a professional ‘A’ level promoter who will not compromise everybody’s safety,” according to news reports.
“Neil and I regret that we had to postpone last Friday night’s show in Florida,” Benatar noted, on the couple’s website, www.benatargiraldo.com. “The safety of our fans, crew, and band must always come first.
“With the tragedy at the Indiana State Fair a few years ago, staging and production requirements are at an all-time high,” the web posting continued. “The production and staging requirements were unacceptable.”
Although the staging company, TMC Productions, reportedly tried to address the couple’s concerns and also brought in an independent structural engineer, Fred Hilpert of Inverness, FL-based Furman & Hilpert Engineering to certify the stage as safe to use, Benatar and Giraldo’s concerns were not allayed.
The performers cited the breach of the contractual requirement for staging structure safety as the justification for accepting payment without performing.
The couple also noted that another independent structural engineer brought in by their management team assessed the condition of the stage and said that it was unfit for use.
Benatar and Giraldo have since posted photos of the stage structure on their website at http://benatargiraldo.com/news/159663.
Although the independent structural engineers hired by the artists’ management and the staging company were divided in their assessments, the approval of the stage was contingent on weather conditions with less than 25 m.p.h. winds along with a warning against allowing a crowd of people to walk up onto the structure.
Benatar and Giraldo also reportedly received a letter of support from Jeffrey Carter, former Chief Deputy Commissioner of Labor & Director at OSHA, that credited the couple for their “foresight and courage” in putting safety first.
“We are sorry to all our fans and the three charity recipients that this unfortunate situation occurred,” Benatar noted, in a statement. “Everyone loses.”
