When Roger Waters took The Wall out on tour, it’s doubtful that he saw it as being a multi-year trek. He’s now 120 shows in and has played for 1.6 million people and he isn’t done yet.
Roger Waters. Photo by Ros O'Gorman
The Wall is coming back to North American starting in May for 36 shows, including several outdoor stadium performances with state of the art modifications transforming the arena production into magnificent outdoor events. The tour, promoted by Live Nation, includes stadium stops in San Francisco at AT&T Park on May 11th, Vancouver at BC Place on May 26th, Chicago’s Wrigley Field on June 8th, Toronto at Rogers Centre on June 23rd and Philadelphia at the Citizens Bank Park on July 14th.
“Thirty years ago when I wrote The Wall, I was a frightened young man,” Waters recalls. “In the intervening years it occurred to me that maybe the story of my fear and loss with its concomitant inevitable residue of ridicule, shame and punishment, provides an allegory for broader concerns: Nationalism, racism, sexism, religion, whatever! All these issues and ‘isms are driven by the same fears that drove my young life.”
Prior to 2010, The Wall show was simply too large to contemplate a tour, but new arenas and advances in touring technology have solved that dilemma. Waters has updated the look and feel of the show to ensure it matches the astonishing theatrical extravaganza that The Wall’s live incarnation became so legendary for – thus allowing yet another generation to be inspired by the grandeur of the breathtaking visual and aural spectacle. The 1980 original production of the The Wall had been performed live-in-its-entirety just 29 times during Pink Floyd’s 1980 tour in support of the album and once in Berlin in celebration of the fall of the Berlin wall.
In addition to Roger Waters (lead vocals, bass), The Wall live touring ensemble includes: Snowy White (Guitar), Dave Kilminster (Guitar), GE Smith (Guitar & Bass), Jon Carin (Keyboards), Harry Waters (Hammond Organ), Graham Broad (Drums), Robbie Wyckoff (Vocals), Jon Joyce, Pat Lennon, Mark Lennon and Kipp Lennon (Backing Vocals).
The dates for the tour:
May 01 – Houston, TX – Toyota Center
May 03 – Austin, TX – Frank Erwin Center
May 05 – Tulsa, OK – BOK Center
May 07 – Denver, CO – Pepsi Center
May 11 – San Francisco, CA – AT&T Park
May 13 – San Diego, CA – Valley View Casino Center
May 15 – Phoenix, AZ – US Airways Center
May 19 – Los Angeles, CA – TBD
May 22 – Portland, OR – Rose Garden
May 24 – Seattle, WA – Key Arena
May 26 – Vancouver, BC – BC Place
May 28 – Edmonton, AB – Rexall Place
May 31 – Winnipeg, MB – MTS Centre
June 03 – St Paul, MN – Xcel Energy Center
June 05 – Detroit, MI – Joe Louis Arena
June 06 – Grand Rapids, MI – Van Andel Arena
June 08 – Chicago, IL – Wrigley Field
June 10 – Louisville, KY – KFC Yum! Center
June 11 – Indianapolis, IN – Conseco Fieldhouse
June 13 – Atlanta, GA – Philips Arena
June 15 – Ft Lauderdale, FL – BankAtlantic Center
June 16 – Orlando, FL – Amway Center
June 19 – Nashville, TN – Bridgestone Arena
June 21 – Buffalo, NY – First Niagara Center
June 23 – Toronto, ON – Rogers Centre
June 25 – Ottawa, ON – Scotiabank Place
June 26 – Montreal, QC – Bell Centre
June 28 – Albany, NY – Times Union Center
June 29 – Hartford, CT – XL Center
July 01 – Boston, MA – TBD
July 03 – Pittsburgh, PA – Consol Energy Center
July 06 – New York, NY – TBD
July 09 – Raleigh, NC – RBC Center
July 10 – Charlotte, NC – Time Warner Cable Arena
July 12 – Washington DC – Verizon Center
July 14 – Philadelphia, PA – Citizens Bank Park
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