Report: Fan Loses Patience With AXL ROSE's Late Start

Greg Guy of The Chronicle Herald reported on Monday (Nov. 20) that Mary MacDonald was one of the GUNS N' ROSES fans who were furious with promoters of the sold-out concert that came to the Halifax Metro Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada later that night.

The Halifax woman learned on Saturday that Axl Rose and his band would not take the stage until after 11 p.m.

"I'm in a wheelchair and if Axl Rose doesn't go on stage until 11, we probably won't get out of there until around 1 a.m. I have no way home because Access-A-Bus doesn't pick up its clients after 11:30 p.m.," a disappointed MacDonald said Saturday night.

"There is no public transit for people coming into the concert by bus.

"I feel I was misled by the promoters and as a ticket buyer I'm more than upset. We should have been told he goes on at such a late time. The ticket buyers have a right to know."

The concert, presented by Gillett Entertainment Group, was announced in September and has an 8 p.m. start.

Since then, opening acts like Toronto's DIE MANNEQUIN and an "alternative-burlesque show" called SUICIDE GIRLS were announced. Last week, Antigonish-bred rockers the TREWS were also added as openers.

MacDonald said she kept checking the website and learned of the opening acts. She said when she saw three acts she got concerned about her transportation fromthe concert and decided to call the box office on Saturday.

"I wanted to see Axl Rose as far back as the '80s. This was my chance and I was so excited I'd finally get to see him and now there's no way. With everything that's going on downtown these days, I can't be walking home at one in the morning."

On Sunday she attempted to contact other means of transportation to get her home.

"I tried Casino taxi, which apparently has a wheelchair-accessible van, as well as Need A Lift, a local van service for wheelchair-users, but neither service is available after midnight. So, I'm stuck with having to cancel my ticket. If I could wring Axl Rose's neck, I'd probably do so," she said on Sunday.

Scott Ferguson, executive vice-president of Trade Centre Ltd., said Sunday they had just found out within the last day that GUNS N' ROSES would go on later than expected.

"The whole show starts at 8, he's got three acts and he should have been going on the stage around 10:30 or 10:45," Ferguson said. "He should have been off the stage and people would have been out on the street by 1 a.m. . . . But what we're hearing from Quebec last night and Ottawa and Toronto is that he's been going on as late as 11:50 p.m, and he has been getting off the stage as late as 2:15 a.m. And he's been off the stage other times before 2 o'clock."

Read the rest of the article at TheChronicleHerald.ca.