With the mayor singing a Bob Dylan tune and hints of a permanent visual homage to Prince, representatives from entertainment conglomerate Live Nation previewed the new Fillmore Minneapolis concert hall Thursday by promising it will stand out from the many other venues in their international chain — and local competitors, too.
"It's not just a black box with people in it," said Ron Bension, president of Live Nation's clubs and theaters division, which will go head-to-head with independent local institution First Avenue once the new music facility opens next to Target Field Station in the North Loop district.
The Los Angeles-based promotions company announced a mid-February opening date and a 1,850-person capacity for the new Fillmore, which will be the ninth Live Nation-owned venue in the country to bear the name of the legendary San Francisco concert hall where Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Aretha Franklin and many other greats performed a half-century ago.
While all three of those late rock legends obviously won't be available to play the Minneapolis Fillmore, their photos and music were featured in a multimedia presentation during Thursday's "hard-hat preview," along with tunes by Minnesota talent including the Replacements, Semisonic, Lifter Puller and Prince.
None of the venue's permanent features were in place yet, such as the 5-foot-high stage, VIP boxes or large chandeliers (a trademark at other Fillmores). However, the tour showed off the two-story layout with a large wraparound mezzanine, an upstairs VIP lounge and a burger bar at ground level.
The Fillmore is part of a sprawl of development near Target Field helmed by United Properties, a company run by the Pohlad family, which also owns the Minnesota Twins. A 160-room Element by Westin hotel is also under construction as part of the same structure as the 36,000-square-foot concert venue, which will also welcome comedy and other live events as well as private parties.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey called the music venue "a big missing link" in the North Loop as he spoke briefly in the VIP lounge area.
"It will add an extraordinary vibrancy in a neighborhood that's already rocking," said Frey, who started his speech by belting out a few lines of "Like a Rolling Stone" after it was used as his walk-on music.
