N.L. Pink fans left blue
Fans from this province disappointed after Grammy winner cancels Montreal concert
As soon as it was announced last fall that Pink would perform in Montreal on March 23, Denise and Chris Saunders bought concert tickets and booked their flight.
The Grand Falls-windsor couple, along with three other couples, were ecstatic and were counting down the days until they could see the Grammyaward winning singer at the Bell Centre in one of only three Canadian stops of her Beautiful Trauma world tour.
“We planned for this weekend for months and were all looking forward to it so much,” Denise Saunders said. “All eight of us planned every detail.”
However, shortly after they arrived in Montreal, their excitement turned to disappointment Thursday night, when it was announced that the concert was cancelled.
The Grammy-winner — who has sold more than 42 million albums and has had 15 Top 10 Billboard singles since her debut in 2000 — informed fans of the decision via Twitter that she was sick with the flu and wouldn’t be able to perform.
In the message, she told her more than 32 million followers that she and her family have been under the weather. She said she was “gutted” to have to postpone the show and promised to return.
“I will absolutely be back to perform for you all and I’m grateful for you wanting to come and be with us at all,” Pink wrote. “Our entire family has been battling this awful virus/ flu for two weeks now, and I have battled my way through these shows because postponing sucks.”
The news came as a huge blow to fans, including some people who made the trip to Montreal from this province.
“When I read on Twitter about the cancellation, we assumed it was a hoax,” Chris Saunders said. “But slowly it started being covered in local and national media. Some of us took it in stride, but there was a lot of disappointment, especially because of the cost to get here and the fear of not getting a ticket refund.”
He said their Westjet flight to Montreal on Thursday was filled with Newfoundlanders heading to the concert.
“Our plane had so many concert-goers, the pilot and flight attendants asked over the speaker how many of us were going to the concert,” he said. “Almost everyone cheered.”
The couple said the cancellation was an inconvenience to some of their friends, a few of whom had trouble getting there due to poor weather in Halifax.
“We are all really sad that the time, money and effort that went into this trip ended with us not seeing Pink,” Denise Saunders said. “But Pink is human. These things happen. We’re grateful to be healthy and happy enjoying a weekend with amazing friends.”
Pink plans to reschedule the concert, but the group hopes to get a refund, instead.
“We’re not sure what will happen with that, to be honest,” Denise Saunders said.
The group plans to make the best of the situation. Many of them plan to take in a Montreal Canadiens’ NHL game Saturday night.
Karla Pilgrim of St. John’s was also looking forward to seeing the show after receiving concert tickets as a Christmas gift from her finance Amanda.
“You obviously can’t control things like sickness, so while we wish her well, we’re still rotted that we’re not going to see her show,” said Pilgrim, a local artist who is a member of The Secrets.
However, she is staying positive and is glad to be with a group of friends whom she hasn’t seen in many years.
“It’s a little reunion for us,” Pilgrim said.
It’s their first time in Montreal, so she said they also plan to take in an NHL game and check out the city’s nightlife.
She still hopes to see Pink in concert another time.
“Who knows?” she said jokingly. “Maybe we’ll convince the (Mount Pearl) Frosty Festival people to bring her in.”