Italy’s Minister of Culture, Dario Franceschini, revealed the news on Wednesday (via a tweet on Twitter) that David Gilmour is lined up to perform two nights in the ancient Roman town on Pompeii, near Naples, Italy, this summer, and this morning, full details of David Gilmour's Pompeii concerts have now been confirmed.
Forty-five years after Pink Floyd appeared there, to film Live At Pompeii, David will be back at the preserved town, which was buried under ash for over 1,600 years after Vesuvius erupted in A.D.79.
The stone amphitheatre - the earliest known to have been built from stone - was built around 80 B.C. to hold gladiator fights, and around a century later, Rome's Colosseum was built. It should be a wonderful place to see David's show, and the pair of dates will be the first attended rock concerts to ever take place in the location.
David said: "I want to thank the Ministry of Culture for giving me the opportunity to once again play this beautiful and historic venue. Performing there in 1971 was very special and I'm looking forward to returning and hopefully creating some more memorable moments made even more special by playing to an audience."
Dario Franceschini, Minister of Cultural Heritage and Tourism said: "45 years after the legendary 'Live at Pompeii' David Gilmour will be back performing in a unique, fascinating, beautiful scenario. The myth of Pink Floyd will come back to life with him in Pompeii. It will be a show that can't be missed."
Prof. Massimo Osanna, superintendent of Pompeii, said: "The return of David Gilmour to Pompeii is an extraordinary event that the Superintendence and the Heritage Ministry have strongly wanted. Pompeii is now experiencing a real rebirth and is ready to welcome this amazing artist who, together with his band, made the music history of this century and at the same time left a deep mark on the history of the Pompeii site with his memorable show behind closed doors in 1971. Once again the Amphitheatre will be a privileged set for this show and we are sure that as happened in 1971 it will generate the same magical atmosphere and the same big emotions that only the unique combination of a place with no time like Pompeii with marvelous music can create. It is really an extraordinary opportunity which comes from the past and writes in the present a chapter of 'music history inside history'."
Tickets for the concerts - which start at 9pm each evening - go on sale on Tuesday, (March 22nd) at 13:00hrs CET from www.DavidGilmour.com. In efforts clearly designed to stop the ticket touts, there are some important ticketing restrictions in place.
Tickets are limited to a maximum of two per person for one show only (not both) and are priced at €300 each plus 15% booking fee. The purchaser will get a receipt with his or her name on it, and must present this to the box office on site, with photographic ID and the card used to purchase the ticket(s). If two tickets have been bought, the additional person must also be present. Each ticket holder will then be presented with a ticket and a wristband, and both must be shown to security to enter the site (the wristband must be worn at the time).
Our thanks to everyone who contacted us as news of these shows broke, first on Twitter, then on the Italian media. We purposefully held off posting about the shows until we had all the details for you, including the all-important ticketing info.
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