Q&A talks about the upcoming opening of Infinity Hall Hartford with owner Dan Hincks.
Q: Infinity Hall Hartford opens later this month after a few delays. Is everything all set to go?
A: We’re all set. Our grand opening is Aug. 21 and our first concert is Aug. 28. The delays were an accumulation of little things — nothing major. It was normal constructionrelated issues. We’re super excited to be at the end of construction and getting ready to open.
Q: What are the conditions of the $1.2 million in financing the state provided to support Infinity Hall Hartford?
A: There were two conditions: We had hire 34 full-time employees for Hartford and we had to retain 53 full-time people in our other businesses for a year. [Those other businesses include Hinck’s Infinity Hall in Norfolk and his Farmington family printer-publisher Data Management.]
Q: Restaurants have soft openings. Do music venues? Will you be presenting any shows before the Aug. 28 opening?
A: We absolutely are going to be testing the hall out. We’re doing a few soft openings that are mainly for folks that are family, friends and employees leading up to the grand opening. We’re having bands come in and play for us and fine tuning the sound system to make sure all the systems are working. We’ll be doing it on the restaurant and hall sides leading up to the grand opening.
It’s important that people understand the restaurant is free standing and open seven days a week. It’s a four-star American cuisine restaurant open Monday through Friday for lunch and dinner and weekends for dinner. You can have dinner before the show, or up on the mezzanine during the show, and you can come for dinner even if you’re not attending a show. It’s going to be a hot spot.
Q: Tickets went on sale July 24 for the upcoming Hartford performances. How are initial ticket sales? Any early indications on what music might be better suited to Hartford?
A: Ticket sales are fantastic. We didn’t know what to expect. We’ve sold over $100,000 in tickets. Some of the stronger acts are Paula Poundstone Sept. 12 and Sept. 13 and Richard Thompson on Oct. 9 and 10. John Mayall is playing Sept. 11 in Hartford and Sept. 14 in Norfolk.
It’s a little premature to say if there will be a difference between the music played in Hartford and Norfolk. We don’t have enough history. The agents love having their clients play both venues. It’s efficient for them. The artists love it because it reduces how much they have to travel.
Q: What are the challenges behind selling Hartford vs. your Norfolk operation? What’s easier about selling tickets to Hartford than Norfolk?
A: The initial challenge is getting people to visit for the first time. Once they do than the word is going to get out about how amazing the venue is. It’s really beautiful. Norfolk will have been open six years in October.
As far as the differences go, it’s probably premature. Hartford is a new place. We have to get people to try it to build up our credibility.
The biggest thing we’re doing is investing in a big way in our lineup. We have an absolutely amazing lineup of artists, but so far it’s not getting the attention it deserves. If you look at the scope of 70 acts that have been booked, it’s a diverse range of artists.
Q: You plan to make Infinity Hartford a professional meeting space. Will you be working with conventions coming in across the street to be a meeting alternative? Are you in any kind of partnership with the CT Convention Center?
A: We’ve already got 16 private events booked for Hartford. A lot of the corporations and nonprofits have already booked dates for us and are excited. It’s a gorgeous space and people are recognizing that. We can do it all ourselves. It’s very easy to book an event.
We’re working very closely with the convention center and their folks both for people coming in and to help them sell conventions down the road. It gives the conventioneers something great to do while visiting the Capital City. We don’t compete at all. All we can do is help each other.Â
