The Swingin' Midway Drive-In in Athens, Tennessee, is among the 300 outdoor theaters set for a virtual concert by country icon Garth Brooks on June 27.
The locations were announced Monday. Tickets go on sale Friday at a cost of $100 per car (up to six people).
According to production company Encore Live, this is the largest ever one-night show to play at outdoor theaters across the United States and Canada. The concert will be created exclusively for this event.
In a statement, Brooks, a seven-time Country Music Association Entertainer of the Year, said he's missed performing and is excited to get to play for the drive-in audience.
"This drive-in concert allows us all to get back to playing live music without the uncertainty of what would be the result to us as a community," he said. "This is old school, new school and perfect for the time we are in."
In the absence of traditional live events, Encore Live reached exclusive agreements with drive-in theater owners across North America to safely bring fans this first-of-its-kind concert on a massive scale. The show will adhere to coronavirus guidelines recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as all state and local health mandates. These will include maintaining at least 6 feet of space between vehicles, the use of personal protective equipment by staff, leveraging contactless payment and ticketing systems, limiting capacity in restrooms and regulating concessions.
Brooks is the top-selling solo artist in U.S. history, with 156 million album sales, propelled by such hits as "The Dance," "The Thunder Rolls" and the sing-along standard "Friends in Low Places." In January, Billboard announced that Brooks is the first artist to make it on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in the 1980s, '90s, '00s, '10s and '20s.
Tickets will be available at Ticketmaster.com/garthbrooks starting at noon Friday. The event will take place rain or shine and begin at dusk, around 8:30 p.m. in Athens.
Meanwhile, the Swingin' Midway will host a live concert by contemporary Christian artists Michael W. Smith, Steven Curtis Chapman and Mac Powell on July 17. The acts also will play a live show at the Montana Drive-In Theater in Estill Springs, Tennessee, near Tullahoma, on July 29. Tickets are $100-$175.
The Montana also will host Christian artists TobyMac and the Diversecity Band on July 7. Tickets for the main screen are sold out, but a $60 option will show a projection of the live show on the theater's second screen. Tickets for those shows are available at www.driveintheatertour.com or www.awakeningevents.com.
Previously scheduled live shows by Newsboys United at the Montana and the Henagar Drive-In Theater in Alabama have been canceled.