Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater

In the summer of 2021, the city of Bridgeport, Connecticut had an exciting new addition. On July 28, the Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater opened for its first summer of operation, with its first show being a double header of rock bands REO Speedwagon and Styx. I think it’s great that the state of Connecticut has gotten such a massive and profitable tenant immediately following a pandemic that shut everything down.

The venue itself has also been impressive as even though it only opened four years ago, it has had some big names perform there. During its first three months of operation, the venue had The Beach Boys do a show with Felix Cavaliere’s Rascals, rock band Greta Van Fleet did shows there for two nights, Alice Cooper did a show there with Ace Frehley from Kiss, and a show that I am impressed happened at the venue in its first year of operation, which was rock band Foo Fighters. I am surprised that they performed at the venue because they strike me as a band that would perform at bigger venues like Madison Square Garden or sports arenas. 

During its second year of operation, the venue had even more shows as they could now open earlier in the season, and they got several more impressive names, as they got Big Time Rush, who had just reunited for a massive world tour, they got many legendary rock artists like Sammy Hagar and George Thorogood, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Jackson Browne, Steely Dan, The Steve Miller Band, The Beach Boys and The Temptations, Van Morrison, Sting, The Doobie Brothers, REO Speedwagon and Styx again, and they closed the season out with a show from Ringo Starr & His All Starr Band. They had other notable artists that year like The Black Crowes, Maren Morris, Earth, Wind & Fire, Goo Goo Dolls, Boyz II Men, Darius Rucker, the Outlaw Music Festival with Willie Nelson, and Tenacious D. I am impressed that the venue was able to get these artists during its second year of operation. 

During its third year of operation, the venue had its first comedian perform there when Kevin Hart did a show. I always find it fascinating when a comedian does a show at an outdoor venue like this one, as to me it says that are one of the biggest names in the world of comedians. They had many legendary artists again as well, as The Steve Miller Band returned with Dave Mason, James Taylor was there for two shows, Elvis Costello did a show there, Santana performed there, Earth, Wind, & Fire returned following the previous year, Jackson Browne also returned for another show, the Outlaw Music Festival with Willie Nelson also returned, this time with Bob Weir from The Grateful Dead also joining, John Fogerty performed a show there, and one of the most interesting shows that year was a double header with Cheap Trick and Rod Stewart, who are in my opinion, two completely different rock artists. They also had many artists that got their start in the 90s and 2000s, as they got Weezer to do a show, 3 Doors Down performed a show there after first performing at the venue in 2021, Counting Crows did a show there, Darius Rucker returned for another show, Goo Goo Dolls returned for another show with O.A.R., The All-American Rejects performed a show there one year after I saw them perform at Alive at Five in Stamford, and they got rising country star Jelly Roll. I find it great that they have continued to get so many iconic and talented artists to perform there, and that so many have returned from previous years.

While the 2024 season has not started yet, they have already announced many exciting shows. They will be kicking the season off on May 18 with one of the biggest artists they have gotten to perform there, Neil Young and Crazy Horse. I am amazed that such a legendary artist will be performing there this summer. A few days after that, there will be a double header of two artists that have already performed there, The Beach Boys and Dave Mason. There will also be several country singers performing there this summer, such as Cole Swindell, Billy Currington, Lainey Wilson, Jordan Davis, Billy Strings who will be doing a two-night residency, and Whiskey Myers. They will also be getting more legendary artists, as Bonnie Raitt will be doing a show there, Sarah McLachlan will be performing there, Sammy Hagar will be returning for another show with rock band Loverboy, Earth, Wind & Fire will be returning for a third time with rock band Chicago, The Doobie Brothers will be returning with Steve Winwood joining them, and James Taylor will be back for two more shows with his All-Star Band. There is also going to be an interesting show called the Totally Tubular Festival, which will consist of one-hit wonders from the 80s, which I think is a cool idea for a show. They will also have several artists who got their start in the 90s and 2000s, as Niall Horan will be doing a show there, which I think is cool as they will be having a member of One Direction performing there, Jason Mraz will be performing there coming off his time on “Dancing with the Stars,” O.A.R. will be returning with Fitz And The Tantrums, Halestrom will be back after first performing there in 2022, this time with the band I Prevail, Kings of Leon will be performing a show there again following their first performance there in 2021, rock band 311 will be back after first performing there in 2021, this time with AWOLNATION and Neon Trees, and one of the most exciting announcements that the venue made for this year is rock band Creed will be performing there as part of there massive reunion world tour. 

This venue started off strong at a hard time in history and has only continued to grow in the following years. I am excited to see what other artists they will announce for this summer, and I hope that all of you will want to go to any one of their upcoming shows!