Electric Zoo Festival organisers face class action lawsuit after “nightmare” 2023 edition
The suit is on behalf of “all affected patrons” who paid for tickets and were denied entry
Two attendees of New York's Electric Zoo have launched a class action lawsuit against organisers following a spate logistical issues at this year's festival.
The event, which took place from 1st to 3rd September, was reported to have been plagued by problems that forced cancellation of parts of the weekend's programming and left thousands of ticketholders unable to enter the site on its final day.
Electric Zoo shelved its Friday (1st September) programming after construction of its main stage wasn't finished in time. A statement shared hours before the event was due to start saw organisers blame the issue on “global supply chain disruptions” that “prevented us from completing the construction of the main stage in time for Day 1”.
Entry gates opened two hours late on the Saturday (2nd September), while Sunday (3rd September) saw up to 7,000 people, most of whom had valid tickets, denied entry after 6.30PM because the site had "reached capacity earlier than anticipated".
Now, Rolling Stone reports that two ticketholders have filed a class action lawsuit against Electric Zoo over what they claim was “a nightmare endured by thousands of electronic music fans”.
The lawsuit, which was filed last Wednesday (13th September) in a New York district court by claimants Nicole Brockmole and Lauren Bair and obtained by Rolling Stone, seeks damages on “behalf of all affected patrons who paid for ticket(s) for access or entry to [Electric Zoo] were not granted access”.
Despite Electric Zoo citing global supply chain issues as the reason for the cancellation of day one, Page Six reported that it was allegedly organisers’ late preparation for the festival that was instead to blame. The Page Six article is referenced in the class action lawsuit.
Part of the lawsuit claims: “In addition to Friday’s cancellation, and perhaps more egregiously, things turned worse for Electric Zoo fans on Sunday when they were left to languish in heatwave for hours after being greeted by never ending lines to enter the festival and eventually denied entry because the venue was oversold and overcrowded.”
Brockmole, from North Carolina, and Bair, an Arizona resident, were among the thousands who ventured to New York for the festival and were denied entry upon arrival. Another attendee told Rolling Stone: “I’m never coming back. Worst experience of my life.”
Organisers of Electric Zoo said after the chaos on the final day: “We deeply apologise for this inconvenience and hope you understand that this decision was made with everyone's best interest in mind.”
DJ Mag has contacted Electric Zoo for comment.
