What’s the next best thing to playing a concert in Salt Lake City? For rock musician Todd Rundgren, pretending to perform in Salt Lake City.
The 72-year-old musician announced plans for a virtual tour Thursday, with 25 online performances from the same venue in Chicago — but each one tailored to a different city, with ticket sales for each show limited to people with ZIP codes in that city. Fans in Salt Lake City will get to see their show on the internet on March 13.
Each show on the “Clearly Human” tour will start at 8 p.m. local time, and will have elements specifically for each city, according to an announcement from Rundgren’s publicist. For example, a video wall behind the stage will show local landmarks, and the catering for Rundgren’s band and crew will feature foods associated with each city.
“People are trying to compensate often by doing one big show and trying to get as much audience as possible,” Rundgren told Rolling Stone in a recent interview. “While that does unify the audience, it doesn’t give the audience that sense of special attention when you come to their town. At the same time, we have to try to figure out ways that as performers, we don’t wind up feeling like we’re doing a residence at a hotel.”
Tickets for the show are $35, and now on sale at ToddRundgren.NoCapShows.com.