The Free Heart of Ángela Aguilar does not beat strongly in the United States
It seems that Ángela Aguilar’s “Libre corazón” beats with a somewhat… irregular rhythm north of the border. The young singer, heir to a musical legacy as heavy as an elephant on a stage, is on tour in the United States and the panorama is so clear that, from the last row, the “Emergency Exit” sign must be perfectly visible. To the surprise of absolutely no one who has ever tried to sell something to a distant cousin, tickets to their performances are collecting more dust than a forgotten vinyl record.
Local media, those incorrigible gossips, report that, a few hours before the curtain rises at The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory in Texas, there are hundreds of seats available. Are people waiting for a personalized gold engraved invitation? Maybe. What is certain is that not even the promotions of packages for four people at a bargain price, with the added attraction of payments in installments (buy a concert ticket or finance a car? How confusing!), have managed to convince the public.
The desperate sound of silence… at the box office
While in Mexico some media reported with a hint of drama the drastic reduction in the cost of tickets, the situation reached levels of absurd comedy. Imagine venues with capacity for two thousand souls, where the seats furthest from the stage—those from where the artist looks the size of a bean—were offered for the modest amount of 5 dollars, approximately 100 Mexican pesos. That is, less than what a good coffee and muffin costs. And yet, the popular fervor was comparable to that generated by a condominium meeting on a Sunday morning.
One wonders if the problem is the repertoire, the promotion, or if the American public is simply too busy watching TikTok. Would throwing the tickets into the air and letting anyone catch them be a more effective strategy? The tour, which promised to be a triumphant journey, is encountering the harsh reality that an illustrious surname does not always fill stadiums, especially when the competition for entertainment is fiercer than a fight for the last piece of pizza.
The question remains as to whether this box office fiasco is a simple setback or the harbinger of a necessary reinvention. Meanwhile, the “pay later” promotion seems like a perfect metaphor: The public will indefinitely postpone the decision to attend. A lesson in humility, with a dose of irony, for the entertainment industry.
Do you know someone who doesn’t want to miss this news? Share it on your social networks and help us expand the conversation. Explore more content about the ups and downs of showbiz in our entertainment section.
