Producers for Logan’s Freedom Fire event at Romney Stadium say last month’s show was a success with the crowd, but for the third straight year, the show fell short of covering production costs.
The concert and fireworks spectacular is a co-production of the city and Utah State University’s Caine College of the Arts. This year’s show, featuring the ABBA tribute band, Arrival from Sweden, cost $240,000 to produce.
Logan’s parks and recreation director Russ Akina is part of the committee that produces the event each year.
“It was not profitable this year,” he said Tuesday. “For the last two years and even before we partnered with Utah State University, the show has never been profitable.”
Overall, revenue was about $8,400 short. Akina says the deficit has been shrinking each year and that the difference will come out of his department’s budget. Ticket sales and sponsorships cover the bulk of production costs. Akina says he and the steering committee will report to the mayor and city council later this year with suggestions on how to close the gap.
“People who had a ticket for the event loved the show,” he added. “They thought it was great. We just have to find more ways to make the expenses that make up the show work with our revenue projections.”
The first production meetings for the 2014 Freedom Fire will take place this fall.