Sting’s Bataclan concert sells out in 30 minutes

Singer headlining reopening of theatre following terror attacks

PARIS: British singer Sting’s concert to reopen the Bataclan theatre in Paris, where a jihadist attack killed 90 people a year earlier, sold out within half an hour Tuesday.

All 1,000 tickets put on sale for the concert on Saturday — the eve of the anniversary of the attack — sold out “in less than 30 minutes.” the venue said.

The theatre in eastern Paris has a capacity of around 1,500. However, its owners Lagardere Live Entertainment said the survivors of the November 13 attack, as well as their families, had also been invited to the concert.

A total of 130 people died in a wave of gun and suicide bomb attacks on the French capital that night. One year on, nine of the 400 injured are still in hospital and a reported 600 are being treated for psychological issues.

Sting, who agreed in September to do the concert, played at the legendary venue back in 1979, when he was lead singer of The Police. The 65-year-old star said he would donate all the proceeds of the concert to two charities aiming to help survivors. His new album 57th & 9th is also being released on the eve of the Bataclan concert.

The venue will remain closed on the actual anniversary of the attacks, the owners said, when a plaque to commemorate the victims will be unveiled outside.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 10^th, 2016.

Like Life & Style on Facebook, follow @ETLifeandStyle on Twitter for the latest in fashion, gossip and entertainment.