Summerfest has been rescheduled for the fall.
In a tweet this morning the festival announced that it has rescheduled its 2021 weekends for Sept. 2-4, Sept. 9-11 and Sept. 16-18. (Last summer, Summerfest had announced that it was changing its format from its traditional 11-day schedule to a run of three three-day weekends.)
We are excited to get the live music industry back in action and to welcome fans back, but in order to allow healthcare professionals more time to distribute the vaccine, Summerfest 2021 will be held September 2-4, 9-11 & 16-18. Save those dates, and we'll see you in September! pic.twitter.com/pg0Dh93Aj0
— Summerfest (@Summerfest) February 2, 2021
The news is another ominous sign for Milwaukee's summer festival season. Last week, PrideFest announced that it was canceling its June event.
“While the progress made through the vaccine rollout is encouraging, we believe it is in the public’s best interest to hold the festival in September to give government leaders and healthcare organizations enough time to distribute the vaccine,” said Summerfest President and CEO Don Smiley said in a statement. “We will continue to work diligently with civic officials and healthcare professionals as we prepare to welcome artists, fans, employees, vendors and sponsorship partners this summer. Our team is excited to get back to what we do best, as soon as possible.”
No grounds stage lineup has been announced for the new rescheduled festival. It's unclear which of the amphitheater shows from last year's cancelled festival will be rescheduled for this fall.
Last year Summerfest also attempted to reschedule for September, but abandoned those plans when it became clear they weren't feasible.