Historical outdoor dramas open for the season at Grandview

BECKLEY, WV (WVNS) — Two historical dramas will be returning to the Cliffside Amphitheater in Raleigh County.

After a five year hiatus, Hatfields & McCoys and Honey in the Rock will be playing this week and have shows running until the end of June 2024.

General Manager Gayle Oaks said that the tourism that came out from the creation of the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve in 2020 helped gained profit for the historical dramas to return.

“Heritage tourism is by far the leading sector of the tourism market in the U.S. and that’s what many of the 1.7 million tourists coming to the park each year want,” said Oaks.

“We’ll continue to provide annual summer performances of national shows such as ‘Footloose,’ which will be performed in July, but the historical dramas unique to West Virginia are what visitors and local patrons have always been attracted to,” Oaks added.

Honey in the Rock , the story of the state’s birth was first performed in 1961 at the open-air theater and was designed to have performances for summer audiences and to be located near the Grandview overlook. Hatfield & McCoys premiered at Grandview in 1970, making both performances two of the main tourist attractions in southern West Virginia.

The schedule for the performances are as followed:

Honey in the Rock : June 18, 2024, June 20, 2024, June 22, 2024, June 26, 2024, June 28, 2024, and June 30, 2024.

Hatfield & McCoys : June 19, 2024, June 21, 2024, June 23, 2024, June 25, 2024, June 27,2024, and June 29, 2024.

Footloose : A non-historical musical about teens who attempt to end the ban on dancing in their small town, performing July 11, 2024 through July 14, 2024, July 16, 2024 through July 21, 2024 and July 23, 2024 through July 28 2024.

Direct links for tickets:

Hatfields & McCoys: https://www.etix.com/ticket/e/1041095/hatfields-and-mccoys-beckley-cliffside-ampitheatre

Honey in the Rock: https://www.etix.com/ticket/e/1041094/honey-in-the-rock-beckley-cliffside-ampitheatre

Footloose: https://www.etix.com/ticket/e/1041098/footloose-beckley-cliffside-ampitheatre

For more information or to purchase tickets, visit TheatreWestVirginia.org or call 304-256-6800.

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