The Dos Equis Pavilion (originally Coca-Cola Starplex Amphitheatre) is an outdoor amphitheatre located in Fair Park, Dallas, Texas.
Naming history The venue opened as Coca-Cola Starplex Amphitheatre on July 23, 1988, with a concert by Rod Stewart. The outdoor covered amphitheater featured 7,500 seats under a pavilion and 12,500 general admission lawn seats. After Coca-Cola's naming rights expired in 1998, the venue was known simply as Starplex Amphitheatre.
In 2000, naming rights were sold to the Smirnoff vodka company, as a result of a corporate sponsorship agreement with House of Blues. The center was then called Smirnoff Music Centre and The Music Centre at Fair Park (for concerts featuring underage performers).
The name changed again in January 2008 to Superpages.com Center when naming rights were awarded to Superpages.com.
The name has changed several times since then: to Gexa Energy Pavilion in 2011, Starplex Pavilion in 2017. and Dos Equis Pavilion in April 2018.
Performers
Coca-Cola Starplex Amphitheatre opened the weekend of July 23–24, 1988 with Rod Stewart on Friday night, followed the next evening with a double bill of Aerosmith and Guns N' Roses. Bob Dylan, Hall & Oates, AC/DC, Steve Winwood, Kenny Loggins, Huey Lewis, Def Leppard, Willie Nelson and Bruce Hornsby all played the Starplex just in the first month. Before the season ended in October, Starplex hosted shows from Tangerine Dream, James Taylor, Eric Clapton, The Moody Blues, Chicago, Elton John, Robert Plant, and Santana. The fall Starplex concert schedule coincided with the State Fair of Texas, also held in Fair Park each October.
Rod Stewart returned on April 21, 1989, to kick off the second concert season at Starplex. The bookings at Starplex were eclectic and played heavily to classic-rock and nostalgia acts. Tom Petty, Jimmy Buffett, Bon Jovi, Jackson Browne, Chris Isaak, Allman Brothers Band, The Beach Boys, Peter, Paul and Mary, The Monkees, Little Feat, Don Henley, Jefferson Airplane, Stevie Nicks, and Cher all played Starplex that summer and fall. Chicago, Elton John, and Bob Dylan each returned. The promoters also experimented with jazz offerings like Spyro Gyra and Miles Davis, and booked popular pop acts like Tiffany, New Kids On The Block, Milli Vanilli, and Paula Abdul.
Frank Sinatra opened the 1990 season at Starplex. New performers included Tears For Fears, Crosby, Stills, and Nash, Joe Cocker, Steve Miller Band, The Black Crowes, Wilson Phillips, Richard Marx, Ziggy Marley, Linda Ronstadt, The Neville Brothers, Heart, Bonnie Raitt, Bad Company, Phil Collins, and Billy Idol. David Bowie brought his Sound + Vision Tour to Starplex for a special Independence Day show on July 4, 1990. Miles Davis, Chicago, Santana, Jimmy Buffett, The Moody Blues, James Taylor, The Beach Boys, and Steve Winwood all returned.
Coca-Cola Starplex in the 1990s In the 1990s, the offerings at Starplex gradually reflected the changing landscape of music being played on the radio. The focus began to shift away from classic-rock and nostalgia acts like Yes who played there in 1991, to more alternative rock popularized by 94.5 The Edge in the Dallas market. Alternative artists like Peter Murphy, The Church, Throwing Muses, New Order, The Replacements, The Cult, Shelleyan Orphan, The Cure, Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, Tracy Chapman, Depeche Mode, The B-52's, Faith No More, Alice In Chains, The The, Morrissey, Blind Melon, 10,000 Maniacs, Midnight Oil, Primal Scream, Meat Puppets, The Jayhawks, Sarah McLachlan, Live, The Cranberries, Radiohead, R.E.M., Nine Inch Nails, Indigo Girls, Luscious Jackson, Los Lobos, Tori Amos, The Afghan Whigs, all played Starplex.
Many popular radio acts of the day headlined Starplex in the 1990s including Tina Turner, Michael Bolton, Harry Connick Jr., Celine Dion, Lyle Lovett, Seal, Gloria Estefan, Hootie & the Blowfish, Alanis Morissette, Dave Matthews Band, Phish, The Wallflowers, Spice Girls, Better Than Ezra, and Garbage.
Alternative music festivals Lollapalooza Starplex was the site of the Lollapalooza festival tour cofounded by Perry Farrell from 1991 to 1995. The alternative music juggernaut would return each year to Starplex until 1997, when sales declined and the festival's tastemaking cache had faded. The various lineups included:
August 22–23, 1991: Siouxsie and the Banshees, Jane's Addiction, Violent Femmes, Rollins Band, Living Colour, Nine Inch Nails, Body Count, and Butthole Surfers. The shows were notorious not only for record attendance for bands that were playing small clubs just a few months before, but also for the inclusion of gangsta rap pioneer Ice-T and his rap-metal outfit Body Count. Ticket sales were boosted both by the immense popularity of the headliners and by controversy surrounding Body Count's "Cop Killer," which was eventually removed from the group's debut album. September 6, 1992: Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilots, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Soundgarden, Ministry, Lush, The Jesus & Mary Chain, and Ice Cube. August 1, 1993: Sebadoh, Rage Against The Machine, Primus, Tool, Dinosaur Jr., Alice In Chains, and Arrested Development. The following weekend, the knockoff MTV Alternative Nation tour followed with a lineup including Spin Doctors, Soul Asylum, and Screaming Trees. August 20–21, 1994: The Smashing Pumpkins, Green Day, L7, A Tribe Called Quest, Beastie Boys, Stereolab, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, The Breeders, George Clinton and the P-Funk All-Stars, and The Flaming Lips. Ticket sales were strong for the 1994 festival despite the April death of Kurt Cobain, whose band Nirvana was originally set to headline the festival. August 10, 1995: Mike Watt, Versus, Sonic Youth, Pavement, Hole, Elastica, The Roots, Cypress Hill, Blonde Redhead and Beck.
In 1996 Lollapalooza was not presented at Starplex. On the date of the festival (July 25, 1996) Gloria Estefan had booked Starplex as part of a two-night engagement. The event was held at Old Fort Dallas in Ferris, TX with a lineup that included Metallica, Soundgarden, Ramones, Rancid, Screaming Trees, Cheap Trick, Steve Earle, Soul Coughing, Sponge, Melvins, and Jonny Polonsky.
August 2, 1997: Devo, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Tool, James, Tricky and Snoop Dogg. August 8, 2003: Thirty Seconds To Mars, Incubus, Audioslave, The Donnas, Queens of the Stone Age and Jane's Addiction
Edgefest On April 19, 1992 94.5 The Edge hosted their own alternative music festival with Edgefest 1992, a one-day festival which brought together The Charlatans, The Sugarcubes, Pearl Jam, and Dramarama. To ensure maximum attendance, general admission tickets to the festival were only $9.45. On July 27, 1992 The Edge presented the Edge Birthday Bash with a one-day lineup including Peter Murphy, Material Issue, Rollins Band, The Soup Dragons and Cracker.
In subsequent years Starplex would often open each season with an Edgefest event instead of seeking a major name headliner.
In 1993 The Edge temporarily dropped the Edgefest moniker and put together the Edge Earth Day Concert on April 18, 1993, featuring The Tragically Hip, Dinosaur Jr., Jellyfish, Belly, 808 State and others. In subsequent years Edgefest continued with these lineups:
April 17, 1994: Violent Femmes, The Charlatans, Tripping Daisy, Possum Dixon, Crash Test Dummies, and Crowded House. Crash Test Dummies also opened for Elvis Costello and the Attractions the following weekend at Starplex. April 22, 1995: Veruca Salt, Sponge, Letters To Cleo, Blues Traveler, and Adam Ant April 21, 1996: Modern English, Lush, Poe, The Verve Pipe, and The Refreshments. On June 2, 1996, The Edge presented another Edge Birthday Bash with Jewel, Cowboy Junkies, Jars Of Clay and Deep Blue Something. April 20, 1997: Beck, Moby, Matchbox Twenty, INXS, Ben Folds Five, Cake, and Cowboy Mouth
In 1998 Edgefest was not presented at Starplex. On the date of the festival (May 17, 1998) Starplex was not booked for any event. The event was held at The Ballpark In Arlington with a lineup including Creed, Fuel, The Crystal Method, Everclear, Mighty Mighty Bosstones, and God Lives Underwater.
April 24, 1999: Third Eye Blind, Blink-182, Toadies, Local H, Collective Soul, and Goo Goo Dolls April 29, 2000: The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Everclear, Bowling For Soup, and 311 May 12, 2001 (after venue was renamed Smirnoff Music Centre): Weezer, Fuel, Lifehouse, The Polyphonic Spree, and The Cult June 1, 2002: Nickelback, Papa Roach, Lit, Unwritten Law, Goldfinger and Chomsky (a smaller bill featuring Flickerstick and Bowling For Soup played an Edgefest "Pre-Party" show on May 31) May 17, 2003: Evanescence, Good Charlotte, MxPx, The All-American Rejects, New Found Glory and Maroon 5 (a smaller bill featuring Blue October and Socialburn played an Edgefest "Pre-Party" show on May 16) August 7, 2004: Evanescence, Three Days Grace, Seether, Breaking Benjamin and Lit. This was the first Edgefest presented in late summer, and followed Ozzfest 2004 by just two days. April 24, 2005: Sum 41, Papa Roach, Jimmy Eat World, and Billy Idol. The Edge also presented a Fall Homecoming event on October 23, 2005, with Thirty Seconds to Mars, Seether, Panic! At The Disco, Audioslave, and The All-American Rejects.
H.O.R.D.E. Tour In 1995 the jam band-inspired H.O.R.D.E. (Horizons Of Rock Developing Everywhere) tour visited Texas for the first time at Starplex.
August 30, 1995: Wilco, Morphine, Blues Traveler, Ziggy Marley, and The Black Crowes
In 1996 the H.O.R.D.E. festival did not visit Starplex. On the date of the festival (July 19, 1996) Starplex was not booked for any event. The event was held at Texas Motorplex with a lineup that included Rusted Root, Lenny Kravitz, Leftover Salmon, Medeski, Martin & Wood, Dave Matthews Band and Blues Traveler.
In 1997 headliners Widespread Panic dropped out of the H.O.R.D.E. tour at the last minute and a planned Texas stop was cancelled. Two of the planned headliners (Beck and Ben Folds Five) had played Starplex at Edgefest already in May.
August 23, 1998: Cowboy Mouth, Cherry Poppin' Daddies, Barenaked Ladies, Fastball, Ben Harper and Blues Traveler
Lilith Fair From 1997 to 1999 Sarah McLachlan brought Lilith Fair, her all-female alternative rock, folk and country festival to Starplex.
August 4, 1997: Suzanne Vega, Joan Osborne, Natalie Merchant, Sarah McLachlan, Lisa Loeb, Jewel, Indigo Girls, Emmylou Harris, Sheryl Crow, Tracy Chapman, Paula Cole, Fiona Apple, The Cardigans, and Mary Chapin Carpenter August 1, 1998: Liz Phair, Lucinda Williams, Natalie Merchant, Sarah McLachlan, Bonnie Raitt and Erykah Badu July 21, 1999: Sarah McLachlan, Sheryl Crow, Shawn Colvin, Dido, and Luscious Jackson
Hard rock and classic rock artists Throughout the 1990s hard rock and heavy metal artists continued to remain popular with AC/DC, Judas Priest, Cinderella, Poison, Lita Ford, Scorpions, Tesla, Kix, Great White, Metallica, White Lion, Warrant, Kiss, Aerosmith, Slayer, Megadeth, Anthrax, Slaughter, L.A. Guns, Skid Row, Guns N' Roses, Motörhead, Alice Cooper, Iron Maiden, Ozzy Osbourne, Extreme, Van Halen, Mötley Crüe, Pantera, Queensrÿche, Dokken, Danzig, Monster Magnet, and Dio all playing Starplex.
Classic rock acts including Yes, Joe Walsh, The Doobie Brothers, Lynyrd Skynyrd, John Mellencamp, Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Dr. John, Glenn Frey, Sting, Leon Russell, Barry Manilow, Lenny Kravitz, Duran Duran, Tina Turner, Procol Harum, Jethro Tull, Neil Young, Traffic, Foreigner, America, Cheap Trick, Meat Loaf, Steely Dan, REO Speedwagon, Jeff Beck, Tina Turner, Cyndi Lauper, Rush, Blondie, Sammy Hagar, Fleetwood Mac, Boz Scaggs, Alan Parsons Live Project, John Fogerty, Journey, Paul Simon, Eddie Money, Peter Frampton and Roger Waters made appearances at Starplex in the 1990s.