It may be that the promoters of Justin Bieber’s two scheduled concerts in Portugal this week were overly ambitious: the Web page for the Pavilhao Atlantico in Lisbon, where Mr. Bieber was scheduled to perform tonight and Tuesday, limits ticket purchases to six per customer.
Though the first concert will go on as planned, the hall has posted a note on its site saying that “due to unforeseen circumstances, Justin Bieber was forced to cancel the second performance in Portugal.†And several newspapers in Portugal and England, as well as the TMZ Web site, have reported that the show was canceled because of disappointing ticket sales.
The cancellation is the latest disappointment in what hs been a tough month for the 19-year old singer. An altercation at a London club, where he was to celebrate his birthday on March 1, led Mr. Bieber to describe the day on Twitter as his “worst birthday.†Last Monday, three days later, he turned up two hours late for a concert at the 02 Arena in London, and later apologized to his fans (and their irate parents), blaming his lateness on technical difficulties.
He collapsed onstage with breathing difficulties during his Thursday evening show, also at the 02, and was hospitalized briefly. And he! got into a shouting match with photographers as he left the hospital on Friday.
A spokeswoman for Mr. Bieber refused to comment on the cancellation or the reports of poor ticket sales.
Another superstar cancellation, Rihanna’s decision to drop out of her Sunday evening concert in Boston, came with a doctor’s note. Having kicked off the American leg of her Diamonds tour - her first tour in about a year - with a sold-out show on Friday evening in Buffalo, she developed laryngitis and withdrew from the Boston show on her doctor’s advice, a statement from her promoter, Live Nation, said.
Rihanna has posted two expressions of regret on Twitter. “BOSTON this is the hardest thing for me to deal with!†she wrote in one. “I feel like we’ve been waiting on this day forever, and I’m hurt that I letyou down.†In the second, she wrote: “I hate disappointing people that never ever let me down!! I’m so embarrassed about this!â€
Live Nation has said that the Boston show would be rescheduled.
