The Arkansas Music Pavilion has reached a $2.5 million deal to make Walmart the title sponsor of the venue, Walton Arts Center officials announced Tuesday.
The 10-year agreement changes the pavilion’s name to the “Walmart AMP”. Construction on the structure is scheduled to be finished by June. When finished, the venue will be the largest permanent outdoor amphitheater in the state, according to the Walton Arts Center.
The WAC announced in May 2013 that the AMP would move to Rogers after almost a decade in Fayetteville. Walton Arts Center board members voted to move the AMP and build a permanent $11 million structure in Rogers. The WAC had been searching for a permanent location for the AMP since Feb. 2011 when they took it over.
The 7,000-seat amphitheater includes new patron and artist amenities as well as covered seating for 3,000 people. The venue has been in Fayetteville for nine years. It was first located at the Northwest Arkansas Mall, and then moved to the Washington County Fairgrounds in 2012. The Walton Arts Center noted in a news release that since that move, attendance has grown by 93 percent from 23,000 patrons per year to nearly 45,000 patrons in 2012.
AMP officials announced earlier this week that Willie Nelson and Alison Krauss would headline a performance at the venue scheduled for July 7.
