The heavy metal band Megadeth announced today they are canceling most of their shows for the year following lead singer Dave Mustaine’s throat cancer diagnosis.
The band was set to open the fair August 9th. “While we are obviously disappointed that Megadeath won’t be playing the Illinois State Fair, our main concern is for Dave Mustaine,” said Kevin Gordon, Illinois State Fair Manager. “We wish him a full recovery and look forward to having Megadeath back to the Illinois State Fair in the future.”
Customers that purchased their tickets directly through www.Ticketmaster.com or through the Ticketmaster mobile app, will receive an automatic refund back to the card used to purchase the tickets. Customers who purchased their tickets through Illinois State Fair in-person or over the phone, will need to submit a Cancellation Refund Form with their physical tickets attached. Refunds will not be issued without the physical tickets. A refund will be issued in the form of a check, regardless of the form of payment utilized to purchase the tickets, after the form and tickets have been received. Cancellation refund form, for customers that purchased through Illinois State Fair box office directly, can be found on the fair's website.
It's unlcear whether or not the fair will try to fill that vacancy in its grandstand lineup.
Mustaine told of his diagnosis in a letter to fans:
“I’ve been diagnosed with throat cancer. It’s clearly something to be respected and faced head on - but I’ve faced obstacles before. I’m working closely with my doctors, and we’ve mapped out a treatment plan which they feel has a 90% success rate. Treatment has already begun.
Unfortunately, this requires that we cancel most shows this year. The 2019 Megacruise will happen, and the band will be a part of it in some form. All up to date information will be at megadeth.com as we get it. Megadeth will be back on the road ASAP.
Meanwhile, Kiko, David, Dirk and I are in the studio, working on the follow up to Dystopia – which I can’t wait for everyone to hear.
I’m so thankful for my whole team – family, doctors, band members, trainers, and more.
I’ll keep everyone posted.
See you soon,
Dave Mustaine”
