The Pavilion entry plaza after Hurricane Ike, with the shredded roof fabric hanging from the masts

Hurricane Ike Ends the 2008 Pavilion Season

Hurricane Ike reached The Woodlands on Sept. 13, 2008, and tore apart the fabric roof of The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion. Structural engineers found the venue unsafe for any public event until the roof and its steel frame were repaired, so The Pavilion called off the last 10 events of its season.

What the storm did

Ike shredded the 35,000-square-foot fabric roof over the reserved seats, blew the awnings off the concession and merchandise stands and damaged the steel supports. Trees came down near the entrance, and rainwater washed out the soil along the north wall.

“Our facility is unsafe in its current condition to hold any type of public event due to the damage,” said Jerry MacDonald, The Pavilion’s president and CEO. He told ABC13 that more than 300,000 people had come to The Pavilion that year before the storm, and that losing the rest of the season meant about 100,000 fewer.

The photos below were taken on Sept. 16, 2008, three days after the storm.

The Pavilion roof frame stripped of fabric, seen across The Woodlands Waterway after Hurricane Ike
The bare roof frame from the Waterway
Bare roof masts on the south side of The Pavilion after Hurricane Ike
Bare masts on the south side
Trees downed by Hurricane Ike near The Pavilion entrance
Downed trees at the entrance
Soil washed out along The Pavilion north wall after Hurricane Ike
Washed-out soil along the north wall

Shows cancelled or moved

  • Sept. 19: Houston Symphony, “Music of Mozart” (cancelled)
  • Sept. 20: Santana, sold out (cancelled)
  • Sept. 21: 3 Doors Down (postponed; Live Nation tried to move it to another Houston-area venue)
  • Sept. 26: Robert Plant and Alison Krauss (moved to Oklahoma City as a benefit)
  • Oct. 2: Houston Ballet, “Classics on Pointe” (cancelled)
  • Oct. 3: KSBJ’s Music Builds Tour with Third Day, Switchfoot, Jars of Clay and Robert Randolph & The Family Band (cancelled at The Pavilion)
  • Oct. 17: Brad Paisley with Jewel and Chuck Wicks (cancelled)
  • Oct. 24: Houston Symphony, “Hocus Pocus Pops” (cancelled)
  • Oct. 26: Buzzfest XXII (cancelled)
  • Nov. 13-16: 14th Annual Children’s Festival (cancelled)

The list follows The Pavilion’s September 2008 announcement and news reports from that week.

People who bought tickets online or by phone through Ticketmaster were refunded automatically to their cards. Tickets bought at The Pavilion box office or a Ticketmaster outlet had to be refunded in person where they were bought.

Robert Plant and Alison Krauss play a benefit instead

Plant and Krauss were due at The Pavilion on Sept. 26 on their “Raising Sand” tour. With no other Houston-area venue open, they moved the date to the Zoo Amphitheater in Oklahoma City and played it as a benefit for Ike victims. “When we saw the devastation that Ike had wreaked upon Houston and the Gulf Coast area, we immediately made the decision to turn our scheduled show in the area into a benefit for the victims of this disaster,” the two said in a statement with producer T Bone Burnett.

A record season before the storm

The Pavilion said 2008 was still a record year, with 11 sold-out concerts, one more than its previous best of 10 in 2004:

  • Jimmy Buffett (April 21)
  • Buzzfest XXI (April 26)
  • Kanye West (May 2)
  • Roger Waters (May 4)
  • Radiohead (May 17)
  • Journey, Heart and Cheap Trick (July 26)
  • John Mayer (Aug. 2)
  • Kid Rock and Lynyrd Skynyrd (Aug. 9)
  • Dave Matthews Band (Aug. 15)
  • Projekt Revolution (Aug. 24)
  • Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers (Aug. 29)

Back for 2009

MacDonald promised The Pavilion would be back for its 20th season. Work started that December and took about 160 days. The new roof was about two and a half times larger and covered every reserved seat, and The Pavilion reopened in May 2009 with Dave Matthews Band.

How the seating changed is on the Pavilion seating chart page. For shows today, see The Woodlands Pavilion and Live Music in The Woodlands.

What can I bring?
Check mark for allowed items and a Not Permitted sign

The Pavilion has a clear bag policy: clear bags up to 12 x 12 inches or a small clutch. Outside drinks, lawn chairs and ice chests stay home, but small blankets and one gallon bag of food per person are fine at most concerts. See the entry rules and bag policy.

Pavilion Parking
Where are the Woodlands Pavilion parking areas?

Parking is free in the Yellow, Orange, Green, Blue and White lots off Timberloch Place (set GPS to 2203 Timberloch Place), a short walk from the gates. Lots open 30 minutes before the gates. Paid Gold Lot parking at 9809 Six Pines Drive is usually $45 ($15 for performing arts shows), and accessible parking there is free, first come, first served. See the Pavilion parking guide.

Get to The Pavilion
Where is the Woodlands Pavilion

From Houston, take I-45 or the Hardy Toll Road north and exit Woodlands Parkway. From Conroe, take I-45 south, exit Research Forest Drive and follow Grogan’s Mill Road to Timberloch Place. Other good routes: FM 1488 from Hempstead, FM 2978 from Tomball, and Fish Creek Thoroughfare or McCaleb Road from State Highway 105 near Lake Conroe. Directions.

Sections & Seating
Section map and seating chart for the woodlands pavilion

The Pavilion opened April 27, 1990, with 3,000 reserved seats and room for 7,000 on the lawn. A 1995 expansion took it to about 13,000, and the rebuild after Hurricane Ike in 2008 raised covered seating to more than 6,000. Capacity today is listed at 16,500. See the seating chart.

Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
The Woodlands Pavilion

The Pavilion is owned and run by The Center for the Performing Arts at The Woodlands, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit set up by George and Cynthia Woods Mitchell. Concert tickets are sold through Ticketmaster, the venue’s official ticket seller. About The Pavilion · Concert tickets

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