In September, Wilmington had a stretch of concerts the likes of which the Port City may have never seen.
Between Sept. 15 and Sept. 21, there were six shows at the 7,200-capacity Live Oak Bank Pavilion in seven days, with five of them — concerts by music legend James Taylor, country singer Koe Wetzel, jam band Widespread Panic (two shows) and legacy pop act Foreigner — at or near capacity.
And that's not even counting a packed-out show down the street on Sept. 18 at the 1,200-capacity Greenfield Lake Amphitheater with blues-rock legends ZZ Top.
Which got us thinking: What have been the most popular concerts and performances at Wilmington venues this year? To find out, we went straight to the source and asked venues which shows in 2026 could be classified
as "sellouts," with all or nearly all tickets sold. Here's what we found.
CFCC Wilson Center
"We consider a sellout 95% of sellable capacity," which is right at 1,500 seats, said Cape Fear Community College Wilson CenterDirector Zach Pluer.
So far in 2026, the Broadway tour of the musical "Mamma Mia!" sold out three performances March 5-7.
The comedian Bert Kreischer sold out his show April 16, as did the Queen tribute act One Night of Queen on May 13.
Pop singer Jason Mraz sold out his concert on May 23, and family show Bluey's Big Play sold out two shows July 14-15.
Pink Floyd tribute act Brit Floyd sold out two performances Aug. 13-14, and comic Fortune Feimster sold out her show Aug. 29.
Dead Crow Comedy Room
Aimee Elfers, general manager of Wilmington's top comedy club, which has a capacity of about 200, said at least five comics have sold out or almost sold out their entire weekend runs of shows at Dead Crow this year. A weekend run generally consists of four performances, two each on Friday and Saturday.
Viral comic Geoffrey Asmus sold out Dead Crow shows in February, followed by comic/funeral director Shuler King in March, Daniel Van Kirk in April, Dan Mintz (of TV's "Bob's Burgers") in May and Vic Dibitetto in August.
Live Oak Bank Pavilion
Wilmington's largest venue, with 2,400 seats plus 4,800 on the lawn, Live Oak is managed for the city by the Live Nation Entertainment conglomerate.
John Marsicano, communications director for Venue Nation, the Ticketmaster ticketing portal used for Live Nation events, said Live Oak Bank Pavilion has hosted six sold-out shows in 2026.
They included concerts by James Taylor (Sept. 15), Widespread Panic (Sept. 18-19), and country artists Jelly Roll (June 8) and Ella Langley (June 26).
Greenfield Lake Amphitheater
GLA, as it's known, can hold between 1,200 and 1,400 patrons, depending on the event, and is also managed for the city of Wilmington by Live Nation.
According to Marsicano, so far this year Greenfield Lake Amphitheater has hosted 21 sold-out shows, including by indie rockers Modest Mouse (June 9), folk rock act Wilco (July 13), indie folk band Band of Horses and indie rockers Dinosaur Jr. (July 16), alt-rockers The Wallflowers (Aug. 7) and Southern rock band Toy Factory Project (May 18).
Thalian Hall
According to Seth Hoyle, marketing director of historic 1858 Wilmington theater Thalian Hall, at least three of the venue's touring "Main Attractions" shows have sold out the 550-capacity main stage since Jan. 1: the James Taylor/Carly Simon/Carole King tribute Three American Troubadours on Jan. 30; performing animals show Mutts Gone Nuts on March 7; and musical comedy troupe Capitol Fools on April 14. (The Capitol Fools return Oct. 30.)
Also on the main stage, Hoyle said, the Opera House Theatre Co. musicals "Come From Away" (July) and "West Side Story" (August) sold out or nearly sold out multiple performances.
In the former ballroom/future Hippodrome, which is currently being renovated, many of the 280 screenings in the immersive HUBBLO Dome sold out, Hoyle said.
In the Hall's 100-person capacity Ruth & Bucky Stein Studio Theater, the September run of Panache theater company's musical comedy "Avenue Q" sold out most of its nine performances.
John Staton is the arts and culture reporter for the StarNews. You can reach him at jstaton@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: These Wilmington concerts and performances have been sellouts in 2026
