Easter Sunrise Service Cancelled at the Bowl
The annual legendary event to return on a high-tech stage next Easter
LOS ANGELES - The Easter Sunrise Service at the Hollywood Bowl, a tradition since 1921, has once again been cancelled due to unfinished construction, reports the Los Angeles Times.
The legendary ritual draws a congregation of up to 15,000 each year to partake in a free program of prayer and music. However, the multi-denominational service is being cancelled a second time this Easter, the first being in 2004.
A $25-million renovation that took place last year for the bowl's deteriorating stage moved the annual Easter service to the Forest Lawn-Hollywood Hills cemetary, where this year's March 27 Easter service will again be held. The bowl is now undergoing reconstruction on a new concession stand.
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A professor of church growth at Fuller Theological Seminary, Eddie Gibbs, expressed concerns for the two consecutive cancellations, which might discourage people from coming out to the Easter service in the future. He added that this is the one time in the year that Christians of diverse cultures join to celebrate the large event.
President of Hollywood Bowl Easter Sunrise Service Inc. Norma Foster said the annual service will return next year on the Bowl's new high-tech stage.
