Peach at the Beach brings much-needed summertime entertainment to Atlantic City

His parents, Greg Manning and Carrie Hotchkiss, have been bringing him to Joe Russo’s Almost Dead shows since Hotchkiss was pregnant with Myles. On Saturday night, he was hoping to hear his favorite song, “Cats Under the Stars.”

The Manning family, longtime fans of Grateful Dead, the Allman Brothers and more, attended their first Peach Festival — dubbed Peach at the Beach for its first trip to the resort — this weekend. Musicians and DJs entertained fans and parkgoers at Island Water Park at Showboat Resort Atlantic City.

"We're excited to see JRAD again," said Greg, 47, of Syracuse, New York. "We didn't get to see them last year. They don't often come to New York."

Peach at the Beach was the first-ever concert at the water park, which opened last July.

Showboat owner and developer Bart Blatstein, who was walking in the main concourse area shortly after performances on the main stage began Saturday, loved what he had seen so far. He called this weekend's festival "a test" for the potential to hold future events on the water park property.

"The place is alive, and it's happy music, and everybody's having a great time," Blatstein said. 

Blatstein emphasized the importance of having this festival this weekend, especially just days after the city announced the cancellation of the Atlantic City Airshow.

"This is proof that people want a reason to come to Atlantic City," Blatstein said. "The water park's proof. People are coming here because this is something different. We've needed non-casino types of attractions for a long time."

Performing on the main stage outside the water park were Mykal Rose of Black Uhuru, Karina Rykman and Trouble No More, which performed the Allman Brothers' classic album "Eat a Peach" in its entirety, Dogs in a Pile and headliner Joe Russo's Almost Dead, which primarily covers the Grateful Dead's music.

Four waterpark sets began in the late morning: DJ King Mega, DJ Logic, Dogs in a Pile, and Uncle Jesse. Dogs in a Pile, based in Asbury Park, performed in the Treehouse Bar. 

Several people stopped in the main walkways of the waterpark to watch Dogs in a Pile perform Saturday afternoon. Others lined the overhead paths that led to the waterslides so they could get a better view of the quintet in the Treehouse.

"We are super stoked to be hanging here at Peach at the Beach," said Dogs in a Pile keyboardist Jeremy Kaplan on Friday while crews set up the main stage in the rain. "... Extra stoked to be playing inside this water park up in the Treehouse, dazzling the crowd as they run around the water park."

To the shore

The Peach Music Festival, presented by Live Nation, began in 2012 as the first Allman Brothers Band-inspired festival. It is traditionally held at the Pavilion at Montage Mountain and Montage Mountain Ski Resort in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

Whitney Marciano, 48, and Alex Nixon, 33, of West Chester, New York, have been to the Peach several times in Scranton and said they were blown away by the atmosphere in Atlantic City.

"It's totally different (than the original event), but it's fine," Marciano said of the new location. "It's not the same, and that's what people will have to remember."

Marciano said Montage Mountain was spaced out more than the cozy setup at Showboat. Nixon doesn't mind: He said he's over having to camp on the mountain at the previous festivals.

"I wouldn't have expected to have a concert inside a waterpark, inside of a hotel," added Nixon, who has been following Dogs in a Pile for some time. "The atmosphere is great. There are people that would never experience this kind of music that are here today."

The Manning family planned to split their day Saturday. Myles, the birthday boy, and his parents enjoyed the waterpark and said they would return to their Airbnb in the late afternoon before returning in time for Dogs in a Pile and JRAD.

"Luckily for us, he's a nightowl. Sometimes he's up later than us," Greg Manning said. "It's gonna be easier for him than it's gonna be for us."

Doug Bowen, who runs an EMS company out of West Chester, Pennsylvania, has for the last four years collected the tabs from beer and soda cans to be donated to the Ronald McDonald House Charities. The tabs get recycled for monetary donations.

Bowen got the idea to collect tabs at the Peach Festival four years ago. He's been doing it ever since, working independently to benefit the charity.

"I appreciate everybody that's come out and done this over the years," said Bowen, 67, adding he was excited to see Trouble No More as he's a big Allman Brothers fan.

A.C. to 'rock again'

Peach at the Beach is the city's only beach concert this year, even though the stage was technically on the other side of the Boardwalk in a sandy area on Showboat property.

"Atlantic City is trying to come out of that repeat funk that they've had, all these years of bad-mouthing," said Toly Sokolov, 68, of Millville, who was there Saturday with his wife, Bonnie, because the two enjoy discovering new bands.

"They're gonna get there. I think the (city) council is gonna start making good choices and revitalize Atlantic City. ... Little things like this will definitely help."

Ike Richman, a spokesperson for Peach at the Beach, spent the afternoon walking through the venue, going from the general admission area to backstage and everywhere between. He was grateful to see the rain hold off for the early part of the day as guests found their seats ahead of Mykal Rose's set. He didn't have attendance numbers by later afternoon but said the crowd was still filing in.

"So far, everybody is blown away with the venue," Richman said. "They're blown away that you could sit comfortably outside, you can go into the water park and stay cool. You can go up close to the stage, and the sound is going to be spectacular out here."

Richman said the intention following this weekend is to grow a series of shows at the water park, utilizing the uniqueness of the venue, the hotel and surrounding parking. Blatstein added he's hopeful this grows.

"Atlantic City's gonna rock again," he said. "It's time."

Staff Photographer Matthew Strabuk contributed to this report.