Stone Pony Summer Stage — Attraction in Asbury Park

Appalled, but mostly disturbed, by the way I was treated at the Summer Stage by the staff whose picture is attached to the review. He refused his name multiple times so I had to go this way to identify him.He was cruel and very unusual in the way he refused us help when we approached him confused about something and asking a simple question. He couldn’t nod yes or no, couldn’t point us right or left, couldn’t point out a place where someone COULD help us, couldn’t use his radio, and couldn’t even say “I don’t know.”

What he was able to do is grunt at us, threaten consequences for things we clearly were not trying to do, and -most disturbingly- told us we couldn’t ask anyone else for help because he was the security supervisor and would make sure no one helped us..

He escalated something that wasn’t a problem and turned our simple and genuine question into a serious confrontation.

Then to make it worse, he started yelling at us. I asked him if we could please each take a breath and try the interaction again and he continued to yell the same few lines he was repeating.

It is of my opinion that his irrational behavior combined with his inability to communicate anything other than treats, was consistent with someone on hard drugs. I don’t see another way for an adult to be so incompetent with words, cruel in demeanor, and dense to understanding,

It was a classic and pathetic case of a fragile ego enjoying the smallest amount of authority and it was truly disgusting to witness on a human level.I am suffering from second hand embarrassment just imagining...

Mixed signals from the venue's management and security led to an abysmal queuing experience in the morning of the show. You'd think that a venue this old and well-known would be better prepared for a large show with an intense fanbase. Security was reasonable but inadequate in preparation and in number, police seemed clueless, and decisions were being made on the spot that irritated both the fans and the venue staff. The answers posted on The Stone Pony social media turned out to be false and unenforceable (largely, I suspect, due to poor planning and a staff shortage). Ultimately, the security didn't honor the venue's no-camping, first-come policy, nor the fan line, leaving everyone with a randomly assigned wristband number and rightfully annoyed.

Fortunately, they at least honored these random wristbands and lined everyone up relatively successfully, so everything went a lot more smoothly in the afternoon. The interior of the venue was pleasant and had refreshments, water, and restrooms. Security was very helpful, showed concern for the well-being of the audience, and had control of the crowd. This review is about the venue, not the artist, but I have to say that the concert was incredible.

I understand that overzealous fans can be a lot to handle. In the future, please just choose a policy for camping/lining up/wristbands and stick with it. Aside from woeful lack of preparation, there is almost never reason to be changing plans the morning/afternoon of a show (in extreme heat!) that people have been looking forward...

The Summer Stage has been an excellent addition to the Stony Pony!! We’ve been going to the Stone Pony for over 30 years and it’s great to now look forward to the summer shows! The sound is great and there is a large space. Plus the drinks are pretty reasonably priced in comparison to some venues, if you’re into that. My only complaint is the security. They are over-the-top. This past weekend we were at the Summer Stage and it was out-of-line, specifically one of the women security guards. She is on the heavy side with grey hair. She was digging in my bra and feeling my chest and it made me very uncomfortable. She didn’t find anything unusual and I did not have so much as a cigarette on me. She continued to yell “What’s in your bra?” after accosting me with her overly-thorough investigation which I patiently tolerated. I wasn’t sure what she wanted me to do - Did she want me to take my bra off? In the end she said “Just go”, as if she was doing me a favor. I felt unnecessarily violated and then insulted. I’m still wondering if I should look into filing some type of complaint against her, or see if that is even possible. Sometimes people are just powerless. I also witnessed her find something she didn’t like on another patron (a woman) and the glee in her eyes at having potentially ruined someone’s day was unnerving. She ran over to cops that were standing nearby like she wanted a pat on the head and we actually saw the cops roll their eyes at her. I hope they get this woman...