Ani DiFranco Fans Stake Out Blankets Early for Concert

Kelly Steele and her sister, Becky, wasted no time on Wednesday morning getting to Prescott Park as soon as they could to stake out a spot for tonight's concert.

By 10:30 a.m., Steele, a 5th grade teacher who lives in Epping, said they had set up their blanket, umbrella and chairs, along with a cooler packed with plenty of cold water. Dressed in their bathing suits, Becky got caught up on some much needed sleep after working the overnight shift as a nurse while Kelly did some reading.

Both are devoted DiFranco fans and couldn't miss the opportunity to get as good a spot as they could for tonight's Prescott Park Arts Festival show at 7 p.m. Four of their girlfriends are planning to join them later.

"We were here at 10, 10:30 a.m., and all of these (spots) were already out," said Kelly. When asked how she feels about having to brave the hot weather, with temperatures expected to peak in the mid-90s, she said they came well prepared.

"We brought the cooler and we brought plenty of water and this is like camping," she said. "Instead of being at the beach, I'm here."

Just having the chance to see DiFranco in such an intimate setting as Prescott Park makes dealing with the heat worth it, she said. "I'm so excited. I couldn't even sleep last night. I'm so pysched."

Mark Duggan and his friend, Debbie Hadley, both of Manchester, felt the same way. They also came to Prescott Park early to reserve their spot just to the left of the main stage. Duggan said he has followed DiFranco's career since she first came on the scene at age 17.

They said they planned to leave their blanket and spend some time downtown.

"We also brought some good books to read," Hadley said.

Meanwhile, Prescott Park Arts Festival volunteers and staff were busy setting everything up for tonight's concert.

Katie Hughes, who works as a sound/audio engineer, said she arrived at 8 a.m. on Wednesday and saw a number of people setting up their blankets and chairs. She hadn't see anything like this since the Judy Collins show a few years ago.

Ben Anderson, executive director of the arts festival, said he fully expected to see a scene resembling the Esplanade on the Charles River in Boston hours before the Boston Pops Fourth of July concert, where people come early, secure their spot and hang out all day.

"I had a feeling this was going to happen," he said. "As soon as we put the tables on sale, they were sold out in 10 minutes."

When asked what it means for the arts festival to have an artist like DiFranco kick off the 2012 summer concert season, Anderson said it is "huge." He said the arts festival has tried to book DiFranco for the past two years, but was unable to bring her to Portsmouth until now.

Anderson also felt confident that tonight's attendance could set a new a record. He said the current record is about 10,000 people who attended the Taj Mahal and Arlo Guthrie shows in 2011.

"I would guess that we are going to break the record tonight," he said.