by Tracy McCue, Sumner Newscow — Local promoters of this Friday’s John Michael Montgomery concert at Wellington’s Memorial Auditorium have reported that half of the tickets for the show have been sold out.

Those wishing to get advanced tickets to the show can still do so at the Wellington Recreation Commission office, the Wellington Chamber of Commerce office or at the KWSL Wichita Office.

Jason Boyd and Hayven McCracken will open for John Michael Montgomery on April 5. Doors open at 6 p.m.

The concert will usher in a new era for Wellington Memorial Auditorium which has been recently refurbished to become ADA accessible.

The Wellington City Council recently passed an ordinance to allow the sale of alcohol for this particular event.

Joe Morelez, sales manager for KWLS-FM 107.9, said that ticket sales are going better than expected.

“Memorial Stadium seats more than 1,000 people, so we are happy with the number of tickets sold so far,” Moralez said. “Of course, we’d like the place sold out at the night of the show.”

People can still get half-off coupons at the following locations: Countryside Motors, Security State Bank, Federal Tire, Impact Bank, Koehn Motors, Penny Diner, Rohrer Custom & Fabrication, Hometown Sales Lease and The Dore.

Tickets normally run for $20 reserved seats.

Michael Montgomery is best known for his hits “I Swear” and “Sold (The Grundy County Auction Incident)”

Five more of Montgomery’s singles have reached the top of the country charts: “I Love the Way You Love Me,” “Be my Baby Tonight,” If You’ve got Love,” “I can Love You like that,” and “The Little Girls.”

Montgomery’s recordings of “I Swear” and “I Can Love You Like That” were both released concurrently with R&B versions by the group All-4-One.

He has released 11 studio albums, including a Christmas album. The most recent, “Time Flies” was released on his own Springtown label in late 2008. He has sold more than 15 million albums worldwide.