Longtime SPAC Director Chesbrough Dies

Local media report that Chesbrough died Tuesday evening after battling lymphoma.

Chesbrough  started out as SPAC’s comptroller in 1970, three years after the Saratoga Springs venue open. He moved up to general manager, in charge of booking pop and rock music acts for the amphitheater during the summer season. In 1978, he was named executive director, a position he held for more than 25 years.

Chesbrough was forced out in 2004 after he cancelled the summer residency of the New York City Ballet, a SPAC mainstay, along with the Philadelphia Orchestra, since the venue opened. His decision on the ballet troupe was quickly reversed.