LaGRANGE — Sweetland Amphitheatre at Boyd Park opened its summer concert series Saturday with Atlanta-based music groups Band-X and Members Only.

Bass pumped from massive speakers as the musicians performed covers of well-known hits from across the decade. A large crowd filled the amphitheater’s stadium-style seating, where revelers danced and sang along.

Becca Eiland, the venue’s director, said she was thrilled with how well the show went and is looking forward to Sweetland’s official grand opening with Willie Nelson in May.

“I thought it went amazing,” Eiland said. “It think it was everything we hoped for and more in terms of turn out, participation, the level of enjoyment — just the feedback and positive vibe from the crowd.”

Eiland called the evening’s temperate weather “beautiful,” and said she appreciated the work of volunteers who helped patrons find their seats and allowed the evening to run smoothly.

“The volunteers did great,” she said. “To be a part of this, and make a contribution is really their motivation. I think they all jumped in and did the job they needed to get done and I hope they enjoyed it.”

Moving forward, Eiland said she and other staff members will evaluate how the evening went to learn how to make the Sweetland experience be as enjoyable as possible, while still meeting the challenges of such a large-scale event.

She and others will “debrief,” she said, and look at more efficient ways to manage the crowd to make sure patrons have an enjoyable, safe experience at the venue.

As people left Sweetland, Eiland said “hitting it out of the park was the resounding theme. It was beautiful to see how excited people were. We appreciate their patience as we worked our way through out first show.”

For more information about Sweetland, including upcoming show and ticket information, visit www.sweetland.events.