BancorpSouth Arena
Tupelo, Miss.
bcsarena.com
@bcsarena
Concert capacity: 10,000
The selling point of the BancorpSouth Arena is clear: “first-class service in the birthplace of Elvis. That’s what we’ve offered the entertainment industry since our grand opening in 1993,” BancorpSouth Arena and Conference Center executive director Todd Hunt says. While the venue has hosted such top-tier acts as Elton John, Kenny Chesney, the Eagles, Rascal Flatts, Aerosmith, George Strait, Rod Stewart and Jason Aldean, the building’s proximity to Nashville also has allowed it to be used as a rehearsal hall for major tours. “Over the past year,” Hunt notes, “we have invested in new blackout curtains and a completely new look for the venue exterior. Updating our color scheme and creating a new look for our entryways has completely changed the character of [the building]. Future plans include an atrium connecting our conference center with the arena as well as installation of a theater rigging grid.”
Allen County War Memorial Coliseum
Fort Wayne, Ind.
memorialcoliseum.com
@acwmc
Related
Concert capacity: 13,000
One of the few venues in the country with two arenas under one roof, the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum offers touring shows the option of its main arena with a capacity of 13,000 or its Expo Center with telescopic seating and a capacity of 8,000. The 870,000-square-foot complex also has 30,000 square feet of meeting room space. Coliseum executive VP/GM Randy L. Brown reports that during the summer of 2013 the venue expanded the arena’s 200 level. The concourse was widened from 25 feet to more than 100 feet. Food courts were added, along with a fresh, made-to-order menu. The new food court areas feature 18-foot ceilings and floor-to-ceiling glass walls, offering more natural light during the day and dramatic views at night.
Bon Secours Wellness Arena
Greenville, S.C.
bonsecoursarena.com
@bswarena
Concert capacity: 15,538
The Bon Secours Wellness Arena is the largest building it its market, located midway between Atlanta and Charlotte, N.C., for advantageous tour routing. Roger Newton is president/GM of the venue. “In October, we finished phase one of a $14.5 million, three-year renovation plan,” arena marketing manager Lisa Crawford says. “The first phase included installation of digital menu boards and concourse signage, a high-definition video scoreboard and a 360-degree ribbon board, an upgrade of the suites, new risers, a new curtaining system, Ecoglo aisle treads and parking lot improvements.” Future development will include new outdoor marquees, upgrades to the concourse and ticket office, and renovations to the backstage area.
Cross Insurance Center
Bangor, Maine
crossinsurancecenter.com
@cicbangor
Concert capacity: 7,500
Since opening in September 2013, the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor, Maine, has drawn some 80,000 patrons to an impressive inaugural run of more than 100 events including 11 family shows, a Broadway series and concerts by Hank Williams Jr., Michael W. Smith, Chicago, Il Divo, Jeff Dunham and Mannheim Steamroller. The arena also is home to the University of Maine men’s and women’s basketball teams. The building is managed by Global Spectrum, and Mike Dyer is director of the venue. The $68 million center was designed by the architecture firm of Sink Combs Dethlefs and is located on the historic riverfront in Bangor. Aside from the 7,500-capacity arena, the complex houses 18 meeting rooms and a grand ballroom that can accommodate 1,000 (or be divided into rooms for smaller events).
DCU Center
Worcester, Mass.
dcucenter.com
@dcucenter
Concert capacity: 13,840
For more than 30 years, the building today known as the DCU Center in Worcester, Mass., has built a rich history within Central New England and the touring industry nationwide. With a capacity that’s scalable from 5,500 to 13,840, the DCU Center concluded the latest phase of a multiyear capital-improvement project in October 2013. The work included upgrades to both the interior and exterior of the facility, a new façade and digital marquee, a landscaped promenade and entrance, a redesigned box-office pavilion, an expanded concourse, indoor and outdoor retail space, four new luxury suites, a new concourse-level bar and club area, and a 60%-plus increase in restroom fixtures. During the month it reopened, the venue hosted sold-out shows by Pearl Jam and Phish, and the adjacent convention center hosted 33 events, giving the combined facility its strongest month in 15 years.
Denny Sanford Premier Center
Sioux Falls, S.D.
dennysanfordpremiercenter.com
Opening: fall 2014
Concert capacity: 13,000
When it opens this fall, the Denny Sanford Premier Center will be the largest arena available for tours traveling between Minneapolis and Denver, and between Omaha, Neb., and Fargo, N.D. With Sioux Falls situated at the junction of Interstates 29 and 90, the city is ideally situated for tour routing. The building will have a concert capacity of 13,000. The center features 22 suites and 16 loge boxes, and is home to the Sioux Falls Stampede of the U.S. Hockey League and the Sioux Falls Storm of the Indoor Football League. The facility is named after T. Denny Sanford, founder of First Premier Bank and Premier Bankcard. The title sponsorship agreement — which is shared among First Premier Bank, Premier Bankcard and Sanford Health of Sioux Falls — amounts to $750,000 a year for 25 years. The arena opens in a robust market; Sioux Falls has the nation’s second-lowest unemployment rate.
Erie Insurance Arena
Erie, Pa.
erieevents.com
@erieinsurarena
Concert capacity: 9,000
A recent $47 million renovation of the Erie Insurance Arena has transformed the 31-year-old building into a state-of-the-art facility, serving as a premier sports and entertainment venue for Northwestern Pennsylvania. Reopening last fall with shows by Rascal Flatts, Trans-Siberian Orchestra and Elton John, the arena in downtown Erie is part of a four-facility entertainment complex managed by the Erie County Convention Center Authority. (The Warner Theater, Bayfront Convention Center and Jerry Uht Park are also part of the cultural district.) The arena now offers luxury suites, a new club level, expanded concourses, new seats with cup holders, 50 TV monitors, indoor load-in capability, new show offices and star dressing rooms.
First Direct Arena
Leeds, England
firstdirectarena.com
@fdarena
Concert capacity: 13,000
Opened in 2013 with a distinctive fan-shaped seating configuration, the 13,000-capacity First Direct Arena in Leeds provides significantly improved sightlines and acoustics for end-staged concerts. The capacity of the SMG-managed building is scalable from 4,500 to 13,000 for concerts. Design elements include an indoor loading bay with a capacity for three trucks and five-star-quality dressing rooms. The venue is centrally booked by an SMG team that controls 55,000 arena seats at the First Direct Arena, the Phones4u Arena in Manchester, the Metro Radio Arena in Newcastle and Northern Ireland’s Odyssey Arena in Belfast. Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band christened First Direct Arena in July 2013, declaring, “This is a beautiful building…it’s a great place to play.”
Honda Center
Anaheim, Calif.
hondacenter.com
@hondacenter
Concert capacity: 18,900
While the Honda Center in Anaheim competes with Los Angeles venues to the north, ongoing improvements are but one way the 18,900-capacity venue keeps its competitive edge. The Grand Terrace project at Honda Center, which opened last fall, is the largest single upgrade in the building’s 20-year history. A 15,000-square-foot indoor/outdoor entertainment space, the Grand Terrace offers 100 feet of bar space, upscale décor, unique menu options, outdoor fire pits and top-notch service. Below the terrace is a new entry plaza flanked by two state-of-the-art, 15-feet-by-25-feet Daktronic screens, which can display high-definition-quality video to fans entering the arena. As part of the project, the retail location known as the Anaheim Ducks Team Store Powered by Reebok underwent a threefold increase in size. In addition, a new 250-seat restaurant, Pucks Tavern, featuring dishes from celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck, opened late last year. The installation of more than 600 flat-panel TVs through the arena concourses, using Cisco’s StadiumVision technology, is an additional part of Honda Center’s latest upgrades, among the $80 million-plus in improvements during the past six years.
Pinnacle Bank Arena
Lincoln, Neb.
pinnaclebankarena
@pinnaclearena
Concert capacity: 14,000
The city of Lincoln has a population of about 258,000, including 25,000-30,000 college students in the area from the University of Nebraska, Concordia University, Nebraska Wesleyan University and other schools. No wonder, then, that Pinnacle Bank Arena has proved to be a strong draw since opening last September, landing 10 concerts in its first 80 days. The SMG facility is home to the men’s and women’s basketball teams from the University of Nebraska and has a concert capacity of 14,000. GM Tom Lorenz is the booking contact. “The upper concourse is split into two levels, one stacked on the other, to bring more people closer to the floor, unlike many arenas where the seats gradually go up and out,” says Lynn Higginbotham, the venue’s director of sales and marketing. Other distinctive features of the new building include an elaborate curtain system that provides greater flexibility to scale down the size of the venue.
SAP CENTER AT SAN JOSE
San Jose, Calif.
sapcenteratsanjose.com
@sapcenter
Concert capacity: 19,000
In July 2013, the longtime home of the NHL’s San Jose Sharks was rebranded as the SAP Center at San Jose. The move came with the news that software giant SAP would use the venue as a showcase for cutting-edge technology for the sports and live entertainment industry. SAP surveyed Sharks fans to create new tech solutions, adaptable to the live concert business, that will increase fan engagement with news alerts, player and team analysis, and social sharing of photos and videos. New technology also will allow fans to purchase concessions and merchandise from mobile devices, and drive targeted promotions and loyalty rewards for fans. “The SAP Center is the sports, cultural and entertainment center for the entire San Jose community,” SAP co-CEO Bill McDermott said in a statement announcing the arena relationship. “Together, we plan to create an innovative ‘think tank’ using technology to enhance the fan experience.”