Though the terrorist attacks in Paris at Le Petit Cambodge restaurant, the Stade de France soccer stadium and Le Bataclan Concert Hall that occurred on Nov.13 happened almost a week ago, killing 129 and injuring 350, the effects are still being felt around the world and in the sports and entertainment industry.

As Dan Beckerman, CEO, AEG, which manages venues around the world, said, "Obviously, our highest priority is the safety and security of fans and guests." That has been top of mind for AEG since Staples Center, Los Angeles, opened and throughout its family of AEG Facilities worldwide. Staples Center has the latest and best technology, including walk through metal detectors at its entrances to the arena and the offices, which "should be the standard," Beckerman said.

Venue managers consistently work with law enforcement, local, state and federal, on security. But when attacks occur, particularly in sports and entetainment gathering places, the gut reaction is to check and double check everything possible is being done.

AEG Facilities were among those experiencing cancellations in the wake of the carnage in Paris, including a U2 stop at the newly reopend and renamed Bercy Arena (AccorHotels Arena now) in Paris. 

On Tuesday, a soccer game between Germany and the Netherlands was canceled less than two hours before it was set to start and fans were evacuated from the Niedersachsenstadion stadium in Hannover, Germany, due to suspected bomb threats. No explosives were found at the stadium.

That same night, a soccer game between England and France went on as planned at Wembley Stadium in London, with over 71,000 fans in attendance. Security screenings and police presence were increased for the game, and fans were encouraged to show up early, because of the longer process. In a show of solidarity, Wembley's metal arch was illuminated in blue, white and red, joining a number of global landmarks that paid tribute to the French flag.

The Sydney Opera House, the pyramids of Giza in Egypt, the Convention Centre in Dublin and other landmarks around the world paid tribute to France by lighting up with the country’s blue, white and red. One World Trade Center, New York, lit its 408-ft. spire in the tricolor pattern. Some, like the Metropolitan Opera, showed its support for the people of Paris by opening its Saturday matinee with the French national anthem, “La Marseillaise.” Others, like the National Football League, chose silence, beginning each of Sunday’s games with a moment of noiseless reflection in honor of the victims of the attacks.

The NFL released a statement leading up to Sunday’s games regarding safety measures that were being taken at stadiums around the country. It said they had been in communication with the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI, and no threats against NFL stadiums were known.

“In addition to our standard procedures described above, there will be an increased security and law enforcement presence both inside and outside stadiums in the parking lots of our stadiums this weekend,” the statement read. “We have been in contact with clubs hosting games to reinforce our standard procedures and the league’s best practices.”

Following the attacks, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams proposed emergency drills for large venues, event spaces and malls in the city. He planned to hold emergency meetings with managers from Barclays Center, Brooklyn, and other venues to implement the drills.

“After the tragic events in Paris, we have taken added steps to enhance our security measures both outside and inside the building,” Barclays Center said in a statement. “Some measures will be visible, some will not. We are working in close coordination with the New York City Police Department as we continue to ensure the safety of our guests. Due to the heightened measures, we encourage fans coming to Barclays Center events to arrive early. As always, safety is our top priority.”

The attacks will mean changes for music venues as well, which some refer to as “soft targets.” In Paris, 1,500 people were packed into Le Bataclan Concert Hall for a rock show where gunmen were able to enter and kill 89 people. Music venues like this can be more difficult to secure and don’t have rules in place like the NFL’s clear bag policy. Live Nation is one that has said in a statement it will increase security at its venues.

“Due to the recent events in Paris and in an abundance of caution we have implemented heightened security procedures globally,” the statement said. “However, because of the sensitive nature of these protocols, we cannot elaborate further on the specific details.”

U2 canceled both Paris shows scheduled for the weekend following the Friday attacks, and the Foo Fighters announced the cancellations of their remaining four European shows, including a Monday Paris show and Tuesday Lyon date. The Deftones were scheduled to play Le Bataclan on Nov. 16, which was canceled, and a number of other artists have chosen to cancel their European dates as well.

In the wake of these attacks, the Department of Homeland Security has stressed certain initiatives for public assembly venues, starting with the importance of the See Something, Say Something rule, which should extend to staff working parking entries as well. By employing an enhanced and visible presence on the secondary approach and arrival, it will assure arriving guests that the staff is aware and taking the necessary steps to protect their safety. One recommendation is to move some of the activation tower law enforcement assets out to the perimeter to be more visible to arriving guests.

Based on the stadium event in Paris, the recommendation is to review both shelter-in-place and evacuation procedures. This would include both process and procedures, including, but not limited to, communication, decision making and execution coordinating with all affected parties as well as fans in-stadium via mobile app, media partners and any additional communication and information vehicles.

Irving Azoff, board member, and Tim Leiweke, CEO, Oak View Group.

Oak View Group (OVG), the new company Tim Leiweke, formerly CEO of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, and Irving Azoff, music legend and empressario, announced last week, defies description because it is still evolving. It will be about booking events at venues, sponsor packages outside the normal categories for venues, consulting on myriad financial aspects of running venues and providing equity for certain and select ventures.

Those are the four announced divisions of the new firm, which is headquartered in Westwood, Calif., part of the Greater Los Angeles area. But Leiweke, who serves as founder and CEO, makes clear that whatever OVG is today, it will look different in six months from now, or even by year’s end.

There are already clients for its "Arena/Stadium Alliance" including, Prudential Center, Newark, N.J.; Philips Arena, Atlanta; Madison Square Garden (MSG), New York; the Forum, Inglewood, Calif., and Amalie Arena, Tampa Bay, Fla.

Pressed for details of OVG ideas, Leiweke talked about the craze for building nightclubs at arenas and the growth potential for members-only clubs. “At Staples Center (Los Angeles), they have the Chairman’s Club for sports. We think there could be that same concept for music, where there’s a private, Vegas-style club packaged with the 200 best seats.

“They did it in Toronto and it will do very well for music – the Sher Club, our partnership with Drake. We package that for concerts. Come in before and after the show, it’s a nightclub. Can you get an extra $1,000 for a pair of tickets packaged that way? Maybe.

“You could certainly get $200. If it’s $200, that’s $40,000 a night. For a big act, maybe $500 a ticket, that’s $100,000 a night, 40 nights of music. Take the average between those two numbers, so call it $60,000; if you do 60-grand a night times 40 nights, that’s $2.4 million. That’s a lot of money, half to the artist, half to the building. That’s an example of how we package for sports and have not packaged like that for music. We are going to help the Alliance capture that idea.”

Leiweke says it is something he was doing prior to leaving AEG in Los Angeles for Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment in Toronto.  Staples Center has the Hyde Lounge.

He wants to take that idea, enhanced, to venues in the Alliance and help turn music into a franchise similar to sports.

OVG will also work with arenas on sponsorships, through a division called Narrative. While venues tend to have certain categories wrapped up, others are wide open. To that end, OVG hired Dan Griffis, a partner and executive vice president of Narrative, which he named.

Griffis left Target Corp., where he was vice president of marketing, on Oct. 31 and set up shop in Los Angeles for OVG on Nov.1. Two weeks into it, he was very enthusiastic about the potential in this space.

Prior to going to work for Target, Griffis worked for a racing team, where he grew sposorships to over $100 million a year. “Target was one of my biggest partners. I loved the racing team, but Target’s brand allows you to have a conversation with people outside racing — fashion, corporate social responsibility, entertainment, electronics, home, grocery — where you can take a brand and help people expect more from it,” Griffis said.

Pop-up Target stores was one of his innovations. He called it the Target Tube. It showed up at festivals, in downtown Manhattan, at concerts, at the Olympics in London. “I created pop-up stores that looked incredible that can be taken down in four hours. It’s about being creative with the resources in front of you.

“It’s about surprising and delighting people.”

Griffis plans to educate and energize brands to tell stories through partnerships with venues. It’s about developing life experiences for people to interact with the brand, he said. That’s why he calls the divison Narrative. Brands need to tell stories and the best storytellers — the poets and songwriters and authors — grip people with the core theme. He’s learned from them.

Now he’s learning the venue side of the equation. Having worked with over 400 brands while at Target, he knows Narrative can bring some new sponsor categories to venues, like beauty, fashion, technology, sustainability and wellness, all massive industries, and can also bring new opportunity to brands.

When he was at Target, it was too difficult to roll out a promotion with venues in individual cities seasonally. OVG’s Arena/Stadium Alliance will be able to package deals, times of year, regions and more for brands, he said. At Target, he wished for “someone to come to me and say I could not only pick and choose the markets but, also, when I wanted to activate and tell my story. I wanted flexibility as a brand to go in and out, when the pulse of activity is what you really want, and not worry about potentially a full year’s worth of inventory where you may not be able to tell a compelling story.”

The goal at end of day is to build a better experience for fans of live experiences, Griffis and Leiweke agreed

“Music is a little less of an anchor in stadiums, but we will find a group of unique outdoor venues  we can block book some artists together,” Leiweke continued explaining OVG’s operation. The firm is well down the road on some projects already.

The partnership with Irving Azoff’s Azoff MSG Entertainment is a dealmaker. Leiweke told of one client that needed a little help on a particular tour. They weren’t getting the dates. “We made a phone call and talked to the manager and worked it through and got them multiple dates. Between Irving and I, we know everyone in the music industry and everyone respects us. We are the consigliore. Our job is to protect our clients. If they need help or something is not going their way from a scheduling standpoint, we pretty much know everyone in the business.”

There are no outside venture capitalists in OVG, “but there will be when we do our deals,” Leiweke said of the equity side of OVG. “Right now the deals we’re investing in, like Miami, we’ll do from within. If that deal gets done, I’ll invest in that personally.” He was referring to the potential for a Major League Soccer stadium in Miami in partnership with David Beckham.

“There are a lot of people who have offered us a lot of money,” Leiweke said. “We just don’t need it yet. When you work hard for 40 years and do a decent job and make good friends along the way, those friends are there and want to be involved and want to share it. We’re not lacking for either resources or projects.”

Leiweke has been working on OVG part time for awhile as he awaited a new CEO to take over his job at MLSE in Toronto. “Once they announced their new CEO a few weeks ago, it gave me the ability to be more focused on this,” he said. MLSE is still a client for OVG and they have had some conversations about MLSE joining the Arena/Stadium Alliance.

Michael Frisdahl was named as the new president and CEO of MLSE on Oct. 29. He comes on board with the new year.

As of today, OVG has six clients for consulting, including Townsquare Media which produces festivals and bought North American Midway Entertainment a few months ago. Steven Price of Townsquare Media was one of his first clients and Leiweke is impressed with the out-of-the-box thinking there and the fact NAME entertains 15 million people a year. There are some major sponsorship opportunities there, he said. “We’re doing all kinds of things with them.”

And it’s not all about major markets. Leiweke said they are working on an idea for B-markets right now. “You’ll see us doing a lot of things going forward that we are not doing today.”

“One of the things I like about working with Irving and about this company, is it’s very entrepreneurial. We can shift and turn on a dime. There are very few restrictions on our scope. It will look very different a year from now,” Leiweke said.

They intend to disrupt the business in a very positive way. “We’ve always had this idea music can be an economic engine equal to sports on the contractually-obligated income side,” Leiweke said. He noted that Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino does a better job of sponsorships and premiums at the amphitheaters than most arenas do, but the same model works in arenas. “It’s just that every tour has a different road manager, promoter, agent and management team. You have to find a way of packaging it all, like a music-only sponsorship series, redoing clubs, premium seats and suites and packaging them for music above and beyond.”

There are other companies that do some of what OVG does, like Legends or CAA or IMG/WME, but it’s fairly unique, he said. He won’t and doesn’t want to compete with AEG, he said. “This company is different. I don’t mind being a good thief, but occasionally I’d like to be a good entrepreneur.”

OVG has hired about a dozen people and, by the beginning of the year, will have 24. “We need people to service our Arena and Stadium Alliance. We have to hire some account executives for our sponsorship company. We have some growing to do,” Leiweke said. He promised to announce OVG’s booking strategy, and a new hire who will work with venues every day and help them book, in the near future.

In addition to Griffis, OVG has also hired Francesca Bodie, Leiweke’s daughter, who worked to acquire an NFL team and build a stadium in Los Angeles prior to this; Jason Gonella, a seasoned sales executive who comes to OVG directly from Van Wagner, with over 20 years of sales experience in premium seats and suites; and Andrew Feinberg, who comes to OVG from Premier Partnerships where he was instrumental in selling sponsorships and naming rights deals across all 5 major sports leagues. 

“Dan Griffis is a game changer for us,” Leiweke said. “He was in the sports industry before Target. He did $150 million in sponsorship in a year for that racing team. He’s good at selling.”

OVG will also be about giving back. Griffis said he has a soft spot in his heart for corporate social responsibility. “One of the things I love about Target, it gives $4 million every single week to charities. They are humble Midwesterners and they don’t share that story as broadly as they should.” So he will.

Interviewed for this story: Tim Leiweke and Dan Griffis, (310) 954-4818

At the Official Opening Ceremony of Studio City, “Asia’s King of Dance” Aaron Kwok took the stage to entertain VIPs, the media and special guests at Studio City Event Center as the warm- up for his upcoming concert at Studio City.

Before Asia’s “King of Dance” Aaron Kwok took the concert stage on Nov. 7 to officially christen the newly-opened $3.2-billion Studio City Event Center (SCEC) in Macau, China, a Who’s Who of Hollywood’s finest enjoyed the red carpet treatment on Oct. 27 before hundreds of global and regional media. It all added up to glowing reviews for the Hollywood-themed studio-concept resort that, in addition to a 5,000-seat arena, features the world’s highest figure-8 Ferris wheel.

“We were very pleased with the response for the opening,” said Mr. Sunny Yu, senior vice president, entertainment and projects of Melco Crown Entertainment, owner and operator of casino gaming and entertainment casino resort facilities in Asia. “Thousands of music lovers across the region filled the Studio City Event Center for the first show. Many fans were blown away by the top-notch acoustics and the overall luxurious environment of this spectacular venue.”

Managed by Spectra, the state-of-the-art arena offers theater-quality acoustics, a dedicated control room and satellite broadcasting infrastructure and is the centerpiece of Studio City’s live entertainment offerings. The first-class premium seating level offers 16 private VIP suites, some 242 luxury club seats and features a deluxe club lounge.

Kwok is arguably the most versatile of Hong Kong entertainment’s legendary “Four Heavenly Kings” and has been a dominant force in the world of music and dance for more than 30 years. His show continued to push the choreographic envelope on the high-tech world-class stage.

“We believe SCEC is a stage any world-class live entertainer would be delighted to perform on, and we are incredibly proud to present the top of the top concert series to music lovers moving forward,” said Yu.

He added that the artist was looking for a venue where he could stage the biggest and most technically ambitious concert of his music career. Kwok’s production team had specially designed a high-tech mobile stage exclusively for this show that allowed fans to dance along with him in a uniquely intimate standing zone around an extendable V-shaped stage.

“With SCEC’s world-class facility and a skillfully designed space, we were able to accommodate the requirement of the artist, the function of the stage as well as the safety of the audience,” said Yu. “With world-class technology and stage-to-seat configurations never seen in Asia before, we have a venue that will be a favorite for artists and concertgoers alike. We strongly believe that this center will present the ultimate music journey for people from across the region.”

While not sharing per caps, Yu said that all services were provided in-house by Melco Crown Entertainment and that “the Spectra team worked very closely with all the internal teams to ensure high standards of service delivery.”

“The food and beverage team provided a bespoke menu for all the VIP guests at our Club Lounge and the VIP suites at the premium level with a wide array of options, from Chinese, Southeast Asian to other international cuisines,” he added. “There were also concession stands serving a plethora of food and beverages to all guests.”

Yu said that with a large number of fans coming to the concert, the team coordinated with security, parking and local authorities to ensure the audience traffic flowed smoothly and swiftly. 

“The staff at Studio City is fully and professionally trained in all areas of venue services from security to environmental services to box offices, making sure all events are delivered seamlessly and professionally,” he said.

Looking ahead, Yu said that a full series of concerts is scheduled for the opening month.

“The megastars secured for the upcoming concert season are all dynamic entertainers who have influenced millions with their music and performances including Madonna, Taiwan’s Mando-Pop super idols including Show Lo, JJ Lin, A-Lin and Hebe Tien who will headline the Taiwan Music Series at the SCEC.

“The fact that Studio City can attract and fully accommodate live performances from the world’s biggest stars on their world tour circuit demonstrates our commitment and desire to support Macau’s leisure entertainment destination proposition.

“Partnering with Spectra, we believe SCEC is an ideal venue for hosting the biggest international and regional concert tours, leading theatrical productions, top sporting events, award shows and other world-class events.”

As for the pomp of the red carpet night, Kwok performed along with Mariah Carey. Others who made the walk included Robert De Niro, Leonardo DiCaprio, Martin Scorsese, acclaimed producer Brett Ratner and a number of other dignitaries.

Interviewed for this article: Sunny Yu, (853) 868-7316

Nationwide Arena, Columbus, Ohio.

There are 14 publicly-owned sports venues in Ohio housing either a major league or minor league franchise that enjoy tax-exempt status. Don Brown believes that number should be 15.

“Nationwide Arena is the only publicly-owned sports venue that was not exempt out of the 15,” said Brown, executive director of the Franklin County Convention Facilities Authority (FCCFA), a joint agency representing the city of Columbus and Franklin County that serves as public owner of the venue that is home to the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League.

The sense of urgency is heightened following a year in which the arena will owe property taxes for the first time after a 15-year, 99-percent abatement. It is uncertain how much would be saved with an exemption due to a dispute in the valuation of a venue that cost $165 million to build in 2000 and was sold for $42.5 million in 2012 when the FCCFA purchased the facility from Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co. and Dispatch Printing Co.

“We believe all should be on equal tax footing in order to be competitive and have parity,” Brown said of his authority’s unanimous resolution to urge members of the Ohio General Assembly to change the Ohio law. “That was our goal. We are asking for the Assembly to amend the state law to extend the tax exemption to Nationwide Arena.”

Brown said that at the same time the FCCFA has offered to enter into a new agreement with the Columbus City Schools under which the Authority as the new owner would continue to pay the city schools the amount they receive on average every year over the life of the abatement term that expires this year.

“We recognized that the previous owner during the abatement period was making a payment in lieu of taxes to the Columbus City Schools each year,” Brown said. “In seeking tax exemption ourselves, we said that we did not want to do that on the backs of the city schools.

“We did some research that also disclosed that some other pro sports venues in the state also have payment-in-lieu arrangements in place with their local school systems, perhaps for the same reason. I’m not saying all 14 do. I just know that several of the comparable or similar size communities had payment-in-lieu arrangements in place. That’s our goal.”

Brown added that the list of venues does not include the likes of the Schottenstein Center at The Ohio State University in Columbus.

“The Schottenstein Center is owned and operated by The Ohio State University as an instrument of the State of Ohio and is tax exempt,” concurred venue Associate Vice President Xen Riggs. “There is no relationship between the two arenas and no impact or relevance on us.”

Brown said there has been only mild resistance expressed about his Authority’s request.

“There might have been one stakeholder or another or one citizen or another who expressed concern and wanted to know why this wasn’t addressed in 2012 when the arena became publicly owned,” he said. “Second, some have expressed concern that for whatever the merits are of the case we are making, it’s different. It’s a change. Some people resist change.”

Brown said that he talked with some of the principals involved in 2012 who said they expected the issue to be addressed but that the timing was not right to discuss while the abatement agreement was still in place.

“It was left to another day, as it were,” he said.

Brown added that the issue of venue upgrades is a separate one to be tackled. He acknowledged that a permanent tax exemption would not free up significant new money but that “we know that a tax exemption is important to meet or beat the fan experience and also to meet league standards. We intend to address and find a method to fully fund capital improvements next.”

Those improvements will be accomplished in concert with the other arena stakeholders including the Blue Jackets, former owner Nationwide, and the University.

“We have formed an organization called Columbus Arena Management with the four parties involved including us to market and manage both arenas,” Brown said. “That work is led by Xen Riggs and has been very, very successful. It clearly benefits both venues.”

Brown said the goal is to have the vote by the end of this calendar year. Brown works for a board which must give approval and the Columbus school superintendent works for a board that must do the same. Then it is up to the legislature to approve the change in law.

“If we fall short, we’ll try again next year,” Brown said. “If we run out of time … we’ll be back next year.”

Interviewed for this article: Don Brown, (614) 246-2000; Xen Riggs, (614) 292-6455

Seattle Mist fans get worked up as their team works itself into a LFL Legend’s Cup Championship win. (Photo courtesy of LFL)

Apparently, a significant segment of the U.S. population really likes watching scantily clad female athletes play football.

The 2015 season of the Legend’s Football League, known at inception in 2009 up until 2012 as the Lingerie Football League, could by most measures be deemed a rousing success with new television deals and three planned new franchises for next year’s season. Though Mitchell Mortaza, LFL founder and managing partner of Legends Football League LLC, declined to disclose the privately held company’s attendance or financial figures for the 2015 season, he did indicate an increase in popularity that translated into higher ticket sales.

“Considering we are a sport in its infancy and compounded by the commercial challenges of being a women’s sport, I think the longevity alone is a success,” claimed Mortaza. “However, we are on pace to become the most successful women’s team sport in the world and to challenge major men’s sports within the next 5 to 7 years. In fact, in comparison to the now billion-dollar popular sports franchises such as the Ultimate Fighting Championship or World Wrestling Entertainment through their first three seasons of operation, the LFL has achieved far more national television viewership, attendance and growth through the same initial period of time.”

The LFL has already announced an expansion in 2016 into the Austin area (Austin Acoustics), Dallas area (Dallas Desire) and New England (New England Liberty) with home fields at, respectively, Cedar Park (Texas) Center, outside Austin; Dr Pepper Arena in Frisco, Texas, near Dallas; and Verizon Wireless Arena in Manchester, N.H.

The LFL’s new U.S. league configuration will include teams in the areas of Los Angeles, Seattle, Dallas and Austin in its Western Conference and Atlanta, Chicago, Omaha and New England in its Eastern Conference. It is possible another team or two could be added before the new season begins. There are also four teams competing in Canada.

The LFL’s acknowledged “short list” of future expansion for the 2017 season includes Washington D.C., Pittsburgh and the Carolinas for its Eastern Conference and Bay Area, Phoenix and Kansas City for the Western Conference. Ultimately, according to Mortaza, the LFL plans to be in 26 primarily NFL markets.

Teams in Baltimore, Green Bay, Toledo and Jacksonville, Fla., shut down operations last season but new franchises are expected to open up elsewhere in Ohio and Florida within three years and the Green Bay franchise may be reorganized.

In another important development for the 2016 season, the LFL will for the first time be opening up franchises for minority and majority owners, according to Mortaza. The league has been up to this point under a single-entity model where the league solely owns and operates all the franchises.

Bill Herman, general manager for the Dr Pepper Arena, home-arena-to-be for the LFL’s new Dallas Desire team, is pleased with the opportunity to expand the use of the facility. The 6,000-seat arena, located about 25 miles north of downtown Dallas, is the current practice facility and corporate headquarters for the NHL’s Dallas Stars and home court for Texas Legends, the NBA Development League’s affiliate of the Dallas Mavericks. 

“We’re really looking forward to having a 2nd tenant in our venue,” said Herman, “even if it’s only for a couple of games.  The timing is good for us since it’s after basketball season and we were able to offer them the dates they wanted. It’s our first time working with the league. The league and team officials have been very professional to work with. It seems they really have their act together and want to put on a great product and develop a solid fan base.  We’re already getting game-day-related notes and we’re still six months out.”

Herman also noted that a LFL field fits easily onto Dr Pepper Arena’s 200-foot by 85-foot hockey rink.

Some 200 miles south of Frisco and 20 or so from Austin, the approximately 8,000-seat Cedar Park Center will be the home “turf” for the new Austin Acoustic franchise.

“We’re excited to host the Austin Acoustic,” said Sammy Wallace, vice president, Booking and Marketing and assistant general manager for the facility. “We think it’s a good fit for our programming schedule and something that will appeal to the market and be an entertaining choice for the people in the area. We expect this would draw some folks from the Austin area who haven’t been to our facility. It’s the first time for anything like this in Austin.”

Cedar Creek Center is owned by the City of Cedar Park and operated by Texas Stars, L.P., the administrative and management concern of the American Hockey League franchise and affiliate of the NHL’s Dallas Stars.

“We are primarily a hockey building and we have a basketball tenant so this will be the first time we will have played football in here,” noted Wallace. “The first time that we’ve had any kind of turf sport so it will be a little different but won’t require any major changes. Once we lay that field out it will set up nicely in the building. We also have different kinds of concerts and shows here so we’re used to changing things up.”

Clearly, this year’s new television deals have bolstered the LFL’s popularity. An agreement this spring awarded the Fuse television network the exclusive rights to broadcast LFL games in the U.S. Fuse broadcast the entire LFL USA 2015 season in high definition and in primetime - 18 regular season games, two conference playoff games and the Legends Cup championship game.

Early last month, the Oxygen network debuted a reality show that follows the lives of six players of the Chicago Bliss team. Called "Pretty. Strong," the show delves into the challenges the women must face trying to juggle their “day jobs” and their football pursuits with the two-time defending champions of the Legends Football League.

“Our recent television deal with NBC Universal and Relativity Television has drawn a correlation to Ultimate Fight Championship’s early-days television deal with Spike TV,” said Mortaza, “which ultimately launched that franchise into what is now a billion dollar company. Our projection for attendance growth is about 20 percent this season and overall nearly 60 percent higher within the next three seasons.” 

The LFL has drawn good television ratings in the U.S. up to now with MyNetwork TV and MTV Networks and internationally the league has been broadcast to nearly 195 television territories across major broadcast platforms such as ESPN International, Sky Sport, Ten Sports, WOWOW, Televisa, Sport TV, Setanta Sports, and others.

Other factors that have brought the unusual football league such attention include, of course, the spectacle of watching fit females wearing what amounts to a bikini with small shoulder pads added and a helmet that doesn’t obscure their faces.

“On the surface, it’s the marketing cachet of beautiful athletes,” acknowledged Mortaza. “However, the reason the sport has not only sustained itself without being subsidized like the WNBA is truly that these are amazing athletes who put a compelling product out on the field. People come to games simply curious, they leave as fans of the sport. They cannot believe the level at which these athletes play the sport as well as the incredibly atmosphere of LFL Football Night.”

LFL Primer
Teams have 14 players active on their roster at any one time, along with six inactive.
PLAYING FIELD
    50 YARD FIELD
    8 YARD END ZONES
    30 YARDS WIDE  
TIME OF PLAY
    (4) 10 MINUTE QUARTERS
    12 MINUTE HALFTIME
    8 MINUTE SUDDEN-DEATH OVERTIME
    (:35) THIRTY-FIVE SECOND PLAY CLOCK
    (2) TWO TIMEOUTS PER HALF
SCORING
    TOUCHDOWN = 6 PTS.
    CONVERSION RUN OR PASS (1 YARD LINE) = 1 PT.
    CONVERSION RUN OR PASS (3 YARD LINE) = 2 PTS.
    SAFETY = 2 PTS.   
GAME PLAY
    NO FIELD GOALS
    TEAMS CAN ELECT TO PUNT WHEN INSIDE THEIR 10 YARD LINE
OFFENSE
    7 PLAYERS ON THE FIELD
    1 QUARTERBACK
    2 RUNNING BACKS
    1 DOWN-LINEWOMAN
    3 WIDE RECEIVERS    
DEFENSE
    7 PLAYERS ON THE FIELD
    2 DOWN-LINEWOMEN
    1 LINEBACKER
    2 CORNERBACKS
    2 SAFETIES

Adapted from LFL website www.lflus.com/

Interviewed for this story: Mitchell Mortaza, (949) 481-5805; Bill Herman, (214) 387-5515; Sammy Wallace, (512) 600-5000

With the contract complete, Freedom Hill Amphitheatre in Sterling Heights, Mich., is set to open in the spring.

When the 2016 concert season kicks off at Freedom Hill Amphitheatre in Sterling Heights, Mich., sometime in early May, it will do so under the management and operation of a new cooperative agreement between Auburn Hills-based Palace Sports & Entertainment (PS&E) and Novi-based Luna Entertainment. The future, say both parties, is now.

“The contract is done and we’ll open in the spring,” said Dennis Mannion, president and CEO of PS&E. “We will hit it as hard as you possibly can from May through September.”

“We are excited about the relationship with Dennis and his team in running the day-to-day operations,” added Tom Celani who, in addition to founding Luna Entertainment in 2001, purchased the 7,200-seat venue in 2012.

The partnership just made sense for a number of reasons, according to Mannion.

“We had been in talks with Tom for a while because our smallest amphitheater, Meadow Brook, had a certain capacity, whereas at Tom’s facility he’s got a greater number of seats and more people on the lawn to take it up another 2,000 people,” Mannion said. “Then we looked at our big place, DTE Energy Music Theatre (15,000 seats), and we talked a lot about different acts and different genres and so forth. It started to make more sense that we could do this in combination with some of the bigger promoters doing a good job booking for them. We thought we could bring some operational efficiencies just because we are doing this in a couple of other places. We hit it off. Tom did not want to fully sell the venue and we weren’t looking to completely buy it, so we thought this was a great way to get to know each other.”

Live Nation will handle booking for the venue, a move that excites Celani.

“Palace already had a very good relationship with Live Nation, and now they will be doing 100- percent booking for our shows,” he said. “That to me will be a huge upgrade since Live Nation fits the outdoor amphitheater niche nationally.”

Freedom Hill has had an interesting past that included actually being closed at one point. The facility opened in a 120-acre county-owned park in Macomb County in 2000, only to be shut down in 2009 due to assorted budget issues and legal wrangling. Celani stepped in to acquire the facility in 2012 under the management of Luna Hillside, LLC. Interestingly, PS&E operated the venue in 2005 on a one-year agreement with a previous ownership.

“What we liked was that Luna put several million dollars into the facility and they redid the seats, concession areas and back-of-house,” Mannion said. “The facility itself is in great shape and we’re going right now with the early assumption that it sits very, very well for hard rock. We will get into that more deeply on how to best brand the facility and we’re also going to get into what kind of operational improvements, both aesthetically and operationally, we could do with the place to make it even better. But from what I’ve seen over the last two years they’ve made so many great improvements. It’s a tremendous place.”

It helps that native son and entrepreneur Celani made the investment in the venue. He believes that country will also play big at Freedom Hill due to the venue sitting in a “blue collar, UAW, automotive worker location.”

Celani was born and raised in Detroit and knows the city better than about anyone. He grew up in his family’s beer distributorship in downtown Detroit and became the president of Action Distributing Company at age 26 when his father unexpectedly passed away.

He later started Native American gaming in the United States and in 1996 funded and ran the state-wide voter referendum which led to casino gaming in Detroit. A Harley-Davidson enthusiast, he owns the state’s two biggest dealerships and produces Harley Fests at the venue. Celani also brought his love of Napa Valley wines (where he owns a vineyard) to the facility where guests can purchase those wines by the glass.

Another amenity is a 700-person indoor dining facility open to sponsors and season-ticketholders to enjoy before venturing to the theater. It is all part of the appeal that is already in place.

“There is a good energy just because they are in a different geography than where we are,” Mannion said in reference to his venues in Oakland County. “We thought we could extend our reach a little bit with the fans that we reach. Our team owner, Tom Gores, has been looking for ways to scale both the entertainment and the sports side of our business. This was a good way to get a toe in the water.”

Live Nation has started booking the venue although shows have not been announced yet. With routing having already started for 2016, Celani expects acts and dates to be announced soon. In the meantime, he can now focus on his strength while PS&E focuses on its in preparation for the upcoming season.

“I can take the operation and act side off my plate,” he said. “This agreement allows me to work on the relationships with sponsors. PS&E can do the day-to-day operations and Live Nation will do the acts.”

While PS&E leads everything from security to guest relations to parking to food and beverage, Mannion’s group also brings many sponsors along from its relationships with businesses in the southeastern part of the state. The venue’s existing contracts will be “enhanced,” according to Celani, as newer ones are added.

For now, the focus is on lining up a stout show calendar for 2016. Mannion acknowledged the importance of booking a calendar that is somewhat shortened due to Mother Nature in Michigan’s winter months.

“We may have a few snow flurries now and then,” he said, “but it works out. Snow equals whiskey, right?”

Interviewed for this article: Tom Celani, (248) 318-5187; Dennis Mannion, (248) 377-0120

Justin Bieber performs his record release show at Staples Center, Los Angeles, in the round.

Key players consider Justin Bieber’s five-performance record-release event somewhat unique to an artist with a huge and actionable fanbase but very repeatable, either in Bieber’s future shows or for another artist’s tour or album launch.

Scooter Braun, Bieber’s manager, and Dan Beckerman, AEG CEO, put together a brainstorming session in just one day to develop a live show format in just two weeks that drew 46,845 fans to three shows at Staples Center, Los Angeles, on Friday, Nov. 13. Bieber then took the show and concept for one show at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill., and one show at Toyota Center in Houston, before returning to Los Angeles for the American Music Awards.

Tickets averaged $20. Most fans coupled the ticket purchase with an album purchase.

The 2016 Justin Bieber Purpose World Tour and Album On-Sale broke all sorts of records due, first, to Bieber’s music and, second, to involving the fans in such a significant way, Braun said.

Fan events are not uncommon to the industry or Beiber, but this one was very different, Braun said. It involved a stage in the round, a Q&A session with Bieber answering fans from the audience, an acoustic set and showing of a short film produced to promote the album.

Production and travel costs were a break-even proposition, Braun said. “We were in a position where people were saying it would be a close race for number one (album),” Braun said of origins of the idea. “We knew we had made an amazing album. Weeks later, seeing how many songs have charted and Spotify iTunes records broken, we can stand by the music first and foremost.

“But we wanted to build as much attention around this album as possible so people gave the music an opportunity. “We put together the short film with music videos and worked the social media and put out the songs at key moments and did the proper radio interviews.

“But I said, ‘look, we need to do an activation where the fans feel involved. They get to see and touch him.’”

Braun thought about one of his favorite live shows, Frank Sinatra’s finale at Madison Square Garden in New York, produced by Jerry Weintraub. “It was a small center stage in the middle of the Garden and Frank turned the Garden into a theater. It was a celebration. He walked out like a boxer. I wanted to re-create that for the fans.”

That’s why Braun felt validated when, at the 9:30 show at Staples Center, Floyd Mayweather actually showed up and walked Bieber out, like a champion boxer.

The question was how to pull the live show off, so he called Beckerman to collaborate. “I’m grateful to Dan and AEG for not thinking I was crazy with three weeks to go,” Braun said.

That one phone call to “activate the AEG team,” as Beckerman put it, resulted in a three-hour brainstorming session that evening, (followed by Braun watching the Los Angeles Clippers game with Beckerman’s tickets), and a plan was hatched.

There were 25 people in a conference room from Team AEG meeting with Team Bieber, including reps from AEG Live, AXS Ticketing, AXS TV, AEG Facilities and AEG movie theaters, Beckerman recalled. “Scooter knows our company very well. He knows we have a lot of weapons in our arsenal.”

The funniest idea was to do a 24-hour telethon with Bieber’s friends and light the internet on fire, Braun said. “We had a good time. It’s about getting in a room and throwing ideas at each other and thinking outside the box and knowing I have an artist in Justin Bieber who trusts his team and doesn’t say, ‘no, it’s too much work.’ He is someone who looks at you and says, ‘I’m in, let’s go, let’s make it special.’ At 21 years old, he will have his sixth number one album and break every single record this week and then Adele will come and take them all back.”

The idea narrowed down when they discovered that, amazingly, Staples Center was available on a Friday in November, an unusual phenomenon. AXS Ticketing went about creating a platform to bundle ticket sales with album sales in a seamless way, working with UMG Records. “Our ticketing system is flexible and nimble,” Beckerman said of the Brian Perez-led firm.

AEG is deeply entrenched with Bieber as national tour promoter for all his tours, including the upcoming 70-plus date tour that kicks off  Dec. 6 in London. “People have release parties in clubs but, with Justin’s following, we knew we could fill Staples Center several times over,” Beckerman said. And he will again during the tour, playing Staples Center March 20, 21 and 23.

The additional venues were chosen because, as Braun put it, they could route to L.A. from New York, where Bieber did the Today Show, via Chicago and Chicago is always one of Bieber's loudest and wildest crowds. As to Houston, Toyota Center has “one of the best video facilities in the country for arenas, for our short video film. And if you’re going big, you have to go to Texas.”

Both Braun and Beckerman believe the arena-size launch party is repeatable. Braun even sees tour potential in elements of the show. Beckerman liked that it was very casual, loose and authentic. At one point Bieber was skateboarding on stage.

Staples Center sold out for the intimate, authentic "visit" with Justin Bieber.

From an arena perspective, an activation like this is even better than scoring rehearsal dates in exchange for a show date.

“These were some of my and Justin’s favorite shows," Braun said. “It let him be in the moment with people who have supported him, seeing him through the ups and downs. It was a celebration. At the 9:30 show, the audience asked him to sing and he  sang ‘I’ll Show You’ and he broke down crying and told them, ‘We’re in this together.’ The place just literally lost it. It was just a very powerful moment, the culmination of years of hard work, of who he wanted to be, how he wanted to change,” Braun said.

“More than anything I’m proud of Justin Bieber,” Braun added. “With all these activations and things we did, the reason the record did as well as it did and is the biggest debut of the year is because of the music he chose to make and the fact people are believing the music and rooting for him. It’s a testament to his craft and the man he’s choosing to be. It’s a team effort, but at the end of the day the person who deserves the credit is Justin himself.”

The questions were random, Braun said, citing one about his bucket list of places to go which he said was “Antarctica, is that weird, yes?” One woman said, if I’m dealing with depression, is there anything you can say to me? And he said yes, this is my advice because I’ve gone through it. “When it was done, we thought we should do this more,” Braun said.

“This will not be last time we do something like this. His connection with his fans is so unique that a show like this works. He enjoyed it. The fans enjoyed it. Reviews were incredible.”

Interviewed for this story: Dan Beckerman, (213) 742-7155; Scooter Braun, (310) 859-9060

Thomas Rhett collaborates with Fall Out Boy on the CMA Awards stage at Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, Tenn. (Photo Courtesy of the Country Music Association)

The 49th annual CMA Awards sold out Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, Tenn., on Nov. 4. With just under 10,000 in attendance, country music’s biggest night of the year grossed more than $2.1 million in ticket sales alone. The CMA-promoted event saw ticket prices range from $115 to $551. Fans and artists alike were treated to performances from country music’s top acts such as Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan, Kenny Chesney, Florida Georgia Line and Carrie Underwood.

Amy Schumer played to a packed house at Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, Conn., at the in-house and APA-promoted night, Nov. 5. With ticket prices ranging from $33 to $85, Schumer grossed more than $520,000 with nearly 7,000 fans in attendance. Schumer continues on to BMO Harris Bradley Center for fans in Milwaukee on Dec. 4. With seven scheduled stops this year before wrapping up her tour Dec. 31 in Seattle at the KeyArena.

HOT TICKETS is a weekly summary of the top acts and ticket sales as reported to VT PULSE. Following are the top 20 concerts and events, the top 5 in each seating capacity category, which took place between Nov. 4-Dec. 2.

After 10 years at Coliseo de Puerto Rico, Wesley Cullen announced she has retired from her role as general manager to join the founding team of a local startup called Spotery. SMG is determining the plan going forward and will communicate it soon.

“It’s a little cliché, but I’m going to be 40 in April,” Cullen explained, “and these are the types of things that as we get older we become more risk adverse and I was like if I don’t do it now, the chances of me ever doing it will get smaller and smaller. So I’m going for it now.”

Though she said she could have happily retired from the Coliseo, Cullen was ready for new challenges that she couldn’t necessarily find in her current field.

“I love it, but you have to do new things in life sometimes,” said Cullen. “I’ve heard it expressed from different people that when you’re working at a venue it’s very hands-on and great work being involved in making something happen, and once you’re a general manager, to continue to grow the positions becomes much more corporate. That’s not necessarily as appealing. I was very clear that wasn’t what I wanted, because it would be removing me too much from the action. So in terms of having new challenges, I didn’t see it happening necessarily in this career.”

Still in its beta stage, Spotery will be launching from Puerto Rico before expanding to the U.S. in February and then on to Latin America. Spotery is a digital platform to discover and book daily activity spaces. It will enable people to access and reserve spaces like a local soccer field or basketball court to play with your friends or browse and book a place to hold a seminar, birthday party, off-site or other kind of get-together. Spotery is a marketplace for municipal, university and commercial spots available to the public. You’ll be able to book the spot and pay for it on the platform, as well as get your insurance if the spot requires it. Soon it will also include access to all of the services that your activity may need.

“I love bringing people together,” said Cullen, “and as our lives become more digital I’ve noticed that people talked a lot about that hurting ticket sales, but in fact I think that’s made ticket sales stronger because the live experience matters so much more. We need live things with people to post on our social media. So to do something where I can work with digital without leaving aside bringing people together was appealing.”

Some of the biggest lessons Cullen said she’s learned during her time at Coliseo de Puerto Rico are you can do things people think you can’t, and you don’t have to be like everyone else.

“You don’t need to look and act like everybody else that does what you want to do in order to be successful,” said Cullen. “I certainly don’t, and it’s worked out. That’s part of the beauty of living in this day and age, because you used to need to. You don’t need to anymore, but it can still be a little intimidating. This is a business about passion, and to express your passion you have to be authentically who you are. If you can be yourself and are passionate and hard working, you’re going to be more effective and successful.”

And even though Cullen is saying goodbye to her position at the Coliseo, she won’t be gone forever. In fact, it’ll only be a few days, as she’ll be in attendance at an event there this Saturday.

“It’s going to be really weird, but it also makes the transition a little easier,” said Cullen. “I’m really curious to see what it’s like actually. It’s impossible to go to a show in your own venue. And now I’ll still know everybody, but I’ll come in through the front and all of that and I think it’s going to be fun. It’s an amazing place to visit, so I want to have that experience.”

Interviewed for this story: Wesley Cullen, (787) 223-1467

Errol McKoy, front and center holding award, former manager of the State Fair of Texas, Dallas, joins fellow IAFE Hall of Famers, from left, Jerry Iverson, formerly with the North Dakota State Fair, Minot; Marla Calico and Jim Tucker, IAFE; Mike Heffron, Mid-West Fairs Association and Minnesota State Fair; Darwin Fuchs, Dade County Fair, Miami; Jerry Hammer, Minnesoita State Fair, and Greg Stewart, Central Washington State Fair, Yakima, in the IAFE Hall of Fame. (VT Photo)

REPORTING FROM LAS VEGAS — As he starts his fourth career, developing and designing amusement rides, Errol McKoy adds a new trophy to his list – International Association of Fairs & Expositions 2015 Hall of Fame recipient. McKoy was inducted into the IAFE Hall of Fame during the association’s Nov. 29-Dec. 2 convention here.

On the last day of the conference, which will be held again in Las Vegas for one more year on Nov. 27-30, 2016, before moving to San Antonio in 2017, Kent Hojem was installed as the new chairman of the association. Hojem manages the Washington State Fair, Puyallup, and had been first vice chair.

A big change going forward for IAFE is the selection of Marla Calico as IAFE president and CEO. She will succeed Jim Tucker Jan.1 when he retires. Outgoing IAFE Chairman John Sykes, East Texas State Fair, Tyler, presented Tucker with several head of cattle from IAFE — something to do in retirement.

This year’s gathering drew almost 1,700 delegates, 1,104 exhibitors and 78 staff, for an attendance of nearly 3,000.

Sykes kicked off the opening general session arriving on stage with an urn, telling the tale of a most unusual event at this year’s fair — its first funeral. A setup for The Learning Channel, Sykes showed a video of the request to bring a relative’s ashes to the fair to ride the carnival rides, something he had not been able to do during his lifetime of disabilities. What was a family request for a day at the fair turned into a complete TV crew and a segment for a three-funeral show of greatest funerals ever on TLC. Due to rain, the deceased didn’t get to ride the rides and it took three weeks to find another fair that would allow the funeral to proceed.

“We’re fair people. We get it,” Syke said of the whole experience. “Our job is more than trip and fall and vendor complaints. It’s always something strange and different. It’s a wonderful career.”

The theme for this convention, Sykes last as chairman, was “have all the fun you want, we’ll make more.” Fairs serve the entire community and fairs are fun. “After Paris, be aware, but never lose our core fun factor,” Sykes advised, referring to terrorist attacks at sports and entertainment venues in France last month.

Tucker was honored for his 15 years of service, including the gifting of a herd of cattle for his farm. Tucker, in turn, honored Max Willis, who started with IAFE Nov. 21, 1980, and is also retiring at the end of the year. He took over convention planning the year a fire at the MGM Casino and Resort killed 87 people the week before the IAFE convention was slated to move in. Willis has reminded the IAFE staff ever since that “we can do anything.”

“He’s a detail person,” Tucker said.

McKoy accepted the Hall of Fame Award, noted as a visionary, innovative leader, after a similar several decades of service. McKoy started in the sports and entertainment business on the amusement park side. He was named general manager of Six Flags Over Georgia, Atlanta, at the age of 26.

Among his accomplishments was introduction of the famed roller coaster, Great American Scream Machine. In 1979, he moved to Six Flags over Texas, Arlington, before being lured into the fair business to helm the State Fair of Texas, Dallas, as president in 1988. Retiring from that post in 2014, McKoy is now using his 54 years of experience to design and produce new rides.

Other awards included the State and Provincial Association of Fairs Executive of the Year award, which went to Nancy Pitz, Rocky Mountain Association of Fairs. Chelsey Jungck, entertainment director of the Nebraska State Fair, Grand Island, won the Rising Star Award.

Heritage Awards went to Dan Grenhood, Polk County Fair, Fertile, Minn.; Clark Converse, Pascoe County Fair, Dade City, Fla.; R. Harry Booth, Washington County Fair; Jana Kruger, Nebraska State Fair, Grand Island; and Dale Christiansen, Lincoln County Fair, Merrill, Wis.

It's time to vote for the 2016 Box Office Stars. We will be honoring this year's outstanding ticketing professionals during the INTIX convention in Anaheim, Calif. January 20-22, 2016. Vote now to make your voice heard.

These individuals have been nominated for their newsworthy achievement or outstanding service in their own ticket office or in the ticketing industry at large.

We will showcase the winners in the January issue of Venues Today.

The voting deadline is Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2015.

If you are a SUBSCRIBER, you may vote by choosing one of these options:

1) Login and vote online by clicking here
2) E-mail choices - select three individuals to vote@venuestoday.com
3) Fax selections (include your name and affiliation) to (714) 378-0040. If you don't include your name and affiliation, your vote will not be tallied.

If you are an INTIX MEMBER (non-subscriber), you may vote by choosing one of these options:
1) E-mail choices - select three individuals to vote@venuestoday.com
2)  Fax selections (include your name and affiliation) to (714) 378-0040. If you don't include your name and affiliation, your vote will not be tallied.

*Double entries will not be valid

********************************************************************************************************

NOMINEES – 2016 VENUES TODAY BOX OFFICE STARS

Deb Aleff, director of Ticketing, Duluth (Minn.) Entertainment Convention Center & Amsoil Arena
For teaming up with state legislators on supporting new laws created to help protect consumers. These fan first laws aim to stop fraudulent ticketing and scalpers.  Some of Aleff’s most impactful accomplishments range from building a secondary box office in Amsoil Arena to running the social media campaign on Facebook. She created a new box office, built the seating manifests, set up electronic reader boards, and new ticket scanning systems. Her ticketing team and their clients have a more positive experience because of the designs that she’s implemented. Aleff is also the contact person for all the community donation requests, working tirelessly to support each worthy cause and even tries to attend and donate personally to many of them. In her 14 years with the convention center she has taken on many challenges.  Yet, in her office is a sign that says, “It’s all good!”

Liz Baqir, Box Office Manager, UC Berkeley (Calif.)
For rocking the GDTS-tickets-by-mail craziness of this summer's Fare Thee Well shows. Mirsky really goes above and beyond regarding her job and makes it appear seamless. She not only works in a box office, but is also very much the fan. Perhaps that's why she is so helpful in regards to getting people what they want. She knows firsthand how important the music is to them, and remembers names.

Kevin “Casey” Both, manager, Ticket Operations, Pittsburgh Pirates Baseball Club
For stepping in and essentially took on the duties of ticket operations director, in addition to his other responsibilities, when the former director left in May 2015. Both was the assistant and already in charge of a staff of four fulltime, nine ticket office assistant part-time staff and a pool of 70+ game day ticket window staff. Both did both jobs with intentness, reliability and dedication. With an 81 game home schedule that drew 2.5 million fans and even working weekends, while the team was on the road, Both managed to always meet deadlines requested of him by Major League Baseball Advanced Media, Tickets.com, executive and senior management and other colleagues throughout the building, in addition to customers. Both was named to represent the club as Ticket Coordinator, meaning to be in charge of all the ticketing set-up and execution for the 2015 Major League Baseball playoff games. The attention to detail was daunting and Both carried out the tasks in an extraordinary way. The MLB Wild Card game hosted in Pittsburgh’s PNC Park was the highest recorded paid attendance of any previously played regular or postseason game in the ballpark’s history at 40,889. 

Eric Cardona, Box Office Manager, Long Center for the Performing Arts, Austin, Texas.
For seamlessly taking on the job of dynamic pricing and increasing both revenue and, consequently, demand for Long Center productions. Using both expected and current demand, Cardona makes triggered or random price increases in popular areas of the house, resulting in higher revenue, both as demand grows and as last-minute buyers purchase tickets. He consistently works with internal booking agents and system administrators to appropriately scale the house into smaller sections, so popular areas can easily be increased without having to touch dead areas. Using percentage triggers starting at 60 percent capacity (or less depending on expected demand), Cardona monitors expected demand using sales data from presales, on-sales and season ticketholder interest to successfully dynamically price. He also seamlessly incorporates sales data coupled with the marketing department’s strategy around a production. Price increases typically start at $5 and can be larger depending on current demand. Cardona’s efforts have resulted in over $64,000 in incremental revenue in less than 10 months.

Monica Charset, Box Office Manager, CN Centre, Prince George, B.C.
For an incredible box office year, starting off with a smash with Cirque du Soleil’s “Dralion.” The eight-show run—an additional show was added to accommodate demand—was an incredible success, with 25,000 people seeing the shows. These numbers correlate to one out of every three people in the city. Charset then moved on to managing ticketing for the 2015 Canada Winter Games.  Held over two weeks in late February, this event was the largest sport and cultural event ever held in Northern British Columbia. Over 25,000 tickets were sold across the country, with complex ticketing challenges to accommodate all the different facilities and ticketing schemes. Following that, Charset managed the ticketing for the inaugural Northern Fan Con, a three-day multi-activity event that used four-arenas. It was a complex event that had the extra challenges of managing a new client. In September, Charset oversaw the ticketing for the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks 2015 Training Camp. This was the first time the Canucks had hosted a training camp in Northern British Columbia.  On top of these high-profile special events, she is also responsible for the Western Hockey League’s Prince George Cougars ticketing. Besides all this, Charset managed the ticketing events in the Prince George Civic Centre and Vanier Hall on top of all CN Centre’s events. And she did all of this with only one other full-time staff member.

Susan Catanzaro, director of Ticketing and Guest Services/SMG, Dunkin’ Donuts Center & Rhode Island Convention Center, Providence
For spearheading efforts to create a box office which is more efficient and becoming a pioneer in utilizing cutting edge technology that has in turn brought industrywide recognition to the Dunkin’ Donuts Center. This past November, Rhode Island Comic Con returned to Providence for the fourth year in a row. The event is known for being one of the largest in the state, hosting over 30,000 attendees over three days in the Rhode Island Convention Center and Dunkin’ Donuts Center. Catanzaro and her team transitioned the ordinary Ticketmaster ticket into a collectable, hologram badge that can be scanned upon entry. The effort to change a standard ticket into the collectable badge made the experience effortless for both the venue and guests. This badge system allowed easy access in and out of the venue while tracking the total number of attendees at any given time. This system was critical to monitoring capacity and to keep the flow of traffic moving efficiently. This also became a valuable tool for the State Fire Marshall, who was able to monitor the event and patrons at all times. Catanzaro and her team worked diligently with Ticketmaster to create a badge system and map out access points throughout the venues to execute this program. She was also very instrumental in working with the promoter on this one of a kind design for the collectable badges.

Patrick Doherty, director of Ticketing, SAP Center, San Jose, Calif.
For taking his number crunching skills from his previous work in the parking department and immediately transferring them to his new position. Doherty has implemented systems to provide first-class service to all the promoters, the teams and users of the facility. He has embraced technology and uses it to its full potential. As the director, he has created an environment that allows for the smooth operation of the ticket office even when he is not available. Doherty handles between 150 to 180 events per year including U.S Olympic Trials, NCAA Tournaments, World Figure Skating Championship, concerts, family events and various sporting events.

Debbie Eidson, director of Ticketing Relations, Morrison Center for the Performing Arts, Boise, Idaho
For building relationships with local art organizations and promoters countrywide to bring world class entertainment to the Treasure Valley, helping to make the Morrison Center the #1 university presenter for its size. Eidson leads the Morrison Center Outreach/Donation Program, which donates tickets to local nonprofit organizations and maintains relationships with special groups such as Mountain Home Air Force Base, Girl Scouts of America, and the Women's and Children's Alliance. In April of 2015, Boise State University and the Morrison Center partnered with Ticketmaster to introduce a new ticket system for the university. Working as a liaison between vendor and venue, Eidson, with her more than 20 years ticketing experience, spearheaded and managed the Ticketmaster implementation process. She is a leader in the community who works to ensure quality arts and entertainment in Boise continue to exceed standards and reach every member of the community.

Sergio Fresco, assistant director of Client Services, Verizon Center/ Monumental Sports & Entertainment, Washington, D.C.
For handling all aspects of ticketing the 2015 Iglesia Ni Cristo’s celebration of completing their 100th year. The event was done in conjunction with an event in the Philippines and people travelled from all over the U.S. to celebrate and be part of this momentous event. The event posed some interesting challenges. Although the INC group has done events in the past, they by no means are a traditional promoter. Therefore, their event had numerous challenges for the box office and the entire event. Since the event was a private event, the tickets were not on the traditional Ticketmaster system for Verizon Center. Patrons could register through INC’s website and then have a print at home ticket option. All of the barcodes that were assigned to the print at home tickets were sent to Verizon Center the day before the event to be uploaded into its TM system to be able to use the venue scanners. In addition to different ticketing, Fresco also had to work with the organization to organize seating for their 1,500-person choir as well as their VIP seating areas. Fresco created a separate event that would coincide with their barcodes so that the venue could print tickets for walk up and/or people who forgot their tickets at home. To upload the barcodes it wasn’t possible to stay in real time, so any changes that were made needed to have a solution on the fly at the box office. The event from a ticketing standpoint went off without a hitch with 10,000 plus people attending and entering the building within the first hour of doors opening and truly no ticketing issues.

Maggie Gendernalik, Box Office Marketing Manager, KSU Sports + Entertainment Park, Kennesaw, Ga.
For handling both ticketing and marketing for everything from a multiday, multistage music festival to the Southeast's largest Hot Air Balloon festival to an inaugural football season to a major league lacrosse championship. Gendernalik controls all of this with a student-run organization, Night Owl Productions. Managing a student run organization for a company laser focused on the guest experience requires the ability to quickly identify those star students who can help her lead and rally an ever-changing team. Gendernalik’s work ethos is the only reason this is accomplished and why she is so well regarded in her position. For large events, in addition to ticket sales, she oversees sales of seven external parking lots, which run through the ticketing system for pre-paying and scanning upon arrival, as well as 22 shuttles bringing people to the venue. Owl-O-Ween, the largest hot air balloon festival in the Southeast saw over 40,000 people in attendance for the 2-day event. After a huge logistics issue caused by Groupon on the first day, day two was spent containing a PR issue in addition to set-up.

Matt Heinks, Box Office Manager/SMG, Fresno (Calif.) Convention & Entertainment Center
For stepping up and stepping in in September when the Save Mart Center, another SMG venue across town, lost their Box Office manager right before a big week of shows that included Shania Twain and Ariana Grande. Heinks volunteered to step in and helped manage their box office, as well as the convention center’s, to get them through the busy week.

Sue Janoske, assistant box office manager, SMG Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza, Wilkes-Barre, Pa.
For securing premium gifts for club seat and suite holders and distributing season ticket packets to nearly 150 premium accounts and over 50 sponsor accounts.  Through 10 months of 2015, Mohegan Sun Arena has hosted one quarter of a million people through the door and has over $5 million in ticket sales. This summer, Janoske became the arena’s file archivist, a project covering the 16-year history of the building. All historical records will be kept on property and can be easily accessed—an undertaking thought to be nearly impossible but handled with ease and for the betterment of the venue. Janoske continues to work with every promoter including Live Nation, AEG, WWE, Feld Entertainment and many more that included record-breaking rankings for the venue in the industry in 2015.

Steven Jette, Box Office Manager, Pensacola (Fla.) Bay Center
For going  the extra mile to make sure promoters, clients, and patrons needs are met whether that means staying until the wee hours of the night to make last minute changes to an event, meeting the high level demands for consignment tickets and VIP tables for Island Fights, building 28 home games for the SPHL Ice Flyers, keeping the box office open and working during all public skating events, or pleasing an unhappy customer. He delivers exceptional service in a way that made all the difference in the outcome of each event and the patrons ticketing experience. Jette’s ability to bring the highest level of service in representing SMG and the venue was showcased by his efforts from scaling and setting up ticketed events to managing a customer friendly box office.

Clayton Letain, manager, Ticket Centre & Client Service, Canucks Sports & Entertainment, Rogers Arena, Vancouver, B.C.
For stepping up and finding an equitable solution in August of 2015 when a Bon Jovi concert scheduled in Vancouver at Stanley Park was canceled, then subsequently rescheduled to take place at Rogers Arena. With just two short days to plan and organize, Letain and his team went to work overlaying an outdoor general admission show by section to Rogers Arena. In addition, he had to upload another company's ticketing platform and test and implement new barcodes into Rogers Arena scanners. On the day of the concert, computer terminals were set up at each entry gate in order to quickly resolve any issues. The show was a huge success and fans as well as the artists were extremely happy with the outcome. Another example of how the Ticket Centre operates with extreme poise would be their ability to accommodate fans who have accessibility needs. Every time a fan comes with a general ticket but is in need of accessibility seating, the Ticket Centre works tirelessly to ensure that they find a solution for the fan. With Letain’s leadership and the Ticket Centre’s attitude, they truly help make a difference for the overall fan experience.

Andrea Macy, associate director of Promotions and Audience Development, Distinguished Concerts International New York
For enthusiasm, spirit and creativity which pushes the envelope when it comes to what could be a stodgy, by-the-book job of managing a classical music series box office. Her out-of-the-box ideas create fun and energy at DCINY concerts. In January, DCINY celebrated well-known composer Karl Jenkins’ 70th birthday. As a special surprise, Macy came up with the idea of a giant birthday card that was signed by all performers (well over 350) and presented to him with much fanfare on stage at Carnegie Hall during the performance. In another case, issues with late seating arose due to severe train problems in NYC, and a large portion of the audience was delayed in arriving at the hall on time and missed the beginning of the performance. Due to a sold-out status and artistic requests, latecomers had to be rerouted to top tier seats so as not to disturb the performance. There were disgruntled audience members who at intermission created quite a stir with ushers complaining and asking for management’s intervention. Macy gracefully stepped in to appease the crowd and individually addressed concerns, offered solutions and turned some of the loudest complainers into loyal supporters of its series. 

Marty Maloney, director of Ticket Operations, Buffalo (N.Y.) Sabres/First Niagara Center
For hosting six record-setting sold-out Garth Brooks performances as well as other blockbuster events including the Eagles, Paul McCartney, Fleetwood Mac, Neil Diamond, Eric Church, Rush, Motley Crue, Imagine Dragons, NKOTB and Stevie Wonder.

Ruth Mason, Box Office Manager, Monterey (Calif.) Jazz Festival
For implementing a new ticketing system at Monterey Jazz Festival, one of the longest running jazz festivals in the country. Since being at the festival she has not only learned the new ticketing platform, but also helped to educate her patrons on the system and its features. Mason prides herself on making sure the fans of the Monterey Jazz Festival have a first class experience. No problem is too small for her to deal with and she handles everything that is thrown at her with a smile on her face and an infectious positive attitude. When decisions about new policies or procedures are being discussed Mason’s consideration of how it will affect the patron and their experience is always her top priority. She thinks of innovative ideas to improve the fan experience and is pleased to hear from patrons every year, and motivates her peers to have the same level of professionalism and customer service focus that she does.

Kelley MontsDeOca, director of Ticketing, Durham (N.C.) Performing Arts Center
For overseeing all elements of box office including sales, builds and the in-house call center and related staff. As the second busiest theater by annual ticket sales in the United States, overseeing over 450,000 sales a year is a massive job and she pulls it off with grace and extreme competence.

Jim Sachs, director of Ticketing, Select-A-Seat / Intrust Bank Arena, Wichita, Kan.
For handling the ‘Before Garth’ and ‘After Garth’ two-month marathon with professionalism and humor. During the time before the announcement of Garth Brooks’ shows at Intrust Bank Arena, there was much to do. Sachs led the team that worked with Tickets.com to ensure a successful on-sale by training new phone operators, writing new message scripts based on show information and increasing website capability to handle the higher volume of traffic. He oversaw the long awaited rollout of digital ticketing, a more responsive tickets@home delivery method, an enhanced tickets@phone delivery method that utilizes Apple passbook/wallet, and My Select-A-Seat. Sachs assisted the ECHL hockey tenant with getting season tickets out after the team’s ticketing director left a month before the season began, working through two sold-out concerts and leading the box office team through a successful on-sale to sell out the Wichita State vs. Utah Men’s basketball game. Then Garth was announced and in the nine days between announcement and on-sale he led the team through the opening of the hockey season, a Shinedown/Breaking Benjamin concert and a successful Fall Out Boy on-sale. The day of the Garth on-sale he orchestrated the selling of 65,000 ticket in less than an hour for what would become six Garth Brooks shows, which would completely sell out in under 72 hours.

Chelsea Weiss, Box Office Manager, The Liacouras Center
For tackling her promotion as Box Office Manager with great energy, even as she became a one-person department. She singlehandedly runs the box office for over 100 events a year, including all events at the Liacouras Center, Temple Performing Arts Center and Temple University Boyer School of Dance, in addition to selling suites. She continues to incorporate new technology into the Liacouras Center ticketing and is always willing to help other departments when she can. Weiss is innovative, hard-working and talented.

David Chandler Winn, associate director of Tanglewood ticketing and Tessitura Liaison, Boston Symphony Orchestra
For taking on a newly-created position with The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) specifically designed to utilize Winn’s skills, deepening BSO’s relationship with its vendors and better engaging with its audiences. Winn and his staff are an integral part of making the BSO run smoothly for their two locations across the state. His enthusiasm for learning and connecting with others in the industry has been off the charts this year and the BSO is now more invested than ever in professional development and conference attendance. Winn has worked many decades in ticketing, from arts to sports to vendors, and he’s a great role model and advocate for life-long learning.

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Seminole Theatre reopens after decades of dormancy. 

Pinnacle Venue Services has signed a five-year agreement with the City of Homestead, Fla., to manage the historic and newly-renovated Seminole Theatre.

“This is our first foray into the full facility management,” said Doug Higgons, managing partner of Pinnacle. “Through the process we really got into the community and tried to understand what their vision was for the facility. It’s a balance of being a true community performing arts theater and also a spot for touring artists to come and play in south Florida. Really the goal as we reactivate the theater is to activate downtown Homestead and once again bring life to this great town.”

Pinnacle, which was co-founded by Higgons in November 2014, won the contract through a competitive RFP bid process in the spring, being chosen by a selection committee and then confirmed by city council.

“We liked that the principals have years of experience with much larger organizations,” said Stephen Scott, director of the Community Redevelopment Agency for the City of Homestead and a member of the selection committee that chose Pinnacle. “We’re getting them as a young, new company trying to make its name in the community, but we’re getting the benefit of years of experience behind that. We thought it was a good marriage for a struggling brand new theater trying to establish itself.”

A large part of the process for Pinnacle was, and still is, community involvement and feedback. Likewise, the feedback Scott said he has received from leaders in the community about Pinnacle has been very positive.

“It’s truly a community-supported venture to get it where it is,” said Higgons. “As a company, we’re excited to work with the city to make it come alive.”

Pinnacle will be in charge of all management and operational services for the 500-seat theater, while being supported by Anchor Arts Management out of Miami Beach, Fla., in programming. And after a nationwide search, Pinnacle named Mickey McGuire as the new executive director.

“Mickey was the right fit and the right balance of energy and experience and just brought a real understanding of the arts on a national level to Homestead,” said Higgons. “It’s really going to be a great fit with the community.”

Built in 1921 as a movie theater, Seminole Theatre closed in 1979 after undergoing financial stress and sustaining large amounts of damage when Homestead was devastated by Hurricane Andrew in 1991. The renovation and reopening process was a long and hard one led by devoted community groups. In May 2014, 64 percent of Homestead voters voted in favor of a $5 million bond referendum to renovate the historic theater as a cultural center, which was followed by the awarding of two state grants that totaled $550,000.

“It was the center of life in Homestead and the downtown area,” said Scott. “Now we’re hoping it’s going to be the catalyst for the revitalization of our downtown area.”

The official opening gala will take place on Dec. 12 with the theater’s first show, A Night on Broadway, which has completely sold out. That night the theater’s first pass season, called the Seminole Theatre Showcase Series, will be also be announced.

“Homestead is a very tight-knit community, and the residents have been waiting a long time for this,” said Scott. “There was something very symbolic about the theater being shuttered, and I think there’s something very symbolic about it opening up again. Especially for the longtime residents who have been excited to have the doors back open. We’re still working on small items and trying to get it completely ready, but we’re opening Saturday night. Nothing is going to stand in the way of that.”

Going forward, Pinnacle is working on a partnership with a Miami Dade College campus just down the street from the theater. The 10,000-student college is the only Miami Dade College campus without a theater, so the opportunity for the school to use the facility for educational and performance purposes is an obvious one. Beyond that, Pinnacle is also working towards programming in its own right as Higgons said they are already busy with bookings and events.

“This is the most exciting time and the most difficult time,” said Scott. “We have all kinds of visions. It’s going to be really fun, but it’s going to be a challenge because Homestead is such a unique community. We are so diverse, so there are a lot of opportunities for different types of theater and performance and an audience for a variety of things. Programming can be extremely varied and extremely diverse and that serves the community.”

Interviewed for this story: Doug Higgons, (757) 323-9380; Stephen Scott, (305) 224-4435

A rendering of the new conference center at Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Ind. 

After some seven years in the planning, Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Ind., unveils its new 50,000-sq.-ft. Conference Center with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and open house on Dec. 18.

“The space turned out even better than what we had expected,” said Randy Brown, executive vice president and general manager of the venue. “You have a vision and your mind’s eye of what you think it will be. When you can exceed your own expectations, there’s a wow factor. I mean, we have rented nearly 300 days sight unseen.”

Brown said that the actual construction phase for the project was just over a year and in the words that make every venue professional happy was “ahead of schedule and under budget.” The additional square footage puts the overall complex at more than one million square feet under roof, making it the second largest public assembly facility in Indiana, just behind Lucas Oil Stadium and the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis.

“Technology in this space is second to none,” Brown said. “Some things you might anticipate are drop-down video projectors and drop-down screens so we can put up images of speakers and PowerPoint presentations. It’s the technology related to that. The days of a camera operator standing in the back of the room are gone. Everything is automated with hand-held zoom cameras. An operator sitting in a control room is now operating remotely or multiple cameras remotely.”

Brown also touted the conference center’s LED lighting and an HVAC heating and cooling system powered by Trane called the recovery wheel whereby a wheel pulls the heat and humidity out of the air to be reused and reduce the demand on utilities.

“One of the things I’m most proud of is we built a tasting kitchen,” he said. “This is a space so that our chef and our catering sales manager can meet one on one with a client and talk about a menu. As the chef works with the client going over different entrée options and a menu has been agreed upon, that menu is photographed on a plate and ultimately becomes the standard for the service the night of the event.”

The overall multipurpose event space is 27,169 sq. ft. and is sub-divisible into five smaller spaces. It is contiguous with the venue’s existing expo space and takes the exhibit space to more than 200,000 sq. ft.. The lobby and pre-function space includes 18,000 sq. ft. and is highlighted with lots of glass and a south end building view of Appleseed Park, home to the gravesite for Johnny Appleseed.

Brown said that the hard construction cost for the project was approximately $16 million with another $2-$3 million for FF&E costs. Funding came from earned tax revenues collected within the Professional Sports & Convention Development Area.

The new conference center will be enable the venue to retain clients who have been needing more meeting and exhibit space while at the same time allowing the pursuit of new business. As for the new, state-of-the-art conference center being part of a 60-year-old coliseum, well, looks can be deceiving, according to Brown.

“We’re a 60-year-old building, but like I’ve said there’s not a lot of 60-year-old left,” Brown said. “We’ve been able to maintain the complex as state-of-the-art. The arena is actually 64, but Sports Business Journal does a minor league sports ranking every other year and we were most recently No. 9 and we’ve been No. 1 before and currently No. 3 as far as the 214 minor league sports markets. They said about our arena that with all the improvements we’ve made in blowing the walls out, adding food courts this summer and renovated team rooms and LED lighting that we are the most sophisticated of all the minor league venues.”

The Winter Bridal Spectacular will be held on Jan. 2 as the first event at the new conference center. Prior to that the ribbon-cutting and open house take place on Dec. 18. A jazz combo will play and an open house will give guests an opportunity to see the tasting kitchen and more. The executive chef for Aramark at the venue is Marvin Mosley, and he and Brown will build the momentum for the open house earlier that same morning when they appear on a local television show in a friendly cook-off competition.

“I’m a foodie anyway, but it’s like, ok,” Brown said as he prepares to go against someone he calls “exceptional” and has won a number of major competitions. “We haven’t worked out the details yet, but we’ll showcase the tasting kitchen. That will build more excitement for the ribbon-cutting. “

Not only will 2016 be a busy year for the new conference center, but things start with a bang in January with 24 of the 31 days booked, not counting move in and move out.

“We have everything from the likes of the bridal show to a farm show to a major wrestling event that will have wrestling mats in the space to a volleyball tournament taking the whole expo and also using the conference center,” Brown said. “We’ve designed this truly as multiuse space.”

But a space is not truly multiuse until it hosts the National Alpaca Show, an event that was held at the coliseum years ago and appears to not only be returning in 2016 but beyond that.

“With just the amount of exhibit space we have plus the technology of the conference center they’re not only talking to us about the event in 2016 but they would like to have a regular ongoing relationship with us,” Brown said.

Technically, an alpaca is a domesticated species of South American Camelid with two breeds called the Suri and the Huacaya.

“It’s like a llama, but it’s an alpaca,” Brown said in layman terms. “They are wonderful with soft fur and just gorgeous animals, but their urine is so strong that after two or three days the smell of the building is just … ok, I’ve had enough. It’s like, no alpacas on the new floor, only on the expo side which is a concrete floor.”

Yes, business is about to pick up.

Interviewed for this story: Randy Brown, (260) 482-9502

Vendini acquired CrowdTorch from Cvent, which bought the company in 2013.

It looks as though the ticketing mergers and acquisition will continue into the new year as Vendini announced they have acquired CrowdTorch, a consumer ticket solution and live event platform previously owned by Cvent. This acquisition marks the third for Vendini, along with the acquisition of In Ticketing in 2014 and Data Flow Enterprises in 2012. The transaction amount was not disclosed.

“This really came about with us just having conversations with Cvent and the CrowdTorch people,” said Keith Goldberg, Vendini CRO. “Cvent basically told us they were looking to focus on their core business and asked us if we would be interested in acquiring the CrowdTorch platform and the company and the people. We’re really excited about it. We see a lot of synergies between the two companies and really love the fact that CrowdTorch is really focused on that live music, EDM, comedy space and has the consumer portals.”

The CrowdTorch ticketing platform will remain intact and will continue to operate and be supported under the Vendini umbrella. The engineering and support teams will also become Vendini employees to help develop the next generation live event solution.

“From a high level, it’s just really exciting for us to be merged with a ticketing company and share a common language and common DNA and common goals and understand what we’re trying to do together to grow the business and grow the market share for ourselves,” said Mark Meyerson, head of Client Success at CrowdTorch. “It’s hard to express how exciting that part is.”

What’s also exciting from Vendini’s side is the chance to expand further into the live music and comedy space. 

“We look at it as a great way to get in depth in that area,” said Goldberg. “When we did the In Ticketing deal a year and a half ago, that was our first foray into live music, and this just really solidifies our market position in that area.”

With Vendini’s larger infrastructure and resources available to them, Meyerson said they look forward to the opportunities they will now be able to pursue that they couldn't have before. 

“We’ve been building and developing our product and building and developing our features and functionality, but Vendini’s been around for twice as long as we have,” said Meyerson. “They have different feature sets and different functionality. We have great contacts in the industry, but we’ve passed on some big events that have needed reserved seating. Our reserved seating functionality is built for small clubs and theaters. Vendini’s functionality can handle an 80,000-seat stadium. So now we have the ability to use our contacts and go out and serve the market for all their needs and not pass on a whole chunk of business.”

Goldberg estimated the back end company integration should be fully completed within 90 days, but from the consumer point of view, the process should be seamless and invisible.

“The message that we’ve been getting out to our client base that we want them to know is our intense focus is to ease the transition for the clients and make tomorrow just like today only a little bit better,” said Meyerson. “From the client’s point of view, they’re not going to feel a bump in the road.”

Cvent has also been instrumental in the transition as CrowdTorch pulls apart from parts of the company they relied on and transfers into the Vendini infrastructure. 

“We love that fact that there really are these great synergies,” said Goldberg, “and now we can go after customers and really talk to them about this wider functionality, wider feature set. Today it’s really around the option of the platform that makes the most sense. Tomorrow it’s really bringing those platforms together.”

As the companies grow together, they’ll continue to examine their feature sets and over time eventually combine the best of the two as a single product.

“We like to win, and so together we’re going to win,” said Meyerson. “It may take a little time, but I’m just excited to get out on the field and play hard.”

Interviewed for this story: Keith Goldberg and Mark Meyerson, (415) 693-9463 x714

Tampa Bay Sports and Entertainment (TBSE) has hired Kevin Preast as senior vice president of Event Management. Preast returns to the arena where he started his professional career, working alongside the TBSE senior management team while directing all event entertainment booking and marketing for Amalie Arena. Preast will start on Jan. 4, 2016 and will be responsible for all event bookings at the arena, serving as the company’s primary liaison with promoters and tour managers to identify, negotiate and facilitate operations, sales and marketing for all live performances in the venue. He will also serve as a key member of the TBSE senior management team, contributing to organizational strategy, direction, long-term business planning and execution.

Preast joins the company from Philips Arena, Atlanta, where he served as vice president of Arena Marketing and Business Development, overseeing the booking, business development and event marketing for Philips Arena as well as the venue’s ticket office and the Atlanta Hawks Bar + Grill in Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.

Crowds gather on the Murphy Bros. carnival midway at the 2015 Tulsa State Fair.

Plans were underway for next year’s fair on day three of the 2015 Tulsa State Fair and the biggest change will be a new midway operator. North American Midway Entertainment (NAME) will replace Murphy Bros. as the carnival provider next year. Contract negotiations were still being confirmed at press time.

“We have 25 to 30 separate meetings on every aspect of the fair that can be broken down, including parking, ticket takers and rest rooms, completed by Thanksgiving,” said Mark Andrus, president/CEO of Expo Square/Tulsa State Fair. “We started planning for next year on day three of this year’s fair.”

Perfect weather resulted in an attendance increase at this year’s Tulsa State Fair. An estimated 1.2 million people attended the event, held Oct. 1-11, compared with 1.1 million in 2014.

“This fair is always in the top 20 in terms of size,” said Andrus. “We’re a well-supported bigger state that has two annual state fairs.” The Oklahoma State Fair in Oklahoma City, just over 100 miles away, ran from Sept. 17-27.

The Tulsa State Fair, which includes more than 800 scheduled events, has been held on the same 240 acres in the middle of mid-town Tulsa, four miles from downtown, since 1923. The property, Expo Square, is also home to 300-plus other events during the year.

This year’s theme for Tulsa’s fair—Goat-Tastic—is in homage to the fair’s mascot, Dizzy the Goat, and was combined with last year’s tagline, 11 Days of Awesome.

Along with attendance growth, there were notable increases in midway ride sales at 9 percent, SkyRide sales at 41 percent and a 6 percent increase in ExpoSERVE Concession sales over 2014. Paid gates were up 1 percent and parking sales rose 5 percent this year.

Food sales were also up at the Tulsa State Fair.

A number of promotions helped drive this year’s increases.

“Over the years, one of our most popular promotions continues to be Ford Family Fun Night,” said Sarah Thompson, marketing and development supervisor for Expo Square/Tulsa State Fair. “This promotion includes support from the presenting sponsor, Ford, as well as the carnival operator, Murphy Bros. Entertainment.” 

On opening night, gate admission is $1 with a coupon from a local Ford Dealership, and the midway rides are $2 each. 

“This allows our community to experience the fair at a low cost, as well as provide valuable traffic to our sponsor locations,” said Thompson. 

There also were a variety of additional promotional days at this year’s fair, including Family Fest, where gate admission was $5 per person, children under five were free and seniors 62 and up were free until 2 p.m.; and Coca-Cola T-Shirt Day, where the first 4,000 guests paying gate admission received a free 2015 Tulsa State Fair T-shirt compliments of Coca-Cola, the official soft drink of the fair.

This year, the Tulsa State Fair had over 31,000 entries into the livestock shows and competitive exhibits, with competitors from all 77 Oklahoma counties.
 
For the second year in a row, the Junior Livestock Auction raised more than $600,000 in scholarship funding for Oklahoma 4-H and FFA youth, selling 167 animals.

The Tulsa State Fair also hosted Disney on Ice presents Frozen, which garnered a 54 percent increase in ticket sales compared with past Disney on Ice shows. The show ran over the weekend from Oct. 1-4, with ticket prices ranging from $20 to $45.

“Disney on Ice had sellouts every night, with a total of 10 performances and approximately 5,000 attendees at each show,” said Andrus.

The fair’s main Oklahoma Stage included performances by national recording artists Colt Ford, for KING & COUNTRY, Andy Grammer, Dustin Lynch and Theory of a Deadman. 

“These concerts were well-attended and definitely have an impact on the overall fair’s attendance,” said Thompson. “All Oklahoma Stage concerts are free with the purchase of gate admission.”

Thompson said this year’s grounds shows also were a draw. These included the All Star Stunt Dog Challenge, the Great Cat Experience, Swashchuckler’s and High Diving Pirates. Indoors, the fair featured Little Ray’s Reptiles and The Chipper Experience. Other attractions included the Southwest Dairy Milking Parlor and an Intertribal Powwow.

This is year one of the fair’s 10-year operating agreement with SkyRide and Don McClure, who also owns Buckhill Ski Resort in Minnesota.

“Don also owns and has operated the SkyRide at the Minnesota State Fair for the last 13 years that is nearly identical to ours in Tulsa,” said Andrus.

The 2016 Tulsa State Fair will be held Sept. 29 through Oct. 9.

Interviewed for this article: Mark Andrus, (918) 527-0062; Sarah Thompson, (918) 744-1113

Aramark's Launch Test Kitchen promotes "We Make. You Test."

Philadelphia-based Aramark unveiled its new Launch Test Kitchen at the Las Vegas Convention Center and Cleveland’s Quicken Loan Arena as a customer-centric approach to dining at sports and entertainment venues. The concept utilizes real-time feedback submissions from customers to shape what’s offered on the menu.

The rotating menu is centered on food trends and customer feedback, while the test kitchen equipment and overall aesthetic can transform from event to event.

“The test kitchen is a new concept that started with a soft opening in Cleveland and will be rolled out across Aramark’s sports and entertainment portfolio,” said Erin Noss, Aramark’s senior communications manager. “What’s really interesting is we’ve invested a lot of money in food preparation equipment and digital signage, so the concept can change really quickly, whereas in the past we couldn’t change our offerings due to old menu boards or not having the right equipment.”

The idea for the test kitchen came out of a teamwide brainstorming ideation session, which is the reason it is first being rolled out in Aramark’s central and west regions.

Currently, the test kitchen can be activated as a concession stand at sports venues, such as at Quicken Loans Arena, and pop-up, mobile restaurant at convention centers like in Las Vegas.

“In choosing the venues, Quicken Loans Arena was targeted due to its support of new and innovative programs as well as us partnering with several local celebrity chefs,” said Noss. “Las Vegas was picked due to its many events and the opportunity to give meeting planners another option for their events.”

Each location is equipped with a guest feedback component to determine the items that resonate most with guests. Popular dishes may be added to a venue’s permanent menu, which will be refreshed repeatedly as needed with new ideas and items.

Las Vegas Convention Center’s Launch Test Kitchen-Las Vegas was initiated on Nov. 17 at the National Business Aviation Association and includes a full commercial kitchen that can be easily moved around the venue’s 3.2 million-square-foot halls. It seats 120.

“We have about three turns for lunch service or about 360 covers,” said Andrew Atwell, Aramark’s district manager for the Las Vegas Convention Center. “We can turn tables in 20 to 25 minutes.”

Here, the concept appears as a pop-up restaurant that can adjust its size, location and menu based on show demands. Guests place their orders using iPads at kiosks with the Appetize app, which provides photos of the food that’s available. Customers pay with either a credit or debit card, then receive a receipt with a number that’s placed on a peg for servers to retrieve. Patrons can then watch as their food is prepared in an open kitchen. With the ability to be set up indoors or outdoors, Launch Test Kitchen-Las Vegas gives meeting planners and conference guests the opportunity to sit down and eat on site or carry out food.

“This provides food we haven’t been able to offer in the past,” said Atwell. “We also can better stay on top of trends and use real customer feedback to make menu changes or adapt the food offerings for certain demographics, which change for each show.”

A recent menu included Citrus Beet Salad with balsamic roasted beets, sweet oranges, curried chickpeas, pomegranate, chevre and pumpkin seeds; Butternut Squash Soup with butternut squash, carrot, coconut crème, roasted honey sriracha and sunflower seeds; and a Roast Pancetta Pork Stacker, with a pork belly roll, citrus mélange pesto and sautéed organic spinach with garlic, on a ciabatta bun served with house-made chips.

Atwell says the test kitchen generates better traffic and support with higher-quality food than a fixed location can offer.

Launch Test Kitchen-Cleveland offers a rotating selection of local restaurateurs and up-and-coming concepts from Cleveland’s food scene. The stand opened at the start of the 2015-16 season with a menu from Cleveland chef and owner of TownHall and Lago, Fabio Salerno.

Beginning Dec. 11, existing Aramark chef partner and executive chef/owner of Hodge’s, Chris Hodgson, will be featured at the stand. Dishes will include BBQ Chicken Flatbread with grilled corn, goat and cheddar cheese, red onion, barbecue sauce and cilantro; Korean Fried Chicken with kimchi and green onion; and the Black and Blue Corn Dog with chicken andouille sausage, celery salad, blue cheese and spiced ranch

Aramark plans to roll out the Launch Test Kitchen brand at select locations across its sports and entertainment portfolio in the future.

Interviewed for this article: Andrew Atwell, (702) 892-0711;  Erin Noss, (215) 409-7403

Australian Supercross and FMX invade Allphones Arena, Sydney.

Australian Supercross and FMX fans came out in droves Nov. 28 and 29 to Allphones Arena, Sydney, for the first AUS-X Open. Despite the top billed American racing legend, James Stewart, dropping out of the exposition due to injury, the Aussie crowd was treated to national champion Chad Reed, AMA rider Cooper Webb, and 15-world-title holding Ricky Carmichael at the AME Management-promoted event. With ticket prices ranging from $29 to $108, the sold-out event grossed more than $1.38 million in ticket sales alone.

TobyMac has made our Hot Tickets chart this week with a performance at USF Sun Dome, Tampa, Fla. With ticket prices ranging from $22 to $72, more than 4,700 filed in to see TobyMac on his current This Is Not A Test tour. The Spectra Presents-promoted night grossed $172,000 for the Nov. 20 show. Fans of the currently Grammy-nominated artist can catch his next concert in Louisville, Ky., at KFC Yum! Center on Dec. 11 with supporting acts Britt Nicole and Colton Dixon.

HOT TICKETS is a weekly summary of the top acts and ticket sales as reported to VT PULSE. Following are the top 20 concerts and events, the top 5 in each seating capacity category, which took place between Nov. 11-Dec. 9.

CFSA's Becky Bailey-Findley pay tribute to Tony Fiori at his Farewell Tour at the OC Fair, Costa Mesa. (VT Photo)

REPORTING FROM COSTA MESA, CALIF. & LAS VEGAS — The entertainment industry lost two legendary, bigger-than-life showmen in Tony Fiori and Bingo Hauser. And it duly honored both in memorial services this month. They had a sense of humor, a love of show business, loyalty, vision and legendary-size personalities in common.

Fiori, vice president of marketing for Ray Cammack Shows, was honored at a memorial service at the OC Fair in Costa Mesa today (Dec. 9), while Hauser, co-owner and founder of West Coast Amusements, was remembered at a memorial service during the International Association of Fairs & Expositions in Las Vegas Dec. 1.

Bingo Hauser, Oct. 13, 1962-Sept. 13, 2015

Bingo’s funeral earlier in Langley, B.C., drew 900 mourners.

Both men left a legacy that will be long remembered in show business.

A CHARACTER EXTRAORDINAIRE

Nearly 400 friends, one from Australia, several from Houston, and from fairs around the West, attended the Tony Fiori Memorial Tour, which came complete with souvenir T-shirts. “What’s a tour without a T-shirt,” said RCS owner Guy Leavitt.

Tony died Nov. 18 after a long illness. His family, which includes wife Sharon, two sons, Nick and Gino, and two brothers, George and Steve, attended another memorial service held Monday in Fiori’s hometown of Santa Rosa, Calif.

RCS’s Charlene Leavitt said she and her husband, Guy, had known Tony since 1975. He actually got his start in show business even sooner, buying a pizza truck from Denny Thompson a year after he started working for Thompson. Lon Russell, his partner in that long-ago pizza truck who is now in real estate, emceed the service.

A video of Tony Fiori photos captured the man. (VT Photo)

It was obvious from the beginning in that pizza operation that Tony was management, not labor, Russell said. He spent his time hobnobbing, politicking, planning and giving away pizza.

Tony-isms mentioned during the tributes to his life included: “Start without me; I’ll be right back” and “Go big or go home.”

Every fair he played was the best fair. Tour dates on the back of the Farewell T-shirt included the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo, University of Arizona Spring Fling, Pima County Fair, San Diego County Fair, Orange County Fair, Antelope Valley Fair, L.A. County Fair, Arizona State Fair, and Heaven.

He was inducted into the Pima County Fair Hall of Fame in Santa Rosa and was deemed Mayor of the Midway. John Baker, manager there, recalled Tony always made himself at home in the fair manager’s office and you had better have the right snacks and drinks on hand when he arrived.

Recalling Tony and his cigar, Dale Coleman, LA County Fair, chose just the right words to describe an indescribable man: Opine – to hold and state an opinion; fun — something that provokes mirth and amusement; character — traits and qualities which distinguish a person.

“He was a character,” Coleman said, admiringly noting he was the leading authority on everything and that made him memorable to be with and around.

“He knew so many people and so many people knew him,” said Ben Pickett, RCS Australia, noting the crowd in the room. “If he were cut, he would bleed RCS.” His loyalty to the carnival and its mission as “Disneyland on Wheels” was equally legendary.

He was always asking what he could do for you, noted Don Jacobs, manager of the Antelope Valley Fair, Lancaster, Calif., a trait that played through to the end of his life. “He was a contractor, a guest on our property and he would be asking what he could do for me,” Jacobs marveled.

Guy Leavitt, RCS owner, pays tribute to Tony during the luncheon following the memorial service. (VT Photo)

“Tony could walk into a room and read it and work it,” said Becky Bailey Findley, former manager of the OC Fair and now with CFSA. “He lived large.”

FROM FUR TO STEEL

Jackie Hauser, Bingo’s wife; Wendy Hauser, wife of his son Bob, and Laura Hibbs shared that Bingo died at the first spot he ever played with his carnival, Port Alberni. But not until after the show closed.

Almost 900 people attended his memorial in Langley, British Columbia. Ron Burback, Funtastic Shows was among them. “If you had him for a friend, you were ahead of the game,” Burback said.

Retired carnival owner Claire Morton from Alaska remembered when son Bobby hired a driver for Bingo because his hands were arthritic and he couldn’t handle the big rig. Off they go and when the driver pulls into a truck stop for a cup of coffee, Bingo drove off and left him.

Jackie recalled when they met. She was working on a carnival in her parent’s candy floss and popcorn wagon. “They didn’t want me in the business,” she said. But she met Bingo, and the rest is history.

In his youth, Bingo was in a hurry to get out of Brandon, Manitoba, where he said there were only three occupations – policeman, and he was too short to be one; crook, and he was too nice to try that; and carnie. He hitched a job on Royal American Shows working the sideshows and then Myerhoff Shows.

And then he met Simba, the lion. “The lion was jealous of me,” Jackie said.

Simba the Lion loving on a young Bingo Hauser.

From Simba, Bingo moved on to an alligator, a boa constrictor and a monkey. They all grew up in the Hauser household, some in the kitchen, some in the living room. Once the monkey escaped and hid in a farmer’s truck to make his getaway. Hours later, Bingo had to bail the monkey out of jail.

They travelled with the menagerie for years, but then the animals grew too big.

The time came to switch from fur to iron. Bingo knew he had to “get rid of anything you have to feed all winter.” Jackie didn’t want Bingo to get into the carnival business, but he did.

Like Tony, Bingo was gregarious and bigger than life. Jackie remembered that when he asked her to marry him, she thought, “You and me and how many others?” But he managed to propose and they bought a Merry-Go-Round and West Coast Amusements was born.

There was a carousel horse from that Merry-Go-Round at Bingo’s funeral Oct. 16 in Langley, B.C., spruced up and set up by his son Bob.

West Coast Amusements now includes more than 100 rides and operates three units. The season begins in April and ends in September. The family has the route covered and is working on details of the 2016 season now.

On RCS, Bil Lowry has taken over Tony’s responsibilities.

Life goes on, but the loss of two giants in the industry is felt by many hundreds of people, evidenced in the tributes paid.

Delaware North announced that TD Garden President Amy Latimer will now also lead the company’s operations in the United Kingdom, following John Wentzell’s absence. Latimer will work to enhance and expand Delaware North’s United Kingdom business, which includes food service at six major soccer stadiums – including Wembley Stadium, Emirates Stadium and The Stadium at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park – and travel hospitality services at Heathrow Airport in London and five other airports.

Doug Tetley, Delaware North’s managing director for UK operations, will report to Latimer, who will continue to be based in Boston and lead TD Garden’s operations.

Latimer in 2012 became president of TD Garden, the Delaware North-owned-and-operated arena that is the home of the Boston Bruins and Boston Celtics and hosts many of the world’s most popular music and entertainment acts. Over the last two years, Latimer worked with Charlie Jacobs, CEO of Delaware North’s Boston Holdings, to guide a $70-million renovation of the venue.