Thursday, February 3
Round Table -  “Theater Environments For Arenas”
Brad Parsons, Arena Network

A highly successful new event implemented at the 2005 Concert Industry Consortium was a group of round tables, covering a wide range of topics and facilitated by some of the most highly respected people in their fields. Running the gamut of industry concerns from how to structure a deal to purchasing tour insurance to staying sober on the road, conference guests could stop at one discussion or visit them all for a taste of what’s happening in today’s concert business.

The ArenaNetwork currently comprises 43 arenas across the country. The organization is for facilities that are not affiliated with arena management companies. It introduces them to theatre setups and gives a powerful routing opportunity for theatre shows.

For instance, “Disney on Ice” is a production that would work perfectly in an arena’s theatre setup, according to Brad Parsons. Therefore, it wasn’t surprising at all to see Mark Duryea, booking director for Feld Entertainment (which produces the show), dropping by for some info.

Other participants included arena executives who were interested in knowing how AN works.

“Most people asked me relevant questions like, ‘How much does it cost to do?’ and ‘How many shows can you expect to achieve if you do something like this?’” Parsons told Pollstar. “Some of it was numbers oriented. Fortunately, I had backup from the ArenaNetwork guys who had done this already.”

Spokane Arena’s Kevin Twohig and Howard Zuckerman of Portland, Ore.’s Rose Quarter – two participants in the ArenaNetwork – dropped by for a visit, as did AEG Live’s Larry Vallon.

“Sometimes, people will look at something and not understand its relevance,” Parsons said. “To me, the relevance of this was very clear to other arena guys. ... If I was disappointed in anything, it was that more agents or promoters or whatever didn’t come by.”