The Changing Nature of Arenas – Richard Breslin & Andrew Noonan
August 4, 2014
Richard Breslin and Andrew Noonan from Populous looks at global trends following the opening of the world’s largest indoor arena, the Philippine Arena in Manila.
July saw the opening of the 50,000 seat Philippine Arena in Manila. Commissioned by Iglesia Ni Cristo ( the Church of Christ), it was the church’s gift to the Philippine community. The arena is of a scale not previously seen in the Philippines and will put the country on the world stage. Although it was built as a community facility, it is also an example of a new breed of mega arenas beginning to develop across Asia, as entertainment rather than sport becomes the driving force for arena development.
My colleague Andrew Noonan, who is working on our team on the Theatre, the arena that is part of Darling Harbour Live in Sydney, is recently returned from a study tour of the some of the world’s great arenas, and he explains this evolution in arena design, particularly in Asia, has been created by an ever increasing demand for entertainment amongst a growing middle class.
The first decade of the Twenty First Century saw major changes in the music industry which directly affected the way people accessed popular music. The result was the decline in dominance of record companies and the ascent of live music performances and merchandise sales as the predominant revenue stream for many of the world most popular performers. While the introduction of portable music devices and peer to peer technology was largely responsible for the decline in album and single sales, it was the by-product of this technology which seemed to have made the most impact. The freedom of access to music reduced the exclusivity of owning music and created a more divergent music market, where audiences aspired to find the latest sounds. The unique experience of the new was often more sought after than the quality of music. This pursuit for the unique experience has ultimately driven the greatest change, particularly in the developing markets within Asia, with a growing middle class hungry for entertainment at a global scale.
This growing demand in Asia and, to a lesser extent, Europe has generated an evolution in arena design itself. The operational and technical demands of live music events, whether it’s children’s entertainment or popular music concerts, is driving the design and development of a new type of facility to replace the traditional sport-centric arena model. Understanding how this new type of arena operates and planning for its specific requirements for adaptability and flexibility is the key to unlocking the potential of tomorrow’s arenas. They will be configured to suit the desired atmosphere of the artist, provide the best experience for the audience, and create successful and viability facilities for operators.
The biggest change for the next generation of arena design is the fundamental differences between sports floor and stage performance events. By optimising the facility to accommodate the greatest number of occurring events, rather than for the greatest number of potential events, many of the operational expenses and shortcomings, standard pitfalls for arena operation, can be avoided. This includes minimizing event turnaround times, allowing for a more full event calendar with reduced staffing requirements, decreasing lost seating to the rear stage area, and enabling a greater capacity during the majority of events. It means more of the audience will be in the most desired location, without the maintenance expense of unsold seats and underutilised washroom and food and beverage offerings.
Similarly, many shows now have longer runs, with artists performing in the same venue for multiple nights, and so backstage areas are starting to shift away from the traditional handful of small generic unfinished dressing rooms to spaces which are more conducive and comfortable, with ample facilities for technical crew and support staff. Equally, increases in stage and ancillary spaces are already occurring to allow for a greater variety of show. As touring shows increase in size and complexity, so too the requirements increase to provide safe and readily accessible rigging and technical areas.
However, it is in the patron experience where there is the greatest potential in the next generation of arena design. Front of house offerings to patrons will become more varied, providing more intimate and unique spaces. Generic concourses now become a destination, providing patrons with a variety of engaging experiences, from pre-booked dining options to a variety of exclusive lounge spaces. These are offered during and, just as importantly both before or after the event, enticing patrons to arrive earlier and stay longer to savour in the experience of the show for longer.
Populous has already experienced this shift from the multipurpose sporting arenas to primarily live music event based designs in both the O2 Dublin and Leeds arena and is currently expanding on this suite of ground breaking arena designs with the Philippine Arena in Manila and the Theatre at Darling Harbour Live in Sydney. However, the evolving requirements and changing potential and opportunities of the next generation of arenas are still to be fully exploited and the shift away from providing the generic sports facilities has proven complex. The new demands that live music performances place on arenas is evolving rapidly as live shows are becoming increasingly technically and physically demanding.
Richard Breslin is a Senior Principal at Populous and a Director of the Asian/Pacific office headquartered in Brisbane. Richard also sits on the worldwide strategic Board of Populous. Richard is responsible for all of the firm’s projects in New Zealand and Australia.
Richard is currently leading the Populous team on the Darling Harbour Live project in Sydney in a HASSELL+ Populous joint venture. The $750M project includes the design of a convention centre, exhibition centre and theatre. He is also Director in charge of the redevelopment of Margaret Court Arena in Melbourne.
In 1997, Richard commenced work with the team on the design of Stadium Australia (now ANZ Stadium), the main venue for the Sydney 2000 Olympic and Paralympic Games. At this time, he also worked on the event overlay for the Games before moving to London where he worked on the design of the 90,000 seat Wembley Stadium, and the design of the Soccer City Stadium in Johannesburg, South Africa, for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. He was also project leader for Populous’ successful master plan for the London 2012 Olympic Park.
In 2007, Richard immigrated to New Zealand, where he led the teams on Eden Park redevelopment in Auckland and Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin; – both were venues for the 2011 Rugby World Cup.
Richard’s 
Andrew is an Australian architect who first joined Populous in London in 2007 as part of the Aviva Stadium team in Ireland and worked on the project through the design development and construction documentation phases. Following his return to Australia from London, Andrew completed the schematic design and overlay planning for a number of venues for Australia’s FIFA World Cup Bid 2018/2022 and concept design for the Sleeman Sports Complex outdoor pool and BMX track in Queensland.
Andrew moved to Sydney and re-joined Populous in 2013 as design leader on the Sydney Entertainment Centre, part of the $1B Darling Harbour Live project. Most recently Andrew and his team mate, Matt Reynolds, won the Populous Fellowship competition, providing them the opportunity to conduct global research on the future of Live Music Venues.
Andrew’s
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