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| Neal S. Blaisdell Center | |
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| Address | 777 Ward Ave Honolulu,Hawaii 96814-2166 |
| Location | Downtown Honolulu,Oahu |
| Coordinates | 21°18′00″N157°51′02″W / 21.29991°N 157.85062°W /21.29991; -157.85062 |
| Owner | City and County of Honolulu |
| Opened | September 12, 1964 (1964-09-12)[1][2] |
| Renovated | 1994 |
Construction cost | $14 million[1] |
Former names | Honolulu International Center (1964–76) |
Classroom-style seating |
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| Banquet/ballroom |
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Theatre seating |
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| Enclosed space | |
| • Exhibit hall floor | 65,000 square feet (6,000 m2) |
| • Breakout/meeting | 3,200 square feet (300 m2) |
| • Ballroom | 23,700 square feet (2,200 m2) |
| Website | |
blaisdellcenter | |
TheNeal S. Blaisdell Center is a community center neardowntown Honolulu,Hawaii.[3] The complex has a multi-purpose arena, concert hall, exhibition hall, galleria, meeting rooms, Waikiki Shell and others.
Constructed in 1964 on the historic Ward Estate and originally called theHonolulu International Center, the center was renamed afterMayor of HonoluluNeal S. Blaisdell, who oversaw its construction.[2] It was remodeled and expanded in 1994. The complex is overseen by the city's Department of Enterprise Services, which also oversees theWaikiki Shell. As of 2019,[update] the city is seeking to redevelop the site with extensive stakeholder and public involvement to assess the community's goals.[4]
TheNeal S. Blaisdell Arena is a circular performance facility used for concerts and major sporting events. The arena can accommodate 7,700 seats for sports events, and up to 8,800 seats for stage events with seats set up on the arena floor.
On December 3, 1966,The Monkees gave their first live concert here.[5] They played a 40-minute set.Loggins and Messina performed their final two concerts here on September 24 and 25, 1976.
Elvis Presley'sAloha from Hawaii via Satellite concert was held here on January 14, 1973. In recognition of the concert, a bronze statue of Presley was installed in 2007 outside the front of the arena. The statue was sponsored by the cable channelTV Land.[6]
Other events at the arena includeWWElive events,Disney on Ice,American Idol Live!,Sesame Street Live, collegebasketball andvolleyball, and internationalgymnastics, as well as a fundraising concert for victims ofHurricane Iniki, withCrosby, Stills & Nash,Jackson Browne &Bonnie Raitt, and a 1965Billy Graham crusade.
Other music artists that have performed at the arena includeThe Beach Boys,Kiss,Led Zeppelin,Iron Maiden,The Rolling Stones,Mariah Carey,The Jackson 5,Metallica,Aerosmith,Van Halen,Bon Jovi,Elton John,Santana,Toto,Journey,HalseyRun-DMC,Coolio,Bruno Mars,No Doubt,America,Bread (band),Culture Club,Avenged Sevenfold,Janet Jackson, andCarrie Underwood.
During a circus performance in 1994,Tyke, an African Elephant, killed her trainer and charged out of the arena in a rage. The animal rampaged outside the arena for 30 minutes before police fired 87 rounds at the elephant, who eventually collapsed and died as a result of the shooting.
The Philippine TV showASAP performed at the arena on June 30, 2018, through an international concert titledASAP Live in Honolulu.
Many graduation and commencement ceremonies are held by schools in the arena and concert hall in late May and June.
The Arena also hosts the start of the exhibition season for theLos Angeles Lakers of theNational Basketball Association and the men's and women's basketball and volleyball games forHawaii Pacific University, the state's largest private university. It served as the home court forUniversity of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa basketball until UH built theStan Sheriff Center on campus in 1994. The arena was the home venue for several short-lived attempts to establish Hawaii professional sports teams, including theHawaii Volcanos of theContinental Basketball Association, the Hawaii Hurricanes of theAmerican Basketball Association, theHawaii Leis ofWorld Team Tennis and three indoor football teams: theHonolulu Hurricanes, theHawaii Hammerheads, and theAF2'sHawaiian Islanders, and the Arena Football League All-Star game of 2013. The Leis and Islanders each persisted for three full seasons, the longest of all the pro teams based at the arena. In 1982, the arena served as home court forChaminade University in a Christmas Eveupset of aRalph Sampson-led number one rankedUniversity of Virginia, 77–72.
In November 2006, theProfessional Bull Riders hosted the Cheeseburger Island Style PBR Hawaii All-Star Challenge, a special event that took place between the 2006 PBR World Finals and the start of the 2007 PBR season.
In 2020, the arena hosted aDavis Cup qualifying round matchup between theUnited States andUzbekistan.[7]
With a capacity of 2,158 seats, theNeal S. Blaisdell Concert Hall was the home of theHonolulu Symphony and theHawaiʻi Opera Theatre.Broadway productions such asThe Phantom of the Opera,Les Misérables,Rent,Miss Saigon,Chicago,Cats, and other national touring shows have performed at the concert hall.[8] In the fall and early winter of 2007 the concert hall was host to the Broadway musicalThe Lion King, a booking which displaced the Honolulu Symphony from its usual home and led to a major cash flow crisis for the orchestra.[9] Elvis Presley also performed at the then Honolulu International Centre.
Located between the Concert Hall and the Arena, the Exhibition Hall provides 65,000 square feet (6,000 m2) of exhibition space on the main floor that is expandable to 85,000 square feet (7,900 m2) when combined with adjoining spaces. Five meeting rooms are also available in the hall. The Exhibition Hall accommodates numerous local trade and consumer shows and fundraising events throughout the year, and is one of the main exhibition venues in Honolulu in addition to theHawaii Convention Center.
The Exhibition Hall hosts events throughout the year such as craft fairs, gun shows, family expos, job fairs, food & product shows, as well as private trade shows.
Many religious ceremonies have been performed in the Neal S. Blaisdell Center. The largest of which were the enthronement ofJoseph Anthony Ferrario as the thirdBishop of Honolulu and the ordination and installation ofClarence Richard Silva as the fifth Bishop of Honolulu, overseeing theRoman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu.Kamehameha Schools has held their annualsong contest at the Blaisdell since 1964.
On December 23, 1982, what is considered by many as the greatest upset in sports history happened at the Blaisdell Arena as the then number 1-rankedUniversity of VirginiaCavaliers, led by futureHall of FamerRalph Sampson, were beaten 77–72 byChaminade University, a smallNAIA school (todayNCAA Division II) with a student body of 800.
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