Acer Arena has made the Pollstar top 10 best venues in the world list for the third year running. The Sydney venue is considered on a par with iconic spots like Madison Square Garden in New York, The Staples Center in Los Angeles, and O2 Arena in London.
The accolade caps off a stellar 2008 for the arena, which attracted the likes of Stevie Wonder, Kylie Minogue, Andrea Bocelli, Bon Jovi, and Billy Joel last year.
“Despite many reports of a worldwide recession, 2009 has started extremely strongly with Top Gear Live this coming weekend exceeding all sales expectations (ten shows), as are shows like Coldplay (four shows in March) followed in the same month by Kings of Leon and The Who then Pussycat Dolls (two shows in May), Crusty Demons (June) WWE Live (July) and Andre Rieu (two shows in October),” General Manager David Humphreys said in a statement.
“Acknowledgement in two internationally respected industry magazines is the icing on the cake and a great reward for the team that made these events happen.
“We have been Australia’s leading indoor concert arena for a number of years and look forward to maintaining the same high standards and quality events in 2009.”
I thought the same thing last year, but I’m a little amazed. Things always seem to run smoothly at Acer, but unless you’re sitting really close to the stage it’s certainly not the place I’d want to see a show. Bigger isn’t always better for the musicians or their audience, and this poll seems to forget that! Give me a small theatre or a natural outdoor winery setting any day!
Image source: E. Yoshio @ Flickr