The Big Top (also known as the Big Top Auditorium and The Arena; commonly known as Big Top Sydney) is a multi-purpose entertainment venue located within Luna Park Sydney. Opening in 2004, the venue was a part of the amusement park’s 2003 redevelopment plan. It has a capacity of nearly 3,000, making it one of Sydney’s largest mid-sized venues.
Full name | The Big Top at Luna Park Sydney |
---|---|
Former names | Luna Circus (planning/construction) |
Address | 1300 Big Top Sydney NSW 2061 Australia |
Location | Luna Park, Milsons Point |
Owner | Brookfield Metro Edgley Pty Ltd |
Operator | Luna Park Venues |
Capacity | 2,950 |
Construction | |
Broke ground | 7 February 2003 |
Opened | 2 April 2004 |
Construction cost | $20 million ($33.1 million in 2022 dollars[1]) |
Architect | Hassell |
Structural engineer | MacDonald Contracting |
Services engineer | Douglas Partners |
General contractor | Cordell Construction |
Website | |
Venue Website |
It has housed notable events such as: the 2005 MTV Australia Video Music Awards, Come Together Music Festival and the 2013 Sydney Darts Masters.
History
editThe venue was originally proposed in 1999 by Metro Edgley Pty Ltd. Known as Luna Circus,[2] the building was proposed as a venue for circus acts and a possible site for a permanent Cirque du Soleil show. Plans were underway to begin construction in 2000, opening in 2001.[3] However, the proposal was not approved by the North Sydney Council until December 2002. Construction began in February 2003 and was completed in December. It was built on the site of the former Ghost Train.
An opening celebration concert was held 2 April 2004.[4] It was hosted by Simon Burke and featured performances by Caroline O'Connor, Marina Prior and David Campbell. The first official event held at the venue was a performance of Sunset Boulevard (featuring Judi Connelli and Michael Cormick) on 3 April 2004.[5] Australian bands that have performed at Luna Park include INXS in '82, Silverchair in '97, Jet (at Big Top) in '09, Sick Puppies (at Big Top) in '07, and Parkway Drive (at Big Top) in '09.
Layout | Capacity |
---|---|
General admission | 2,950 |
Circus | 2,085 |
Theatre | 1,800 |
Custom | 2,105 |
Combo | 2,768 |
Town hall | 2,128 |
Combat Sport 1 | 1,680 |
Combat Sport 2 | 1,892 |
Performers
edit- The Amity Affliction
- Architects
- Avenged Sevenfold
- ATEEZ
- B.A.P
- Bastille
- Benee
- Boyz II Men
- Bruno Mars
- Bullet for My Valentine
- Calvin Harris
- Chicago
- DMX
- Dua Lipa
- The Dandy Warhols
- The Darkness
- The Doobie Brothers
- Franz Ferdinand
- The Fray
- Goldfrapp
- Good Charlotte
- got7
- Ice Cube
- iKon
- Incubus
- INXS
- Ja Rule
- Jessie J
- King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard
- Korn
- Kylie Minogue
- Lily Allen
- Meghan Trainor
- Mýa
- New Found Glory
- Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
- Nine Inch Nails
- Paramore
- The Prodigy
- Queens of the Stone Age
- Rita Ora
- Rob Zombie
- Scissor Sisters
- The Script
- Sean Paul
- Seventeen
- Slayer
- The Smashing Pumpkins
- Soundgarden
- Spacey Jane
- Steel Panther
- Stray Kids
- Switchfoot
- The Try Guys
- Vengaboys
- VIXX
- You Me at Six
References
edit- ^ AU = 1850-1901: McLean, I.W. (1999), Consumer Prices and Expenditure Patterns in Australia 1850–1914. Australian Economic History Review, 39: 1-28 (taken W6 series from Table A1, which represents the average inflation in all of Australian colonies). For later years, calculated using the pre-decimal inflation calculator provided by the Reserve Bank of Australia for each year, input: £94 8s (94.40 Australian pounds in decimal values), start year: 1901.
- ^ Farrelly, Elizabeth (19 August 2003). "Get back on the rollercoaster". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
- ^ Cochrane, Peter; Peatling, Stephanie (7 July 1999). "Over the moon about Luna Circus". The Canberra Times. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
- ^ Maley, Jacqueline (2 April 2004). "Roll up, roll up". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
- ^ Hallett, Bryce (5 April 2004). "Sunset Boulevard, Luna Park". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
External links
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