All eyes on sm mall of Asia Arena

MANILA, Philippines - During the recent two-day “Lady Gaga The Born This Way Ball Tour” in Manila, the public was not only awed by her show stopping performance, but by the venue, the new state of the art SM Mall of Asia (MOA)Arena.

Located on an 18,214 square-meter site at the SM Mall of Asia Complex, the new 64,085 square meter five-story landmark by the bay is a multi-purpose venue that can accommodate a seating capacity of 15,000 with a full-house capacity of 20,000.

“The Sy family, especially SM Prime Holdings, Inc. president Hans T. Sy, was very much involved in the details of the MOA Arena’s construction,” says Edgar Tejerero, senior vice president of West Avenue Theaters Corporation, the managing arm of SM Cinema. The SM MOA Arena had the Arquitectonica International Corporation as its design architect and Monolith Construction and Development Corporation as its general contractor.

Designed for concerts and basketball games, it can also be configured for boxing, theater, fashion, and ice-skating shows.

“The distinctive eye-shaped façade symbolizes MOA Arena’s promise of delivering top-notch entertainment to its audience,” says Arquitectonica’s David Zaballero, MOA Arena’s project director. “It seeks to channel the message that every single event to be held in its premises will surely be a ‘feast for the eye’.”

“In fact,” he adds, “people would certainly not only want to see but to be seen in this modern state of the art venue.”

The Event Bowl is that volume of space that includes the event floor and the spectator seating surrounding it.

The Arena’s big eye design resting on a slanted podium plinth allows it to hold the large volume of the interior court within a dramatic vaulted space, while providing a distinctive identity to the building. An eye-shaped multimedia screen projects images of ongoing or future events. 

The eye theme is repeated on the landscaping with eye configured plant boxes and ramps for the handicapped contained within protective walls that form an eye.

The Arena’s interiors are simple and minimalist. Arranged on two tiers, it has a ring of corporate suites separating the tower seats from the balcony levels. Performances converge on the event bowl, that volume of space that includes the event floor and the spectator’s seats around it. The Mosh Pit is the event floor used as a spectators’ area usually without seats provided, as in a musical concert.

It is the first events venue in the Philippines to use Robbins Inc.’s upgraded and newly improved portable floor design and the first to have Spalding Goal, the NBA Basketball goal standard, in the country. Robbins, Inc. has over 55 years experience in supplying high performance maple and synthetic sports flooring systems, and is the maker of the All–Star Plus portable floor system, the system of choice by 16 NBA arenas.

To comply with international standards, the Arena has four dugouts, a mess hall for an event’s technical team, an exclusive room for press conferences, and even a special Meet and Greet area.

MOA Arena’s Corporate Suites are another first, not only ian the country, but also in all of Southeast Asia. There are a total of 41 corporate suites, exclusive and fully furnished room designed with its own lounge, mini bar, restroom and private gallery with cinema seats. Ten of these suites can be rented on a per event basis, while the rest are leased for a period of one to five years.

The star’s dressing room where Lady Gaga stayed includes a restroom, telephone, 360-degree mirrors, mini-refrigerator, and a flatscreen TV.

The state of the art venue also has a live beaming capability to any SM Cinema nationwide, technologically enhanced internal crowd and traffic control, and Wi-Fi accessibility. It also has VIP amenities like smoking lounges, as well as restaurants in the concourses.

Moving around the Arena is easy with 10 elevators, 34 escalators, and special access lanes for PWDs. For customer convenience, it has 2,000 parking spaces at the south side of the mall with an additional 1,400 slots at the neighboring Mall of Asia Arena Annex (MAAX) Building. Valet parking services are also available.

Much of the Arena’s planning is focused on safety requirements – with all necessary fire and safety requirements mandated by international building codes reviewed and put in place. Mobotix, the same company that equips the Vatican Apostolic Library with professional grade, high-resolution security devices, provides CCTV cameras in the Arena.

The Arena is the latest attraction in the Mall of Asia Complex, which includes one of the world’s largest malls, SMX Convention Center, E-Com Office Complexes, San Miguel By the Bay, SM Corporate Offices, 1 Esplanade, and the Shrine of Jesus, the Way, the Truth, and the Life.