Atlantic City’s live entertainment scene is about to get a shot in the arm with more than 200 live music events a year planned for the soon-to-open Hard Rock Atlantic City and a return of live sports to the city’s Boardwalk Hall.
Hard Rock International announced an ambitious live concert strategy of 200 or more events a year at its new casino scheduled to open this summer on the resort’s Boardwalk.
Hard Rock CEO Jim Allen told a local community audience that the casino is planning an entertainment schedule never before seen in the city.
“When’s the first time someone has done 200 shows in Atlantic City?” He asked. “When’s the last time you saw entertainment on a night other than Saturday in Atlantic City? We’re going to make that commitment.”
The company is currently transforming the casino—the former Trump Taj Mahal—including increasing the seat number at the facility’s main concert venue from 5,200 seats to 7,000 seats. The casino also has more than 150,000 square feet that can host special events, conventions, and trade shows.
Allen did not name any scheduled acts, but said the company hopes to bring some of the brightest stars in the music industry to Atlantic City covering a number of musical genres.
The site will also feature the traditional Hard Rock displays of music memorabilia. According to a press release, items will include a dress worn by Mariah Carey and an acoustic guitar signed by Bon Jovi.
Atlantic City has long grappled with a lack of mid-week entertainment in the resort. Casino entertainment schedule can vary, but most live concerts are held on weekend dates. The city’s Boardwalk Hall held only 11 major concerts in 2017, again mostly centered on weekend dates, according to an Associated Press report.
Rummy Pandit, executive director of the Levenson Institute of Gaming, Hospitality & Tourism at New Jersey’s Stockton University, told the AP that Hard Rock’s entertainment schedule could expand Atlantic City’s appeal.
“Bringing entertainment into the city mid-week at off-peak times will be a particularly persuasive reason for visitors to consider extending their stay,” he said. “Turning a two-night weekend stay into a long weekend or mid-week getaway can make a huge difference for Atlantic City’s lodging, food and beverage, retail, gaming and tourism businesses.”
Hard Rock also plans to join the city’s summer beach bar scene. Atlantic City Council recently approved a resolution allowing the casino to apply for all necessary permits to operate a bar on the city’s beaches. The city permits beach bars during the summer months in front of qualifying Boardwalk casinos.
Meanwhile, the city’s Boardwalk Hall revealed that it has again begun booking live sporting events after a nearly five-year lull.
While the city was once a major site for boxing and other sporting events, such events have been almost non-existent in the resort as the city faced several casino closings and possible municipal bankruptcy in recent years.
However, the New Jersey Casino Reinvestment Development Authority has announced several sporting events for Boardwalk Hall this year, including the Ultimate Fighting Championship, the Professional Bull Riders tour, Division I men’s college basketball and a Bear Grylls survival challenge, according to the local Press of Atlantic City.
Boardwalk Hall is also one of four finalists to host the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, or MAAC, men’s and women’s basketball tournaments starting in 2020. The other finalists are the Webster Bank Arena in Bridgeport, Connecticut; the Nassau Coliseum on Long Island, New York; and the Times Union Center in Albany, New York, according to the Press.
The tournament could bring more than $3.7 million in customer spending to the resort, according to a report issued by the conference this year.
The city will also see the return of UFC fighting to the resort. Ultimate Fighting Championship’s Fight Night will return to on April 21and will be nationally televised on Fox Sports 1. It marks the first UFC event at Boardwalk Hall since June of 2005 and the first in Atlantic City since July 2014, the Press reported.
“UFC is a global powerhouse, and we proudly welcome them to Historic Boardwalk Hall for one of their limited number of events this year worldwide,” CRDA Chairman Bob Mulcahy said in a press release. “This marks the fourth blue-chip event in our 2018 alliance with IMG, which is building steam and impact throughout Atlantic City’s tourism, event and sports sector.”
In another matter, Hard Rock announced that it has signed a “card count neutrality” agreement with the city’s largest casino workers union—Unite HERE of Local 54—to have the union represent workers at the casino without holding an election.
“Assuming that Local 54 is successful in obtaining the appropriate number of cards from our employees here at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City, we look forward to a long and productive relationship with Local 54,” said Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City President Matt Harkness in a press release. “We are confident the collaboration will help us achieve a successful entry into the Atlantic City market.”
Local 54 fought vigorously with the former owner of the Taj Mahal, Carl Icahn. The labor strife was a major reason Icahn elected to shut down the casino in 2016.
