Madison Square Garden and Bellator Partner Up
Feb 22, 2010
(PRESS RELEASE) -- Madison Square Garden has formed a
co-promotional agreement with Bellator Fighting Championships to
bring a total of four nationally televised Bellator events to two
of the most historic and prestigious theaters in the United States,
the Chicago Theatre and the Citi Performing Arts Center Wang
Theatre in Boston.
The events -- which will be broadcast on FOX Sports Net, NBC and Telemundo -- will be staged at the legendary Chicago Theatre and the famed Citi Performing Arts Center Wang Theatre in Boston, the same grand and majestic venues that, over the years, have hosted a collection of the world’s top entertainers including Frank Sinatra, Prince, Beyonce, Kanye West, David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Neil Young, Chris Rock, Jerry Seinfeld, Bob Dylan, Aretha Franklin, Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston and countless others.
“The Madison Square Garden name is synonymous with the greatest
sports and entertainment events in U.S. history,” said Bellator
founder and CEO Bjorn Rebney. “Moreover, these MSG venues, the
Chicago Theatre and the Citi Performing Arts Center Wang Theatre,
are synonymous with the history and culture of their respective
cities. We are thrilled to be aligning Bellator with these
magnificent brands to bring world class, nationally televised mixed
martial arts to Chicago, Boston, and the entire country.”
Dates for the four events of the series are as follows:
- May 6, 2010 – Bellator XVII – Citi Performing Arts Center Wang Theatre Boston
- August 19, 2010 – Bellator XXVI – The Chicago Theatre
- October 21, 2010 – Bellator XXXV – Site To Be Announced (Boston or Chicago)
“Madison Square Garden is excited to bring the world’s fastest-growing sport to these historic venues,” said Joel Fisher, Madison Square Garden’s Executive Vice President of Sports Bookings and Arena Renovation. “We look forward to four great nights of action-packed fights in these legendary locations for the thousands who will be in attendance and the millions watching on FOX Sports Net, NBC, and Telemundo around the country.”
Each of Bellator’s 24 fights during Seasons 2 and 3 will be distributed live in primetime on Thursday nights on FOX Sports Net and its regional sports network affiliates. The top moments from each week’s live events will then be condensed into an action-packed 30-minute highlight show, broadcast every Saturday night, late night, on NBC. A one-hour highlight show will air in Spanish on Telemundo every Saturday night from midnight to 1 a.m.
Tickets for Bellator XIV at the Chicago Theatre, priced at $200, $150, $100, $65 and $35 will be on presale beginning Thursday, Feb. 25 at 10 a.m., and will go on sale to the general public on Saturday, Feb. 27 at 10 a.m. Tickets will be available at all Ticketmaster locations, thechicagotheatre.com, The Chicago Theatre Box Office, or by calling 1-800-745-3000. For more presale information, and to become a Chicago Theatre Insider, log onto www.thechicagotheatre.com/insider.
Presale and on-sale dates for the remaining events will be announced at a later date.
For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA, or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Bellator.
About Bellator Fighting Championships
Bellator Fighting Championships is a Mixed Martial Arts promotional company with offices in Los Angeles and Chicago. Bellator’s founder/CEO, Bjorn Rebney, is an experienced fighting sports and entertainment professional with a deep commitment to the purity and integrity of the sport of MMA and its athletes. Bellator Fighting Championships’ executive team is comprised of top industry professionals in the areas of live event production, television production, fighter relations, venue procurement, sponsorship creation/development, international licensing, marketing, advertising, publicity and commission relations.
About Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden is a fully-integrated sports, entertainment and media business. The company is comprised of three business segments: MSG Sports, MSG Entertainment and MSG Media, which are strategically aligned to work together to drive its overall business, and built on a foundation of iconic venues and compelling content that MSG creates, produces, presents and/or distributes through its programming networks and other media assets. MSG Sports consists of the New York Knicks (NBA), the New York Rangers (NHL), the New York Liberty (WNBA), and the Hartford Wolf Pack (American Hockey League). MSG Entertainment is a leader in managing and creating concerts and events at Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, The Theater at Madison Square Garden, the Beacon Theatre, the legendary Chicago Theatre, has a Booking Agreement with the Citi Performing Arts Center Wang Theatre in Boston, and produces the Radio City Christmas Spectacular featuring the Radio City Rockettes. MSG Media is comprised of leading television networks MSG, MSG Plus, MSG HD and MSG Plus HD, as well as MSG Interactive, which oversees all company wireless and online initiatives, and Fuse and Fuse HD, the national television network dedicated exclusively to music. The company owns and operates the Madison Square Garden arena complex located in the heart of the New York metropolitan area. More information is available at www.msg.com.
About The Chicago Theatre
The Chicago Theatre, a 3,600-seat venue located on State Street in the North Loop Theatre District of Chicago, was built in 1921 and designed in the French Baroque style by architects Cornelius W. Rapp and George L. Rapp. It is the oldest surviving example of this architectural style in Chicago today. Built as a flagship in a series of opulent motion picture houses, it quickly became known as “The Wonder Theatre of the World.” The illustrious “C-H-I-C-A-G-O” marquee, at nearly six stories high, is one of the few such signs in existence today. Designated a Chicago Landmark building in 1983 by the Mayor of Chicago and the Chicago City Council, The Chicago Theatre has become a destination for unforgettable concerts and events. Most notable for presenting some of the biggest names in music, the theatre has hosted such musicians as Frank Sinatra, Neil Young, Bing Crosby, Ella Fitzgerald, Harry Conick, JR., Prince, Diana Ross and Christina Aguilera. The Chicago Theatre has also served host to some of the biggest movie premieres including Kinsey with Liam Neeson, The Kite Runner with Marc Forster, and Dr. T and His Women with Richard Gere. Broadway tours hosted at the venue include Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Dreamgirls.
About The Citi Performing Arts Center Wang Theatre
The Citi Performing Arts Center Wang Theatre, a 3,600-seat venue, opened in 1925 and is one of the five largest stages in the country. It was originally called The Metropolitan or "The Met," and was developed by Max Shoolman and designed by Clarence Blackall, a leading American theater architect. At the time, The Metropolitan was hailed as a magnificent movie "cathedral," reminiscent of the splendor of a Louis XIV palace and was considered historically the most important Boston landmark of "the Roaring Twenties." In 1980, the theatre converted to a not-for-profit organization known as The Metropolitan Center and renovations to the stage and backstage attracted Broadway shows Sweeney Todd with Angela Lansbury, Peter Pan with Sandy Duncan and My Fair Lady with Rex Harrison. An extraordinary gift in 1983 from Dr. An Wang, founder of Wang Laboratories, ushered in the era of The Wang Center for the Performing Arts and the Wang Theatre. Most notably, the venue hosted record-breaking performances of the Radio City Christmas Spectacular in 2004 and 2006, and prior to that the Theatre broke box office records with musicals such as Les Miserables and The Phantom of the Opera, and has presented productions such as Riverdance-The Show, The Kirov Ballet, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, Whitney Houston, Harry Connick Jr., Dave Matthews, and Lady Gaga Additionally, the theatre has ventured into new areas of programming, including the family shows Arthur's Live Adventure and Blues Clues Live!, non-traditional theatrical events such as Burn the Floor and the North American premiere of Blast!, as well as producing the popular holiday production of White Christmas. The Theatre, along with the Citi Performing Arts Center Shubert Theatre are part of Citi Performing Arts CenterSM one of the nation's foremost nonprofit performing arts institutions honoring all aspects of performing arts. Through its numerous community outreach educational efforts, collaborations and partnerships, including with the Boston Ballet, Boston Lyric Opera, Celebrity Series of Boston and Commonwealth Shakespeare, Citi Performing Arts Center strives to educate and inspire greater appreciation for the performing arts as an essential component to the fabric of our society. The Citi Performing Arts Center is also an investor in various Theatrical Productions, including the Broadway smash hit The Addams Family through its founding participation in Elephant Eye Theatricals.
The events -- which will be broadcast on FOX Sports Net, NBC and Telemundo -- will be staged at the legendary Chicago Theatre and the famed Citi Performing Arts Center Wang Theatre in Boston, the same grand and majestic venues that, over the years, have hosted a collection of the world’s top entertainers including Frank Sinatra, Prince, Beyonce, Kanye West, David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Neil Young, Chris Rock, Jerry Seinfeld, Bob Dylan, Aretha Franklin, Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston and countless others.
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Dates for the four events of the series are as follows:
- April 15, 2010 – Bellator XIV – The Chicago Theatre
- May 6, 2010 – Bellator XVII – Citi Performing Arts Center Wang Theatre Boston
- August 19, 2010 – Bellator XXVI – The Chicago Theatre
- October 21, 2010 – Bellator XXXV – Site To Be Announced (Boston or Chicago)
“Madison Square Garden is excited to bring the world’s fastest-growing sport to these historic venues,” said Joel Fisher, Madison Square Garden’s Executive Vice President of Sports Bookings and Arena Renovation. “We look forward to four great nights of action-packed fights in these legendary locations for the thousands who will be in attendance and the millions watching on FOX Sports Net, NBC, and Telemundo around the country.”
Each of Bellator’s 24 fights during Seasons 2 and 3 will be distributed live in primetime on Thursday nights on FOX Sports Net and its regional sports network affiliates. The top moments from each week’s live events will then be condensed into an action-packed 30-minute highlight show, broadcast every Saturday night, late night, on NBC. A one-hour highlight show will air in Spanish on Telemundo every Saturday night from midnight to 1 a.m.
Tickets for Bellator XIV at the Chicago Theatre, priced at $200, $150, $100, $65 and $35 will be on presale beginning Thursday, Feb. 25 at 10 a.m., and will go on sale to the general public on Saturday, Feb. 27 at 10 a.m. Tickets will be available at all Ticketmaster locations, thechicagotheatre.com, The Chicago Theatre Box Office, or by calling 1-800-745-3000. For more presale information, and to become a Chicago Theatre Insider, log onto www.thechicagotheatre.com/insider.
Presale and on-sale dates for the remaining events will be announced at a later date.
For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA, or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Bellator.
About Bellator Fighting Championships
Bellator Fighting Championships is a Mixed Martial Arts promotional company with offices in Los Angeles and Chicago. Bellator’s founder/CEO, Bjorn Rebney, is an experienced fighting sports and entertainment professional with a deep commitment to the purity and integrity of the sport of MMA and its athletes. Bellator Fighting Championships’ executive team is comprised of top industry professionals in the areas of live event production, television production, fighter relations, venue procurement, sponsorship creation/development, international licensing, marketing, advertising, publicity and commission relations.
About Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden is a fully-integrated sports, entertainment and media business. The company is comprised of three business segments: MSG Sports, MSG Entertainment and MSG Media, which are strategically aligned to work together to drive its overall business, and built on a foundation of iconic venues and compelling content that MSG creates, produces, presents and/or distributes through its programming networks and other media assets. MSG Sports consists of the New York Knicks (NBA), the New York Rangers (NHL), the New York Liberty (WNBA), and the Hartford Wolf Pack (American Hockey League). MSG Entertainment is a leader in managing and creating concerts and events at Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, The Theater at Madison Square Garden, the Beacon Theatre, the legendary Chicago Theatre, has a Booking Agreement with the Citi Performing Arts Center Wang Theatre in Boston, and produces the Radio City Christmas Spectacular featuring the Radio City Rockettes. MSG Media is comprised of leading television networks MSG, MSG Plus, MSG HD and MSG Plus HD, as well as MSG Interactive, which oversees all company wireless and online initiatives, and Fuse and Fuse HD, the national television network dedicated exclusively to music. The company owns and operates the Madison Square Garden arena complex located in the heart of the New York metropolitan area. More information is available at www.msg.com.
About The Chicago Theatre
The Chicago Theatre, a 3,600-seat venue located on State Street in the North Loop Theatre District of Chicago, was built in 1921 and designed in the French Baroque style by architects Cornelius W. Rapp and George L. Rapp. It is the oldest surviving example of this architectural style in Chicago today. Built as a flagship in a series of opulent motion picture houses, it quickly became known as “The Wonder Theatre of the World.” The illustrious “C-H-I-C-A-G-O” marquee, at nearly six stories high, is one of the few such signs in existence today. Designated a Chicago Landmark building in 1983 by the Mayor of Chicago and the Chicago City Council, The Chicago Theatre has become a destination for unforgettable concerts and events. Most notable for presenting some of the biggest names in music, the theatre has hosted such musicians as Frank Sinatra, Neil Young, Bing Crosby, Ella Fitzgerald, Harry Conick, JR., Prince, Diana Ross and Christina Aguilera. The Chicago Theatre has also served host to some of the biggest movie premieres including Kinsey with Liam Neeson, The Kite Runner with Marc Forster, and Dr. T and His Women with Richard Gere. Broadway tours hosted at the venue include Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Dreamgirls.
About The Citi Performing Arts Center Wang Theatre
The Citi Performing Arts Center Wang Theatre, a 3,600-seat venue, opened in 1925 and is one of the five largest stages in the country. It was originally called The Metropolitan or "The Met," and was developed by Max Shoolman and designed by Clarence Blackall, a leading American theater architect. At the time, The Metropolitan was hailed as a magnificent movie "cathedral," reminiscent of the splendor of a Louis XIV palace and was considered historically the most important Boston landmark of "the Roaring Twenties." In 1980, the theatre converted to a not-for-profit organization known as The Metropolitan Center and renovations to the stage and backstage attracted Broadway shows Sweeney Todd with Angela Lansbury, Peter Pan with Sandy Duncan and My Fair Lady with Rex Harrison. An extraordinary gift in 1983 from Dr. An Wang, founder of Wang Laboratories, ushered in the era of The Wang Center for the Performing Arts and the Wang Theatre. Most notably, the venue hosted record-breaking performances of the Radio City Christmas Spectacular in 2004 and 2006, and prior to that the Theatre broke box office records with musicals such as Les Miserables and The Phantom of the Opera, and has presented productions such as Riverdance-The Show, The Kirov Ballet, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, Whitney Houston, Harry Connick Jr., Dave Matthews, and Lady Gaga Additionally, the theatre has ventured into new areas of programming, including the family shows Arthur's Live Adventure and Blues Clues Live!, non-traditional theatrical events such as Burn the Floor and the North American premiere of Blast!, as well as producing the popular holiday production of White Christmas. The Theatre, along with the Citi Performing Arts Center Shubert Theatre are part of Citi Performing Arts CenterSM one of the nation's foremost nonprofit performing arts institutions honoring all aspects of performing arts. Through its numerous community outreach educational efforts, collaborations and partnerships, including with the Boston Ballet, Boston Lyric Opera, Celebrity Series of Boston and Commonwealth Shakespeare, Citi Performing Arts Center strives to educate and inspire greater appreciation for the performing arts as an essential component to the fabric of our society. The Citi Performing Arts Center is also an investor in various Theatrical Productions, including the Broadway smash hit The Addams Family through its founding participation in Elephant Eye Theatricals.
