Concert-going public weighs in with mixed reactions to Chaifetz Arena
Chingy performing April 26 at Chaifetz Arena. Photo Credit: Ryan Giacomino
Chaifetz Arena at St. Louis University opened its doors for its first concerts over the weekend with Barry Manilow on Friday and Chingy, Augustana, Jo Dee Messina, and more Saturday.
Mixed reviews of the new venue have been coming in ever since, and Chaifetz’ general manager is addressing concerns.
The need for a facility such as Chaifetz Arena has been there for years, something with a 10,000-ish capacity that could fill the hole between the Fox Theatre and Scottrade Center.
And much of the venue’s pre-hype, including it being an intimate-feeling space for an arena, is real. Everything felt up close at the Manilow show.
Floor seating that night, however, was a problem. Walking throughout the floor was a chore thanks to rows uncomfortably compressed.
Getting to the arena was a burden as well, though that had more to do with ”Jersey Boys” at the Fox Theatre and “Harlem Duet” at the Grandel Theatre starting at the same time, leading to midtown traffic madness.
One concert-goer found the venue, which is privately managed by Philadelphia-based company Global Spectrum, ”very nice, clean, and the staff was very courteous, friendly and helpful. I love the virtual tour where you can find your row/section and where you are in connection with the stage on the web site.” Another concert-goer said the venue “is beautiful and I am sure will be appreciated by many for many years to come.”
Things didn’t go as well for some other concert-goers.
One concert attendee at Manilow’s show said the acoustics where she was sitting in a suite weren’t good. She complained of a bad echo, and said she couldn’t understand Manilow’s words.
Another reader described the parking situation as a nightmare, not caring for the main lot at Compton Avenue and Olive Boulevard. She thought the University overlooked logistics that would’ve helped with parking and traffic. ”I don’t plan on attending another event at the Chaifetz until they have had time to work the bugs out,” she wrote.
Darius Dunn, general manager for Chaifetz Arena, says they’re committed to bringing forth the best in customer service, and they’re listening to all the feedback, good and bad. ”We shoot for the ultimate experience, and the areas where we’re not up to we look to address.”
Here’s how he responded to the negative, which was generated around the night of Manilow.
Floor seating
Dunn says when Manilow’s large stage arrived, they learned they had to make adjustments on the floor to make it fit, which caused the cramping. The computer-generated schematics relied on beforehand weren’t as precise as thought.
“That was one of those things that came up day of,” he says. “People buy the floor seats for that preferred experience and it was our intention to keep them down there. We didn’t want to relocate folks from the floor.”
He says they’ll make sure there is enough leg room in the future.
Parking
Dunn says educating concert-goers on the best parking situations at the arena will be a continuous process. First, he points out there’s more parking than the obvious Compton/Olive garage.
He says there’s more than ample parking space available in a garage at LaClede and Grand Avenues, along with surface lots off of Washington Avenue just east of Grand, and the Sigma-Aldrich lot at Market Street and Compton.
“Once we get that out there we think it’ll spread out the traffic,” he says. “But we need people to tap into the web site for directions and wear to park, to get that preparation done early. That information has always been there.”
Acoustics
Dunn says all the information he received after the concerts indicated the sound was good regardless of where fans sat, and pointed out touring shows bring their own sound.
“But we still want to make sure we take the sound checks up to the suite levels, along with the floor and other areas. It’s one of the things we’ll go forward with.”
What do you think of Chaifetz Arena?
Kevin C. Johnson has covered the St. Louis' music and nightlife scene for the past decade. 
My wife attended the Manilow concert. As a Billiken season ticket holder I was interested in her comments. She applauded everything other than the ladies rest rooms, which were poorly laid out and obviously planned by a “man”