Bruin Bash 2014 to take place at LA Tennis Center

This post was updated on Sept. 1 at 8:15 p.m.

UCLA’s annual Bruin Bash concert will downsize its venue from Pauley Pavilion to the Los Angeles Tennis Center for next month’s concert, reducing its capacity by several thousand seats.

The venue shuffle stems from a strict construction timeline to restore Pauley Pavilion after it was damaged by flooding on July 29. The arena is expected to be ready for use before UCLA men’s basketball hosts its first exhibition game against Azusa Pacific on Oct. 31. Bruin Bash is currently scheduled for Sept. 29.

“(UCLA is) on a tight schedule to get ready for basketball,” said Greg Kalfayan, the Undergraduate Students Association Council Campus Events commissioner. “Moving in a whole stage for Bruin Bash is not feasible, and Pauley is in no state to be used.”

Though fewer students will be able to attend the concert because of the change, Kalfayan said he and other members of the commission hope to organize another activity – such as a festival with vendors, food and entertainment on the Intramural Field – for students who do not make the seating cut.

Production costs for the concert will remain roughly the same, with a majority of the fees outside of artist booking going toward staging and lighting for the event, Kalfayan said.

The Los Angeles Tennis Center features 5,800 seats for sporting events and has a 10,000 person capacity. Pauley Pavilion can seat approximately 13,800 for sporting events and has more floor capacity than the Los Angeles Tennis Center for concerts. However, the exact number of students who will be allowed into the concert this fall is still up in the air and will hinge on the recommendations of the fire marshall and UCPD chief of police, Kalfayan said.

The last time Bruin Bash took place at the Los Angeles Tennis Center was 2007, Kalfayan said. In recent years, Bruin Bash was held in Drake Stadium as Pauley Pavilion went under construction in 2010. Last year, the concert was again held in Pauley Pavilion.

Bruin Bash veterans and hopeful attendees expressed anxiety over securing tickets for the concert with the venue change, especially since there is a reduced number of tickets available.

Joash Wampande, a fourth-year undeclared life sciences student, said he plans to line up for a Bruin Bash wristband again this year depending on the artist performing, but he’s worried that he won’t get in because of the smaller number of seats available. He added that he is worried that students in fraternities and sororities will take up some of the already-limited wristbands.

“By the time we line up, (the wristband giveaways) will be over,” he said.

Some UCLA newcomers said they hope to get into the concert as a way of introducing themselves to the campus and the community, but said they are worried that they might not be able to do so with the event’s reduced capacity.

Niko Walax, an incoming first-year biology student, said she is disappointed about the venue change because Bruin Bash was the event she was most looking forward to during Welcome Week. She said she hopes she gets a wristband to the event because she doesn’t get to go to many concerts and she thinks it would be a good opportunity to meet people.

“My (new student advisor) was hyping it up and telling us all to go,” she said.

Though campus officials considered hosting Bruin Bash at Drake Stadium or the Intramural Field, neither location was feasible because of prior scheduling and concerns about security costs, Kalfayan said.

The Campus Events Commission plans to confirm the artists performing at Bruin Bash in the next few weeks, he added.

Compiled by Julia Raven, Bruin senior staff. Contributing reports by Amanda Schallert, Bruin senior staff.