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Sovereign Center

Sovereign Center

Overview
Sovereign Center is a 7,083-seat multi-purpose arena
Arena
An arena is an enclosed area, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theater, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators. The key feature of an arena is that the event space is the...

 in Reading, Pennsylvania
Reading, Pennsylvania
Reading is a city and the county seat of Berks County in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is the center of the Greater Reading Area...

. It was built in 2001. The arena sits on the former site of the Astor Theatre. Closed in 1975, the theatre sat vacant until it was torn down in 1998 to make room for the arena. It is home to the Reading Royals
Reading Royals
The Reading Royals are a professional ECHL ice hockey team located in Reading, Pennsylvania, USA. The team is in the East Division of the ECHL's American Conference. The Royals play in the Sovereign Center located in Downtown Reading and their colors are purple, black, and silver. Since 2001,...

 ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice Hockey is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use sticks to direct a puck into the opposing team's goal. It is a fast-paced and physical sport...

 team, the Reading Express
Reading Express
The Reading Express are a professional indoor football team based out of Reading, Pennsylvania. They are a member of the American Indoor Football Association, having begun play in 2006...

 indoor football
Indoor football
Indoor football is a variation of American football with rules modified to make it suitable for play within indoor arenas.-Early history:The first documented indoor football games were those played at Madison Square Garden in 1902 and 1903 known as the "World Series of Pro Football." They were the...

 team, and the Reading Railers
Reading Railers
The Reading Railers are a team of the Premier Basketball League that began play in 2007. They play their home games at the Sovereign Center. The team was originally going to play in the American Basketball Association....

 basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of 5 players try to score points against one another by placing a ball through a 10 foot  high hoop under organized rules...

 team. The arena has also hosted major shows and rock concerts such as Tool
Tool (band)
Tool is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1990. Since their inception, the band's line-up has included drummer Danny Carey, guitarist Adam Jones, and vocalist Maynard James Keenan. The current bassist is Justin Chancellor, who has been with the band since 1995...

, Stone Temple Pilots
Stone Temple Pilots
Stone Temple Pilots, often abbreviated to STP, is an American rock band consisting of Scott Weiland , brothers Robert and Dean DeLeo , and Eric Kretz . The band found immediate success with the release of their debut album Core in 1992, which was certified 8× platinum by the RIAA...

, the Wiggles, Mötley Crüe
Mötley Crüe
Mötley Crüe is a American hard rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1981. The band was founded by bass guitarist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee, who were later joined by lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil...

, Matchbox Twenty
Matchbox Twenty
Matchbox Twenty is a rock band formed in Orlando, Florida. Matchbox Twenty has sold over 45 million albums worldwide from the releases of Yourself or Someone Like You, Mad Season, and More Than You Think You Are. They released their latest album, Exile on Mainstream, on October 2, 2007...

, Stevie Nicks
Stevie Nicks
Stephanie Lynn "Stevie" Nicks is an American singer-songwriter, best known for her work with Fleetwood Mac and an extensive solo career, which collectively have produced over forty Top 50 hits and has sold nearly 120 million albums. She has been noted for her ethereal visual style and symbolic...

, The Moody Blues
The Moody Blues
The Moody Blues are an English band originally from Erdington in the city of Birmingham. Founding members Michael Pinder and Ray Thomas performed an initially rhythm and blues-based sound in Birmingham in 1964 along with Graeme Edge and others, and were later joined by John Lodge and Justin...

, Crosby, Stills & Nash
Crosby, Stills & Nash (and Young)
Crosby, Stills & Nash are a folk rock supergroup made up of David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash, also known as Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young when joined by occasional fourth member Neil Young...

, The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys are an American rock band. Formed in 1961, the group gained popularity for its close vocal harmonies and lyrics reflecting a Southern California youth culture of cars, surfing, and romance...

, and the 2004 Vote for Change
Vote for Change
The Vote for Change tour was a politically-motivated American popular music concert tour that took place in October 2004. The tour was presented by MoveOn.org to benefit America Coming Together. The tour was held in swing states and was designed to encourage people to register and vote...

 Tour featuring Death Cab for Cutie
Death Cab for Cutie
Death Cab for Cutie is a Grammy-nominated American indie rock band, formed in Bellingham, Washington in 1997. The band consists of Benjamin Gibbard , Chris Walla , Nick Harmer and Jason McGerr...

 and Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam is an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington in 1990. Since its inception, the band's line-up has included Eddie Vedder , Jeff Ament , Stone Gossard , and Mike McCready...

.
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Encyclopedia
Sovereign Center is a 7,083-seat multi-purpose arena
Arena
An arena is an enclosed area, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theater, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators. The key feature of an arena is that the event space is the...

 in Reading, Pennsylvania
Reading, Pennsylvania
Reading is a city and the county seat of Berks County in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is the center of the Greater Reading Area...

. It was built in 2001. The arena sits on the former site of the Astor Theatre. Closed in 1975, the theatre sat vacant until it was torn down in 1998 to make room for the arena. It is home to the Reading Royals
Reading Royals
The Reading Royals are a professional ECHL ice hockey team located in Reading, Pennsylvania, USA. The team is in the East Division of the ECHL's American Conference. The Royals play in the Sovereign Center located in Downtown Reading and their colors are purple, black, and silver. Since 2001,...

 ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice Hockey is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use sticks to direct a puck into the opposing team's goal. It is a fast-paced and physical sport...

 team, the Reading Express
Reading Express
The Reading Express are a professional indoor football team based out of Reading, Pennsylvania. They are a member of the American Indoor Football Association, having begun play in 2006...

 indoor football
Indoor football
Indoor football is a variation of American football with rules modified to make it suitable for play within indoor arenas.-Early history:The first documented indoor football games were those played at Madison Square Garden in 1902 and 1903 known as the "World Series of Pro Football." They were the...

 team, and the Reading Railers
Reading Railers
The Reading Railers are a team of the Premier Basketball League that began play in 2007. They play their home games at the Sovereign Center. The team was originally going to play in the American Basketball Association....

 basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of 5 players try to score points against one another by placing a ball through a 10 foot  high hoop under organized rules...

 team. The arena has also hosted major shows and rock concerts such as Tool
Tool (band)
Tool is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1990. Since their inception, the band's line-up has included drummer Danny Carey, guitarist Adam Jones, and vocalist Maynard James Keenan. The current bassist is Justin Chancellor, who has been with the band since 1995...

, Stone Temple Pilots
Stone Temple Pilots
Stone Temple Pilots, often abbreviated to STP, is an American rock band consisting of Scott Weiland , brothers Robert and Dean DeLeo , and Eric Kretz . The band found immediate success with the release of their debut album Core in 1992, which was certified 8× platinum by the RIAA...

, the Wiggles, Mötley Crüe
Mötley Crüe
Mötley Crüe is a American hard rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1981. The band was founded by bass guitarist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee, who were later joined by lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil...

, Matchbox Twenty
Matchbox Twenty
Matchbox Twenty is a rock band formed in Orlando, Florida. Matchbox Twenty has sold over 45 million albums worldwide from the releases of Yourself or Someone Like You, Mad Season, and More Than You Think You Are. They released their latest album, Exile on Mainstream, on October 2, 2007...

, Stevie Nicks
Stevie Nicks
Stephanie Lynn "Stevie" Nicks is an American singer-songwriter, best known for her work with Fleetwood Mac and an extensive solo career, which collectively have produced over forty Top 50 hits and has sold nearly 120 million albums. She has been noted for her ethereal visual style and symbolic...

, The Moody Blues
The Moody Blues
The Moody Blues are an English band originally from Erdington in the city of Birmingham. Founding members Michael Pinder and Ray Thomas performed an initially rhythm and blues-based sound in Birmingham in 1964 along with Graeme Edge and others, and were later joined by John Lodge and Justin...

, Crosby, Stills & Nash
Crosby, Stills & Nash (and Young)
Crosby, Stills & Nash are a folk rock supergroup made up of David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash, also known as Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young when joined by occasional fourth member Neil Young...

, The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys are an American rock band. Formed in 1961, the group gained popularity for its close vocal harmonies and lyrics reflecting a Southern California youth culture of cars, surfing, and romance...

, and the 2004 Vote for Change
Vote for Change
The Vote for Change tour was a politically-motivated American popular music concert tour that took place in October 2004. The tour was presented by MoveOn.org to benefit America Coming Together. The tour was held in swing states and was designed to encourage people to register and vote...

 Tour featuring Death Cab for Cutie
Death Cab for Cutie
Death Cab for Cutie is a Grammy-nominated American indie rock band, formed in Bellingham, Washington in 1997. The band consists of Benjamin Gibbard , Chris Walla , Nick Harmer and Jason McGerr...

 and Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam is an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington in 1990. Since its inception, the band's line-up has included Eddie Vedder , Jeff Ament , Stone Gossard , and Mike McCready...

. The Sovereign Center also hosts the annual conventions of Jehovah's Witnesses
Jehovah's Witnesses
Jehovah's Witnesses is a restorationist, millenarian Christian denomination. The religion reports worldwide membership of over 7 million adherents involved in evangelism; they report convention attendance of over 12 million, and annual Memorial attendance of over 17 million...

.

Upcoming non-sports events include World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is a publicly-traded, privately-controlled integrated media and sports entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...

's WWE Friday Night SmackDown and concerts by Matchbox Twenty
Matchbox Twenty
Matchbox Twenty is a rock band formed in Orlando, Florida. Matchbox Twenty has sold over 45 million albums worldwide from the releases of Yourself or Someone Like You, Mad Season, and More Than You Think You Are. They released their latest album, Exile on Mainstream, on October 2, 2007...

 and Andre Rieu
André Rieu
André Léon Marie Nicolas Rieu is a Dutch violinist, conductor, and composer best known for creating an international revival in waltz music with his "Johann Strauss Orchestra".-Early life and studies:...

.

The Sovereign Center is owned by the Berks County Convention Center Authority and managed by SMG. The Sovereign Performing Arts Center (formerly known as The Rajah Shrine Temple) and Reading Eagle Theater are part of the complex.

External links