Kaplan Arena
Construction


Full name	Kaplan Arena at William and Mary Hall
Former names	William & Mary Hall (1971-2005)
Location	751 Ukrop Way, Williamsburg, VA 23186
Coordinates	37°16′24″N 76°43′11″W / 37.273472°N 76.719625°W / 37.273472; -76.719625
Owner	College of William & Mary
Capacity	11,300
Opened	December 5, 1971 (1971-12-05)
Construction cost	$5.3 million ($39.9 million in 2022 dollars^[1])
General contractor	Southeastern Construction Company
Tenants
William & Mary Tribe (NCAA) (1971–present)

Kaplan Arena is a building used for athletic events for the William & Mary Tribe sports teams at the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. The building contains an 8,600-seat arena, which can seat 11,300 with extra bleachers.^[2] The arena's floor measures almost 24,000 square feet (2,200 m²).^[3] The building was formerly known as William & Mary Hall. From 2005 to 2016, only the arena proper was called Kaplan Arena, before the entire building was renamed to honor alumni Jane Thompson Kaplan and Jim Kaplan.^[4]

The building's lower level houses the coaching and staff offices for the school's athletic department. It also hosts a seminar room, medical suite, and a gymnastics workout area.^[2] Completed in 17 months by the Southeastern Construction Company of Charlotte, North Carolina, the building cost $5.3 million but was financed by state revenue bonds.^[2]

History

Campus of the College of William & Mary
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Historic Campus (College Yard) Wren Building Brafferton President's House
Old Campus Alumni House Tucker Hall Blow Hall Ewell Hall Sunken Garden Crim Dell bridge Hearth: Memorial to the Enslaved
New Campus Phi Beta Kappa Memorial Hall Earl Gregg Swem Library Muscarelle Museum of Art Alan B. Miller Hall
Athletic facilities Zable Stadium Albert–Daly Field Jimmye Laycock Football Center Millie West Tennis Facility McCormack-Nagelsen Tennis Center Plumeri Park Kaplan Arena
Other Lake Matoaka Henry C. Wolf Law Library
Related Charles M. Robinson Charles Gillette W. A. R. Goodwin Bodleian Plate Williamsburg Bray School Virginia Institute of Marine Science Richard Bland College
v t e

Its name was granted in 2005 as part of a publicized funding effort by then-college president Gene Nichol, initially applying only to the arena proper. Between the 1920s and 1970s, the William & Mary Indians played basketball in Blow Gym, which now houses the registrar, bursar, and other university offices. It hosted the last ECAC South men's basketball tournament in 1985 (the conference added more championships in the 1985–86 school year and was renamed the CAA). Retired jersey banners depicting some of W&M's own basketball greats hang from the rafters of Kaplan Arena. The arena opened in 1971 and is home to the Tribe basketball, gymnastics and volleyball teams.^[2]

The Harlem Globetrotters and roller derby, as well as other sports and entertainment acts, have also utilized Kaplan Arena as a venue over the years. "[People] in the Williamsburg area have seen auto shows, dog shows, Prince Charles, Glenn Close, a Billy Graham crusade, Bette Midler, Billy Joel, the 1976 televised presidential debates between candidates Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford, the Shakespeare Players, a three-ring circus, and even a Howdy Doody show."^[2] It also hosted the 9th G7 summit in 1983 for some of the world's political leaders, including Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher, and François Mitterrand. The Dalai Lama visited William & Mary on October 11, 2012, and spoke to a crowd of over 8,000 people at Kaplan Arena.^[5]

The first event held at the Kaplan Arena was a basketball game between the William & Mary Indians against the top 5 ranked University of North Carolina Tar Heels. The event took place before construction of the building was complete. The most noticeable thing lacking during that game were doors on the back of the arena. Photos of the game show the sold out crowd dressed in winter coats and hats. The Tar Heels opted to spend halftime on their team bus as opposed to the unfinished locker room. North Carolina won the game 101-72.

The first musical concert in Kaplan Arena, performed in 1971, was by Sly & the Family Stone. The record for the largest crowd to attend a concert was 13,514 for The Police on January 25, 1982.^[2] Other notable performers have included Bruce Springsteen, The Pretenders, My Chemical Romance, Muse, R.E.M., Sting, The Roots, The Grateful Dead, Nirvana, The Chainsmokers, Williamsburg native Bruce Hornsby, 10,000 Maniacs, Beach Boys, Chicago, the Stone Temple Pilots, and Kendrick Lamar.^[2]

References

^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved May 28, 2023.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g TribeAthletics.com — Kaplan Arena at William and Mary Hall. Accessed August 9, 2011.
^ William and Mary Hall — wm.edu Archived 2008-07-19 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed March 19, 2008.
^ "William & Mary Hall renamed Kaplan Arena in honor of Jane Thompson Kaplan '56 and Jim Kaplan '57". College of William & Mary. September 23, 2016. Retrieved October 5, 2016.
^ "William & Mary- Dalai Lama brings his wisdom, wit and philosophy to W&M". Retrieved 27 September 2016.

v t e College of William & Mary
Academics	Affiliate institutions Richard Bland College Schools Mason School of Business School of Education Law School Virginia Institute of Marine Science Programs Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture Thomas Jefferson Program in Public Policy Publications Theatre Annual William and Mary Quarterly Other Brigham–Kanner Property Rights Conference / Prize Honor code Institute of Bill of Rights Law Phi Beta Kappa Society Public Ivy Scandal of 1951
Athletics	Sports Football (Capital Cup) Men's basketball Women's basketball Men's soccer Women's soccer Baseball Women's volleyball Facilities Albert–Daly Field Blow Gymnasium Busch Field Jimmye Laycock Football Center Millie West Tennis Facility Kaplan Arena Kingsmill Resort McCormack–Nagelsen Tennis Center Plumeri Park William & Mary Police Department Walter J. Zable Stadium at Cary Field Related Coastal Athletic Association Griffin Pep Band Tribe Fight Song
Campus	Alan B. Miller Hall Alumni House Bodleian Plate Brafferton Crim Dell bridge Earl Gregg Swem Library Hearth: Memorial to the Enslaved Henry C. Wolf Law Library Lake Matoaka Mason School of Business Library Muscarelle Museum of Art Phi Beta Kappa Memorial Hall President's House Sunken Garden Wren Building
History	History Firsts Colonial colleges Williamsburg Bray School Matthew Whaley School Christopher Newport University Old Dominion University The Colleges of William & Mary Richmond Professional Institute
People	Notable alumni Presidents Chancellors King William III & Queen Mary II
Student life	Bus transportation The Gentlemen of the College Greek life Our Alma Mater Publications DoG Street Journal Flat Hat Virginia Informer Secret societies 7 Society Bishop James Madison Society Flat Hat Club Wren Society WCWM 90.9 FM WMTV
Misc.	Bodleian Plate Colonial Williamsburg Highland I Am the College Rich Neck Plantation Royal Hospital School SS William and Mary Victory City of Williamsburg
Categories: Wikipedia Commons

v t e William & Mary Tribe men's basketball
Venues	Blow Gymnasium (1925–1971) Norfolk Municipal Auditorium (alternate; 1952–1965) Kaplan Arena (1971–present)
Rivalries	Old Dominion
Culture & lore	Colonel Ebirt Griffin Hershberger Award hoax Scandal of 1951
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
Seasons	1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24

v t e William & Mary Tribe women's basketball
Venues	Blow Gymnasium (1925–1971) Norfolk Municipal Auditorium (alternate; 1952–1965) Kaplan Arena (1971–present)
Rivalries	Old Dominion
Culture & lore	Griffin Colonel Ebirt
People	Head coaches
Seasons	1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24

Basketball arenas of the Coastal Athletic Association

John W. Pope Jr. Convocation Center (Campbell)
TD Arena (Charleston)
Bob Carpenter Center (Delaware)
Daskalakis Athletic Center (Drexel)
Schar Center (Elon)
Hampton Convocation Center (Hampton)
Mack Sports Complex (Hofstra)
OceanFirst Bank Center (Monmouth)
Corbett Sports Center (North Carolina A&T)
Matthews Arena (Northeastern, men's)
Cabot Center (Northeastern, women's)
Island Federal Credit Union Arena (Stony Brook)
SECU Arena (Towson)
Kaplan Arena (William & Mary)
Trask Coliseum (UNC Wilmington)

v t e Music venues of Virginia
Outdoor venues	Atlantic Union Bank Pavilion Blue Ridge Music Center Brown's Island Jiffy Lube Live Meadow Event Park Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts
Theaters and clubs	Altria Theater The Birchmere Carter Family Fold The Coffee Pot Harrison Opera House Jammin' Java JV's Restaurant Little Grill Collective National Theater The NorVa Palace Theatre State Theatre
Arenas	Atlantic Union Bank Center Berglund Center Cassell Coliseum Chartway Arena EagleBank Arena Hampton Coliseum Hampton Convocation Center John Paul Jones Arena Joseph G. Echols Memorial Hall Kaplan Arena Norfolk Scope Richmond Coliseum Salem Civic Center Siegel Center Vines Center
Festival sites	FloydFest Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival Something in the Water
Historical venues	Trax

History

See also

References