Prince George's Equestrian Center and Show Place Arena

The Show Place Arena is an adaptable entertainment and sports facility that can configure to accommodate a variety of event types. The Arena has been the venue for college basketball tournaments, cheer and dance events, consumer shows, concerts, rodeos, nationally-acclaimed equestrian events, graduations and the Prince George’s County Fair.

Pricing

Arena pricing is based upon a number of factors, e.g., event/client/arena requirements, event type, space and time allocations, security, safety, labor, equipment, set-up and tear down, catering, etc. The Show Place Arena can provide an event estimate and discuss possible dates after contacting the office to receive the appropriate application forms. Please note that the submission of the completed documents is necessary to provide realistic estimates, but it is not a binding contract.

Required Documents

The documents that must be completed are the Rental Application, New Client Business Reference, and Entertainment Assessment forms. These forms must be completed and returned before we are able to provide you with any event information. Please note that the business references submitted must be from the three (3) most recent venues that you have rented for events. Be sure to include your date(s) of interest on the application.

Ticket Sale

If the planned event involves the sale of tickets, Ticketmaster is the only authorized ticketing service for The Show Place Arena. No other ticketing venues (brick and mortar, online, etc.) are permitted. Under our contract, we cannot process a TicketMaster event until we have verified the client’s references and accepted the client’s signed contract, deposit, and mutually agreed upon event set-up diagram. The entire process to secure a ticketed event is usually a minimum of 120 days, so please submit your documents immediately if you wish to secure an available date. Please contact us for booking and availability.

Whether you’re looking for a facility to hold a sales meeting for your associates, a cocktail reception to thank your donors, or the celebration of an anniversary, The Show Place Arena can accommodate your event in comfort. Three banquet rooms can be rented for meetings, training or receptions with variable setups to suit your event. 

View the Banquet Site Plan (PDF).

Rental Information & Guidelines

The Show Place Arena has three banquet rooms that can be rented for meetings, trainings or receptions with variable set-ups to suit your event with ease. Banquet rooms may be rented separately or in conjunction with the Arena.

The banquet rooms can be booked during the week at any time; however, rentals during weekends will only be booked 60 days in advance.

Winner’s Circle Lounge

• 1420 square foot glass enclosed round room with a built-in bar

The Paddock Room

• 2270 square foot room overlooking the Arena floor
• Adjoins the Tack Room

The Tack Room

• 2560 square foot room overlooking the Arena Floor

Banquet Room Rental Fees

Four Hour Event

Eight Hour Event

The Show Place Arena includes a lobby with box office, a concourse, and an oval arena. The concourse level has three banquet rooms; the Arena can be viewed from two of them. Private suites of varying sizes are also available. Dressing/locker rooms and production offices are located adjacent to the Arena floor on the south side. The Arena decor features burgundy, hunter green and tan to reference the historic Marlboro Race Track that had previously operated on the property.

Floor

• Concrete
• Unlimited load
• 136 feet wide by 260 feet long
• With additional telescopic seats extended, the floor is 95 feet wide by 240 feet long
• With the dasher boards or equestrian footing installed, the usable floor space is 120 feet wide by 240 feet long

Ceiling Height

• Clear ceiling
• 40 feet to bottom of light fixtures

Arena Seating

• Theater-style plastic seats
• Handicapped accessible seating is folding chairs on the concourse level

Seating Capacities

• Arena seating capacity varies for different types of events and may be affected by staging and setup.
• Flexible configurations are possible.
• The maximum seating for the Arena can be 5,700:
  • Upper bowl: 2,824
  • Lower bowl/telescopic: 1,580
  • Seating added to the arena floor: 1,296

Video Boards

• Two Daktronics matrix video boards, with locations at the north and south sides of the Arena

Dressing Rooms

• Multiple dressing rooms with access to restrooms and showers

Ticketing Services

• Ticketmaster Entertainment, Inc.

Parking

• 2500 spaces are available on-site

Staging

• Maximum size: 52 feet by 40 feet
• 78 feet with wings
• Stage height can be 4 feet, 5 feet, or 6 feet
• Four sets of stairs are available to access the stage
• Forklift with 6,000 pound maximum

Event Load-In

• The South end of the Arena has docking doors accessed by two ramps.
• Door dimensions are 13.6 feet tall by 21 feet wide.
• The North end of the Arena has a ramp and doors going directly to the Arena flow to accommodate pedestrians and hand-carried items.
• Four major entrances to the Arena concourse level can be used to accommodate pedestrians and hand-carried items.

Power Capabilities

• Backstage/Arena South can accommodate two 200 amp – 3 phase and 1,600 amp isolated phase.
• Upstage/Arena north can accommodate two 200 amp – 3 phase.

Spotlights

Three spotlights, located at center, left center, and right center.

Houselights

• Capable of variable lighting schemes.
• Stage lighting is not included.

Rigging

Ground support only; the ceiling has no established stress points for hanging.

House Sound

Public address system only; it is recommended that Lessee supply sound enhancement or reinforcement for live performance.

Labor

The Arena can furnish labor to include electrician, load-in and tear out, stagehands, runners, spotlight operators.

Event Staffing

The Arena will schedule operations staff, housekeeping, ushers, parking attendants, ticket sellers and ticket takers, security, and Emergency Medical Technicians when required.

Catering & Bar Services

Catering and bar services are available upon request. Pricing for catering is based on a minimum of 25 guests unless otherwise noted. The catering menu pricing does not include 6% sales tax or 15% service fees, which are applied at the time of final payment. All alcohol sales are controlled by The Show Place Arena staff. All bar pricing is determined by the Food & Beverage Department. All bar services end ½ hour prior to the event end time or at the discretion of the Food & Beverage Manager. For information regarding our menus and pricing, please contact our Food & Beverage Department at 301-952-7900.

Download the Catering Menu (PDF)

Please note all ticketing and admission sales for events at The Show Place Arena, including advance, online and walk-up sales, must be handled by The Show Place Arena Box Office through TicketMaster. Clients may not have any online advance tickets sales for performances and events at The Show Place Arena on any other online source. Tickets through other sources will not be honored.

Requirements

Ticketing information, indicating the Name of the Event, Ticket Price(s), and the requested On Sale Date, must be provided no less than 30 days prior to the event and at least two weeks prior to the On Sale Date.

Additional Information

For additional information, please contact the Show Place Arena.