Roy Wilkins Auditorium

At first glance, I feel like I’m in a high school gymnasium where people can have proms, basketball games, etc.
I came here for the roller derby which I was an all new experience in itself! I had no idea how intense they were… But it was awesome.
There were 2 Emcees and also a singer performing during halftime. One thing that was horrible about this place was the audio. I could not understand one word out of the singers mouth and the emcees mics needed to be turned down a bit, it was like they were yelling in my ear the whole time.
One good thing about this place, there was a DJ and his music system sounded crystal clear despite the echo from the large auditorium.
Here was beer for $ 7 and wine for $ 8. The lowest price was a bottle of pop for $ 4.50. Make sure you eat before you get here or you’ll end up spending more than you wanted to.

I have lived in the St. Paul area now for almost 9 years and always walked by/​heard about the Roy Wilkin’s Auditorium but never set foot in it, until last weekend.
My wife and I went to go see the Rollergirls play at the Roy. We had no clue how roller derby was played, so it was a lot of fun getting to know the rules of the sport and then watch it in action. The teams and spectators were their own quirky sort, the whole lot was pretty fun to be around.
The auditorium reminds me of a glorified rich high school or community college auditorium, nothing too special. The bare concrete and such is a tad plain for something coined as «legendary». BUT that also means that food and drink prices are a couple bucks lower than at the professional level.
All in all, a fun night at an OK venue. I would go again.

My biggest problem relates to the seating — at least for the Women’s Flat Track (Roller) Derby Championship this past weekend (Nov 6 – 8, 2015). The seating is tight and apparently some fans sitting on the end of a row think they can patrol who can and can’t leave the row — even between bouts or at half-​time. I was injured by one such fan — between bouts — as she kneed me and tripped me so that I fell onto the concrete steps and my leg was injured. Then she wouldn’t let me back in to the row to sit beside my companion. I was polite and courteous at all times, so I don’t know why the belligerent behavior. I went to talk to the security people at the door and thankfully they were sympathetic and sent a security guard with me, who finally got fed up with the woman and demanded that she let me through. The seated woman finally did, but she kneed me again as I passed. It was never clear to me what her problem was, but with such tight seating between the rows, one can’t move easily without the cooperation of others. I did send a note to the MN Roller Girls afterwards but didn’t get much satisfaction. So, to anyone who plans to attend the bouts at Roy Wilkins — be sure to sit at the end of a row!

I saw alt-​J here recently, and got charged up the ass in extra fees via Ticketmaster, their ticket vendor of choice. 2 stars just for the size of the venue and the fact that when I was at the back of the floor, I still had a decent view. But I just don’t like the vibe of this place. I felt like a perv because the place feels like a big middle-​school gym.
Expect to pay $ 10 for parking at the Rivercentre ramp. Also expect being late for the show after you circle the Xcel Energy Center (it’s a long walk!) looking for the right entrance.
The Auditorium fits 5,000 people. That’s thousands of bladders that might burst while waiting for the few bathroom stalls. But that being said, alt-​J put on a good show, per usual!

EXTRA +1 for SAM SMITH.
The venue itself is quite dirty and weirdly situated. It’s small and it’s rough to find parking. I probably wound’t come again. Parking was $ 15 and it was confusing to find the venue from the structure right next to it.

Saw Sam Smith there earlier this year. His show was great.
I grew up in LA and went to school in CT, so I’ve been to a lot of shows at a lot of venues in LA and NYC. This «Legendary» Roy Wilkins Auditorium is anything but. I had high expectations figuring it had been there for a while and must be awesome if it has the term «Legendary» attached to it.
The venue has the feel of going to a minor league hockey arena cut in half with the lower bowl seats removed. It’s a concrete mess. Having been around since 1932, wouldn’t the owners have figured out that concrete isn’t the best material for acoustics? Not to mention all that concrete is beyond ugly. Why not cover it up with drapes or murals of fantastic past events?
Size wise I would compare it to The Wiltern in LA and MSG Theatre in NYC. However go online and look at the décor of both of those venues. When you walk into The Wiltern you know exactly what you’re going to see, a show. At the Roy Wilkins you have no idea what’s going to happen.
Also, the main entrance to this «Legendary» venue is difficult to find. This place is a total design fail. I hope no other band/​artist I want to see plays here again. Seeing a show here once was one too many.

Roy Wilkins Auditorium’s only redeeming quality is its size. It’s pretty much the only indoor venue in the cities that can hold acts too big for First Avenue and too small for the Xcel/​Target Center.
And now for the airing of grievances:
1. Ticketing is done through Ticketmaster so add upwards of 20% of the ticket price for fees.
2. It’s fucking hot in there. Like, this isn’t their first rodeo. They should know how to control the temperature for various crowd sizes.
3. The mass exodus after the concert/​event involves lots of shuffling slowly down too small of hallways with 5,000+ other people. You’re better off waiting at your seat/​whatever for 15 minutes and then heading out.
4. They serve (most undoubtedly overpriced) fair food, and there’s probably going to be someone around you that throws up. This combined with the temperature equals too many smells.
5. There are a lot of doors that look like entrances, but do not be fooled. Head in on Washington by the Ordway and Rice Park or on Kellogg.
6. You’re basically watching a concert in an oversized high school gym.

I’ve now attended Roy Wilkins Auditorium for three separate events: my high school graduation 8 years ago, a roller derby event, and last night’s Queens of the Stone Age show. The acoustics for each event were absolutely awful, but I’ve never before felt compelled to voice my annoyance — until last night when I was charged $ 5 for a bottle of Dasani poured into a plastic cup (half of which spilled as I weaved my way through the crowd to find my friends). I understand jacking up the prices on things like beer (which was $ 9, even worse than the fair!) but I didn’t see any water fountains and I needed water (the responsible beverage choice). IF there is a next time, I will re-​use my beer cup and just fill it with tap water in the bathroom. Charging $ 5 for water should be illegal.
Beyond that… get on the floor if you attend something here. It’s a big place but if you’re on the floor, it feels a lot more intimate. I got dizzy on the balcony during a derby but even being a fair distance from the stage last night, I had a great view from the floor. Most of the people working the event were extremely friendly — even the woman who charged me $ 5 for water apologized («I don’t set the prices!!»), and not once but TWICE, security approached one of the people I was with to ask if he’d lost money.

I recently saw Queens of the Stone Age perform here. I will admit that the venue was clean and the staff were friendly. But the most important part of seeing a concert for me is the sound and I found the accoustics of The Roy Wilkins to resemble the accoustics of a large gymnasium. I was on the rail of the balcony and had a hard time making out any lyrics and half the time couldnt here the guitars. I spent 50 $ on the tickets and left early. The drink and food prices were also $$$.

I’m actually reviewing the Roy Wilkins Exhibition Hall. But I’m really writing to review the cat show, lol. I have been here 3 times. Once for some sort of liquidation full of ghetto items for sale. Don’t ask me what I was doing there. And for my second and third time here, it was for The 37^th and 38^th Annual Saintly City Cat Club Championship Cat Show.
The exhibition hall itself is old and boring looking. Needs some color to add more life into it. Maybe add some natural sunlight somehow also?
On to the more important stuff, the cat shows are so fun! Lots of cat lovers all around in funny outfits. Cats everywhere. The first time I was at the cat show I had horrible allergies. And this year my allergies were at bay.
They have a lot of stations set up for cat collectables. Shirts, toys, beds, you name it. I scored a fun t-​shirt for $ 6 and a $ 2 catnip toy for my Miss Cleo. I love my t-​shirt and Miss Cleo loves her new toy. Admission was only $ 4 to get in and they stamp your hand with a paw.
There’s judging going on at different stations and just tons of cats on display. Lots of older ladies. Lol, stereotype, I know.
I love going to the cat show. I can’t wait for The 39^th Annual Saintly City Cat Club Championship Cat Show. Check it out if you’re a cat lover, its definitely a pawty you don’t wanna miss. Meow!

Great place to see Roller Girls battle it out. Horrible venue to hear a concert! The sound is akin to blasting music over a blown out speaker. However, it’s small enough to almost call this venue «intimate.» I saw Postal Service here recently and had GA tickets. Good vantage point from any location.

The Roy is kind of a crusty old half-​arena of a venue. It’s part of the current, modern Xcel Energy Center complex, but reeks of a bygone era. That said, I have seen a bunch of awesome shows here (Pavement, Arcade Fire, the Pixies, Rob Zombie and more). I once saw Monster Magnet pelted with coins and bottle caps here because they said something stupidly sexist on stage (and they also are a really shitty band). That was cool. The sound quality isn’t the best at the Roy, but if the band puts on a good show it doesn’t really matter.
I just went again the other day for the National and the show was brilliant. The video and lighting was very well done, and the vendors, while very bare bones with just beer, wine, spirits and soda, were OK. They even responded well to an empty keg, replacing it quickly enough so that not too much time elapsed for customers. I haven’t always been thrilled about the performance of the employees or the management of the shows here; they could be more organized and efficient, but all in all the National show was pulled together well. The bathrooms at the Roy are too small and cramped, but on the bright side there’s lots of convenient parking nearby. You must take the good with the bad when it comes to this venue. It’s both awful and kinda cool at the same time. A-​OK.

It’s hard to give such a low review to a venue that The Beatles performed at, but it is awful. If they made the concert stage 360 in the center of the floor then it might work, but almost every seat in the house is a difficult vantage point.
The only positive attribute about Wilkins is its the only venue that can host a concert between 1^st Ave and Xcel center which is small vs huge and can bring in some good medium size acts.
I have not been to a Roller Girls event so I might be updating the review if its better than a concert.

Roller Girls baby!!!
Roy Wilkins is a great venue for the Roller Girls. It’s also a wonderful place to see a concert. Small enough to be cozy but big enough to hold a good amount of people.
I saw David Bowie here back in the day and it was really cool to see a top name in a small venue.

The Roy… Jeckyl and Hyde of local venues.
Roy Wilkins is a great place to enjoy a Rollergirls bout. The place fills up with screaming fans, and a bag of popcorn or a Surly tallboy is always near at hand. The venue also serves as a decent place for a convention/​trade show type gathering. There’s lots of parking nearby, as well as a range of quality bars/​restaurants.
On the other hand, the place sucks out loud as a music venue. I have seen live shows at the Roy going back to the 1980s, and the sound at every single one of them was just terrible. I’m done seeing live music at Wilkins. Rollergirls, yes. Saintly City Cat Show, yes. Live music, never again.

Attended a graduation so none of the food vendors were open. We arrived early GA seating afforded us our pick of front row seating. Not the most comfy seats. If the food vendors are closed the only water access is from fountains. Decent sized auditorium. No complaints on the sound but, they only had the PA running, oh and a small band played a few tunes but, I had no issues hearing the PA.
Mens bathrooms had the ‘trough style’ not a big fan or user because of splatter and crossing the streams while the guy next to you is trying to get a look at your hardware (occasionally happens), not a big deal plenty of stalls open and no one was using them for #2’s. It’s not like we packed the venue or gave the restroom several hours of use but, they were not clean at all, I almost wondered if they had been cleaned from the previous event.
Going to have to return for the Roller Girls. I sometimes run into roller girls at events (they do quite a bit of marketing) and always bring up ‘is it kind of like the 1975 movie RollerBall’. I think only one person I have asked so far has actually seen it. Rollerball is my only frame of reference :(
Graduation was free for the 8 of us that got the free tickets, graduation for the graduate’s was quite expensive fortunately they give them 30 years to pay it back.

It is like a larger, cavernous version of First Avenue. The balcony is too far back, the acoutstics are not great, and girls pee in the mens room. Well maybe that was the show we were at. Better for Roller Girls than a concert.

Terrible venue.
1. No restrooms in the main lobby. Truly unbelievable.
2. Very poor air-​conditioning. Hot and muggy for the show. Horrible!
3. VERY few concession stands (relatively) = long. LONG waits.
4. HORRIBLE Sound (At least for A Perfect Circle show)

Roy Wilkins Auditorium is a great place to go see one of the Minnesota Roller Girls matches. I have also been to a couple of car shows there as well. It’s definitely larger then it appears and I think the events held there are super fun.
It’s pretty historic from what I understand, which makes it even more neat!

Bad acoustics, no character, lack of restrooms, poor concessions but some great acts over the years (must be cheap?) and a great location.
Most recently saw Wilco on 10÷2÷09, and they put on a great show, despite the venue.
The first time I entered from the 5^th street side and there was an unlit, limestone wall that said «Roy Wilkins Auditorium» which made me think the place was going to be a cool old place (see photo). Wrong.