News from
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY
Office of Communications
Stanhope Hall
Princeton, New Jersey 08544-5264Contact: Mary Caffrey (609) 258-5748
Date: September 16, 1998
Public Invited to Events Celebrating Dedication of Princeton's New Stadium
"With the spare, sinewy grace of an athlete," writes The New York Times, "Rafael Vinoly's trim, understated building arrives at an opportune moment."
Princeton, N.J. -- Members of the public are invited to join in celebrating the dedication of the new Princeton University stadium, with a program of events before, during and after the Cornell-Princeton football game this Saturday, September 19.
The day starts at 10 a.m. with a lecture by stadium architect Rafael Viñoly, to be held in Richardson Auditorium of Alexander Hall. (Please note the new location; also, simulcasts will be held in McCosh 10 and 50 and in the McDonnell Hall auditoriums.) The lecture is titled "Designing Princeton University Stadium: The Architect's Perspective." Among Viñoly's best-known commissions have been the Tokyo Forum and the Regional Center for the Performing Arts, soon to break ground in Philadelphia.
Pre-game festivities in and around the stadium begin at 11 a.m. Outside the stadium, University and community groups -- including the Princeton University Band and the American Heritage Wind Ensemble -- will offer continuous performances. Entertainment for young people will include the N.J. Nets Hoop Zone, face painting, mimes and jugglers.
For this inaugural season, ticket prices have been set at $5 each. Inside the stadium, all ticket holders will receive a free commemorative program, which includes a poem, "All the Way," written for the occasion by Paul Muldoon, chair of Princeton's Creative Writing Program.
The dedication ceremony, featuring a convocation of former football varsity athletes on the field, will begin at 1 p.m. ABC News' Charles Gibson of the Princeton Class of 1965 will serve as master of ceremonies. Singer and bandleader Alex Donner of the Princeton Class of 1975 will sing the "Star-Spangled Banner." Two former all-Americans -- football's original soccer-style kicker Pete Gogolak of Cornell's Class of 1964, who went on to play with the New York Giants, and his brother Charlie Gogolak of Princeton's Class of 1966, who played with the Washington Redskins -- will match field-goal kicks in a half-time competition sponsored by Infiniti. The contest will benefit the Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital pediatrics program. The traditional band show will finish the half-time events.
Following the game, there will be a special combined concert by the Princeton and Cornell bands.
The new stadium, which cost $45 million, is designed to host not only football but also competitions in soccer and lacrosse, as well as civic events. An airy, sunlit concourse separates the outer section, known as the wall building, from the seating and contributes to the sense of public space. The wall building wraps 27,800 seats with the familiar U-shape that was so emblematic of the old, 45,000-seat Palmer Stadium. But with the corner seating removed, and spaces filled with trees and plazas, the new facility provides a more intimate viewing experience. Rooms within the wall building provide space for classes, offices, a rehearsal hall for the marching band and other uses. The stadium features state-of-the-art media and team rooms, as well as a president's box with breathtaking views of the campus.
Notably, the track oval has been removed and given its own treatment at the mouth of the horseshoe, with separate seating and a canopy. This part of the complex, the William M. Weaver Jr. '34 Track and Field Stadium, was dedicated May 2.
As Princeton President Harold T. Shapiro said of the stadium design, "Rafael Viñoly came to Princeton, studied our history, our campus and our traditions in sport, and gave us a new landmark that honors our past even as it heralds our future."
The opening day ceremony will be followed by a Community Day on October 10, which will feature special events designed to welcome residents of surrounding towns to the stadium.