UNCASVILLE, CT (CelebrityAccess) — How does a casino entertainment brand get on The Today Show, CBS Morning Show, 60 Minutes, an HBO Special, and sellout a record 30 concerts on sale in minutes? Ask Mohegan Sun Arena, now one of the top 3 arenas in the world today who just surpassed an attendance milestone of 11 million people this past week.
The answer, Programming and the timing of it. "It's quite a story to tell, who would have thought a venue in Uncasville Connecticut, would be in the same company with the world’s leading markets in London, New York City, L.A., Paris, Mexico City, and then beating out all the venues in Vegas to become the number one casino venue in the world", says, Tom Cantone, Sr. V.P of Corporate Sports and Entertainment for Mohegan Sun Properties.
Cantone, the architect of building an entertainment program along with his Live Nation partnership, has put Mohegan Sun Arena on the world stage and has built a reputation over the years as one of the today's top entertainment industry executives.
"I've always felt the right artists defines your property's personality and puts you on the map instantly. It's a built-in marketing program that drives incredible volume, and whoever drives volume wins", says Cantone. And that gets the attention of millions in today's social media culture, as Mohegan Sun Arena bolted to the top as the number one social media venue in the world today, a unique accomplishment given the intense competition of over 3,500 casinos in the world to get your attention.
Cantone, a former chief marketing officer at several well-known casinos, has always used entertainment as his calling card to win the competitive marketing wars and now directs the entertainment firepower of Mohegan Sun's properties throughout its domestic and international network of resort attractions.
"We literally have a distribution network that can route artists with multiple deal potential which gives Mohegan Sun a buying power presence", says Cantone. That presence spans from the northeast to the deep south to the Pacific Northwest, and soon Asia with the opening of a $4 billion integrated resort in S. Korea including a 15,000 seat state of the art Arena in 2020.
Under Cantone's leadership, the arena in Connecticut has won Arena of the Year multiple times, as well as numerous national awards. He was voted Entertainment Executive of the Year and honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award on two separate occasions at the G2E world gathering in Las Vegas.
In May, Cantone will receive the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in New York City, an organization that embodies the spirit of America's ideals, diversity, and tolerance. Seven U.S. Presidents have received The Medal of a Honor along with a distinguished group of diverse Americans and Nobel Prize winners, including Frank Sinatra, Hillary Clinton, Muhammad Ali, and Rosa Parks to name a few. Congress has officially recognized the Medal as one of the nation’s most prestigious awards.
