IT IS the heart and soul of Hongkong's entertainment industry. It has seen the sweat, tears and laughter of sporting achievement. The faithful have come to pray there. Graduates have received their honours there. It has proved to be a litmus test for mostof the territory's stars and provided a platform for international artists attempting to conquer Asia.
And this month the Hongkong Coliseum, that bizarre concrete rival to Rome's amphitheatre, is 10 years old.
Completed in 1983 at a cost of $175 million - no less than 20 years after it was first envisaged - the Coliseum has provided a platform for the best in sports, culture and show-business that Hongkong and the world has to offer.
While it may not be as pretty to the eye as Rome's crumbling edifice, there is no denying it is a remarkable feat of architecture and engineering, and a concept that has, so far, stood the test of time.
Since former king of Canto-pop Sam Hui Koon-kit held the first concert in its cavernous hall, a stream of top showbiz stars has trod the boards: from local stars such as Anita Mui Yim-fong, Paula Tsui, Alan Tam Wing-lun and Leslie Cheung Kwok-wing, to international artists as famous as Frank Sinatra, Stevie Wonder, Whitney Houston, Paul Simon, Simply Red and, most recently, Elton John.
In sports, world class skaters have skated, Japan's sumo kings have sweated, while the venue has also attracted top competitions such as the recent soccer Five-a-Side World Cup.