One of the best independent venues in the country (and L4LM’s favorite spot) is about to expand. According to the New York Post, Brooklyn Bowl, the massively popular venue in Williamsburg, which hosts incredible acts at inexpensive cost is looking into expanding to not only Las Vegas (which had been previously reported) but in London as well.
The nightclub features not only music on a nightly basis, but has food for patrons (catered by Blue Ribbon Restaurants), bowling lanes, and massive video screens all over the place which will play anything from the show going on, webcasts of other shows being played around the country, sports games, movies, or videos to accompany the music played within the venue.
Apparently, Madison Square Garden Entertainment is a minority investor in the Las Vegas club, having contributed approximately $25 million to the project, which will hold upwards of 2,000 people in a 78,000 square foot space with two levels. In a statement regarding the President of MSG Entertainment Melissa Ormond discusses the club and partner Peter Shapiro,
“Peter and his team at Brooklyn Bowl have put together an innovative model that has made Brooklyn Bowl a favorite for fans of live music…“We are thrilled to partner with them to take the Bowl to Las Vegas.”
When discussing the London club, Shapiro said it will have a closed-circuit connection to video cameras and the main sound board inside the neighboring O2 arena, which will allow the club to show live concerts in the arena as they happen, as well as booking its own bands and serving as an after-party spot.
President and chief executive of AEG Europe (which owns 02 Arena and signed a 15-year lease with Shapiro and partners), Jay Marciano, has said both parties will act as equal partners and will share in the profits of the 28,000 square foot club. AEG will also handle the booking of the Las Vegas venue. The London club is expected to open before Christmas, according to Shapiro. Shapiro and his partners – Charley Ryan, Jim Woods, and Alex Cornfeld – are also looking for available spaces in Chicago.
There really is no other place like Brooklyn Bowl. It brings such a wide array of music to the stage, from the well-known to the up and coming, at an affordable cost to fans.