Pabst Theater Group’s new all-ages East Side entertainment venue has a name – Vivarium.
“Vivarium is a Latin word literally meaning ‘place of life,’ and that is exactly what we intend to create with this new venue,” Pabst Theater Group President and CEO Gary Witt said.
The 450-seat venue at 1818 N. Farwell Ave. will feature dialed-in sound, top-notch sightlines, natural Cream City brick, wood walls made from 100-year-old trees from northern Wisconsin, skylights and a natural-feeling main room filled with live greenery.
Vivarium, which will open in early 2024, will replace The Back Room at Colectivo, the nearby intimate concert venue that will close at the end of this year.
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“In the nearly eight years since we’ve opened The Back Room, we’ve discovered how much it has added to and helped grow the Milwaukee club scene,” Witt said. “Its all-ages experience helped to open doors for many younger bands and their fans, giving them a place to gather and to share their passions.”
Vivarium will be a continuation of The Back Room’s efforts and compliment an already thriving small venue ecosystem that includes Cactus Club, Shank Hall, Linneman’s, X-Ray Arcade, The Cooperage and others by creating more space for the Milwaukee community to gather and local and national artists to perform, he added.
“It will be a living, breathing space, filled with plants and creative energy – encapsulating the vibrancy of Milwaukee’s East Side,” Witt said. “Live music venues will continue to lead the way in making Milwaukee a great place for developers to build hotels and apartments, companies to relocate and for people to choose to live here.”
The building that will house Vivarium is currently home to a trio of restaurants – Ethiopian Cottage, Chopstix and a Domino’s location – that will remain as tenants.
The Pabst Theater Group, one of the top independent live music promoters in Milwaukee, announced in May that it would close the Back Room at Colectivo and replace it with a new venue a few blocks away.
Cedarburg-based architecture and urban design firm Kubala Washatko Architects is working with the Pabst Theater Group to redesign the space.
“We want to transform the space so that it looks and feels unlike anything else, a club setting that completely defies expectations,” Kubala Washatko Architects Partner Chris Socha said. “The experience will reveal itself in layers starting with an enhanced pedestrian space that brings positive energy to the public realm. Upon entry, guests will be immersed in a truly living space, where an industrial aesthetic of brick and steel meets the lush serenity of real plants and greenery.”
Additional enhancements will include a blade sign featuring the Vivarium name on the building’s facade, an on-street parklet for bicycle parking and back-of-house amenities for traveling performers, including a secure load-in space, laundry area and green rooms.
Milwaukee-based General Contractor Findorff has been selected as builder for Vivarium. Construction work began in the space earlier this week.
“Having the opportunity to bring the group’s vision to life, for both the local club scene and the surrounding community, is equally unique and exciting. It is also a great opportunity to showcase the talents of our Milwaukee tradespeople in building a beautiful venue,” Findorff senior project manager Matt Schroeder said.
Milwaukee Alderman Jonathan Brostoff described the venue as a “big win” for the 3rd District.
“Not only is this a great additional asset to Milwaukee’s thriving music scene, but this will also be a safe space where our youth can hang out and socialize,” Brostoff said.
Vivarium will have a positive effect on Milwaukee’s small music club scene, said Kelsey Kaufmann, owner of the Cactus Club in Bay View.
“We’re building a culture of camaraderie in Milwaukee across venues, genres and artistic disciplines,” she said.
