Vivarium, Milwaukee's newest concert venue, makes a strong first impression

Since 2002, Milwaukee's Pabst Theater Group has added the Riverside Theater, Turner Hall Ballroom and Miller High Life Theatre to its roster, and booked shows at a diverse range of venues, from Fiserv Forum to the Miller Caves.

But one thing it hasn't done is operate a venue it built from the ground up — until its newest space, Vivarium, opens to the public Thursday.

The 450-person-capacity venue at 1818 N. Farwell Ave. offered a sneak peek Tuesday night, with Milwaukee artists Wave Chapelle and Adorner breaking in the stage for invited guests and music fans who reserved a limited supply of free tickets.

Molly Grace will headline the first ticketed event Thursday, with 57 other shows announced through October — from Against Me! frontwoman Laura Jane Grace, to rising country star Breland, to local artists like Buffalo Nichols and Diet Lite.

"It's going to be one of the coolest things we've ever done," Pabst Theater Group Chief Operating Officer Matt Beringer told the Journal Sentinel.

Making a solid first impression

Vivarium (pronounced "Vai-Ver-Ree-Uhm," as a sign above a cooler behind the club's bar illustrates), a Latin word that means "place of life," made a solid first impression Tuesday.

There are still some touches to be completed — a planned blade sign outside, a bicycle inlet, a moss wall for the entryway. But the venue, designed by local firm Kubala Washatko Architects, is a handsome transformation of what had been a nondescript storefront in an east side strip mall.

Wooden walls, constructed from 100-year-old trees from northern Wisconsin, line one side of the venue, with gray brick walls (and railings for drinks) on the other side. Eight large skylights, and plants decorating railings by the ceiling, offer an inviting aesthetic. The bathrooms are polished with oversized, illuminated mirrors; metal light fixtures custom designed by local artist Charlie Niedzalkowski are a nice touch.

"Everything about this place is something about Wisconsin," Pabst Theater Group CEO Gary Witt said. That includes custom furniture in the venue's green room from Door County-based SoDo Designs.

Tuesday's show didn't appear to be at full capacity, but moving around the club was easy, with bar chairs and leather couches scattered through the otherwise empty floor, and clear sightlines from nearly every spot.

The low end from the bass and drums in Chapelle's backing band were a bit heavy at times — during the set, the vibrations could be felt at Chopstix, the takeout spot next door. But the sound was largely sublime within the walls, with the Milwaukee rapper's sharp rhymes, and occasional fuzzed-out guitar freak-outs from one of his bandmates, cutting through the noise. The sound also was muffled enough in the interior entryway and just outside the entrance that conversations were easy to discern.

Replacing the Back Room at Colectivo

This may be the Pabst Theater Group's first built-from-scratch club, but it has operated a small club before: the 300-person-capacity Back Room at Colectivo on Prospect Avenue, from 2015 to last December.

Initially, the plan was for the Back Room to be a "pop-up" venue with occasional shows featuring club-level acts that might skip Milwaukee, Beringer said.

"Once we started with our first show, word began to get out and spread like wildfire," Witt said.

Toward the end of its run, the Back Room was hosting about 150 to 160 shows a year — "and we still had to pump the brakes," Beringer said.

Witt said the Pabst had a "very altruistic and utopian relationship" with Colectivo, but operating two different and active businesses in one space had its logistical challenges.

"We saw the real value, but the only way to continue was to be on our own," Witt said.

The owner of the building housing Vivarium, New Land Enterprises, had planned to convert the location into an event space, before the pandemic sidelined their plans. Three restaurant tenants in the building — Chopstix, a Domino's Pizza location and Ethiopian Cottage — are staying put. Witt said they plan to use those restaurants for backstage meals and are going to look into ordering options for Vivarium guests.

For Witt and Beringer, the location checked several boxes. With their own building, they have more flexibility for promotional partnerships and with bookings. (Beringer said they expect to quickly match the Back Room's volume of shows.)

The space comes with a heated garage, a definite plus for bands and crews compared with the unloading on Prospect Avenue that had to happen at the Back Room. And they loved the area's "vibrancy and density," Beringer said.

"Historically, this is one of the greatest neighborhoods in the whole state for entertainment, dining and living," Beringer said.

Beringer and Witt wouldn't disclose how much they were spending on bringing Vivarium to life, but Beringer said the venue will not be profitable in year one. And he admitted that, "on paper, it makes very little sense from a business standpoint."

But Beringer and Witt argued that the investment will pay dividends in terms of developing the live music market.

"We have an evolutionary stepladder that nurtures and grows artists through our rooms," Witt said. Case in point: Some past Back Room performers, including Tyler Childers and Mitski, went on to play sold-out concerts at the Pabst's 2,500-seat Riverside Theater and 4,087-seat Miller High Life Theatre, respectively.

And when agents for bigger acts "talk to us and know we will work equally hard to nurture a show (at Vivarium) or at Turner Hall, that helps us to strengthen relationships."

Witt suggested the Pabst will even be able to strengthen relationships with other venue operators in town through Vivarium. The location is less than a half-mile down the street from Shank Hall, but Witt said he is interested in partnering with Shank Hall owner Peter Jest on Vivarium shows. Jest has promoted multiple concerts at other Pabst Theater Group venues over the years, and he told the Journal Sentinel he wasn't concerned about competition.

And the Pabst is partnering with the Cactus Club on an April 26 show with acclaimed indie rapper Mike. The Cactus Club is also presenting an April 30 concert at Vivarium with singer-songwriter Nick Shoulders.

"The market is growing, and especially the club scene is growing," Witt said.

Editor's Note: This story has been updated with the correct spelling of Wave Chapelle.

Contact Piet at (414) 223-5162 or [email protected]. Follow him on X at @pietlevy or Facebook at facebook.com/PietLevyMJS.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee's newest music venue, Vivarium, makes strong first impression