From cell blocks to saloon doors – two new immersive bar experiences are landing in Brisbane
Brisbane’s bar scene is about to bend the rules – purely for entertainment purposes. This March, Fortitude Valley will welcome two immersive cocktail-bar concepts that turn a simple night out into full-blown theatre. Instead of squeezing into a corner booth and debating the drinks list, you’ll be issued an inmate number or swept into a Wild West bootlegging ring instead. Intrigued? Read on …
The new bar experiences, located Gotha Street in The Valley, are handiwork of UK immersive hospitality group Inventive Productions, in partnership with live-entertainment platform Fever. The first to open on Friday March 20 is Alcotraz, a prison-inspired bar experience where guests are ‘processed’ on arrival, suited up in orange and ushered into a speakeasy-style cell block complete with crooked guards, inmates and accomplices.
Expect plenty of antics as cocktails like the Conspiracy (mezcal, burnt-coconut tequila, chocolate butter, pineapple and cinnamon) are poured as the storyline unfolds around you. It’s part bar, part stage set, with all actors entirely committed to the bit.
Less than a month later on Friday April 10, Moonshine Saloon will swing open its saloon doors to operate side-by-side to Alcotraz. Set during American Prohibition, the experience drops guests into a dusty outlaw underworld ruled by notorious moonshiner Clyde Cassidy. Think backroom deals, bootleg spirits and a similar choose-your-own-adventure storytelling concept with a cocktail-filled twist.
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“We’re taking it beyond just a themed bar fit out, to a full theatre-style experience with costumes and actors helping to create something all-enveloping,” said Sam Shearman, director of Inventive Productions.
“With the boom in true-crime culture and ‘dark tourism’ sites – with the de-commissioned Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary being one of the most popular in the world – we will offer a lighter take on the growing trend with our new experience.”
Sessions to both Alcotraz and Moonshine Saloon start at $65, which includes the performance and four drinks. Tickets are sale from 6:00 pm on Wednesday February 18 – click here to snag yours.