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Barrymore's Sold?


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Apparently Barrymore's has been sold to the owner of Tila Tequila, a Byward Market bar / nightclub. This is second-hand information though; anyone know anything definite? Apparently everything is cancelled in the near future and the club won’t be opening for some time. Staff has been told to expect layoffs.

Hopefully this means the new owner will be putting some money into the bar, specifically BOOKINGS, the façade and the upstairs bar with the disgusting gut-rotting beer taps and lines.

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I hope the new owner brings Barrymore's up to it's potential. I always thought is was a great venue under the hundred layers of grime from years of neglect.

Not many shows have atracted me to that venue in resent years. Maybe 1 a year for the past three years? I think that shows a lot of room for improvement as well.

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Funny Ms.Hux as I've been to a whole bunch of shows at Barrymore's and have loved most of them. They may be dingy but they pay a hell of alot more attention to sound and lights than most venues in this town.

The place could use a good cleaning and for God's sake I wish they'd invest in the facade a little more.

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Over the years, it's hosted hundreds of rock's luminaries including U2, Albert Collins, Doug and the Slugs, The Mamas and the Papas, Steve Earle, Nazareth, Kris Kristofferson, R.E.M., Rick Wakeman, Murray Head, Roger McGuinn, Rick Danko, Steppenwolf, Ian Hunter and Iggy Pop.

Doug and the Slug's are considered one of rock's luminaries in the same list as U2?

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  • 2 weeks later...

bold added by me

If everything goes according to plan, Barrymore's Music Hall on Bank St. will be open sometime this weekend, essentially unchanged.

The problem is it's not yet clear what that plan is.

By late yesterday afternoon, the club website indicated that it would be re-opening soon, but didn't say specifically when that would be.

In the meantime, scheduled concerts by Japanese band The Shakalabbits (tonight) and Junior Achiever and Great Scott tribute to AC/DC (tomorrow) remain in limbo.

"We're not 100% sure of when we'll be open, but we're aiming to have the theatre going this weekend," said building manager Louis Antonakos, who was attempting to finalize the sale of the historic music hall yesterday.

Without going into detail, Antonakos said the new owners were looking at major architectural renovations that would restore the heritage building to its original 1911 glory, including a grand foyer with arched ceilings and a new contemporary facade for the building.

"The building has been neglected for many years. We're working with heritage architects to repair the damage and restore the building into something that's contemporary yet historically accurate."

The Bank St. nightclub and former theatre has been closed since Aug. 18, when its owner Randy Lanctot, who also owns The Riverside Pub, announced its sale to an undisclosed buyer.

In the meantime, the new Imperial restaurant is complete and ready to open while work inside the former pinball arcade, which has stood empty and abused by vandals since 1990, is proceeding with structural and some cosmetic repairs.

Antonakos said that he would like to have most of the major renovations coincide with the city's plan to renovate Bank St. between Somerset and the Queensway beginning in spring 2009.

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http://www.ottawasun.com/Showbiz/OtherShowbiz/2008/09/11/6729711-sun.html

Barrymore's Music Hall is back in business.

For the first time since the building was locked shut Aug. 18, the Bank St. nightclub will reopen later today with its popular Retro-'90s night event.

That means tomorrow's scheduled live concert, The Metallica Experience and guests Dressed To Klown, will go on as scheduled, as well as a reunion show, The Groovebug, on Saturday.

It's the first time Barrymore's will be open to the public since former owner Randy Lanctot sold the business to Vince Simone, a Montreal-based entrepreneur with clubs in Toronto and Ottawa.

Aloha,

Brad

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