Earlier this year, Brooklyn’s
Galapagos Art Space moved out of its Williamsburg digs and last week reopened in a new Dumbo location. The performing arts organization, which showcases music, dance, and cabaret acts as well as independent films, sits in a facility in a small, early 20th-century building (a former horse stable) near the waterfront. And in a nod to the growing interest in eco-conscious everything, the 10,000-square-foot space is one of the first art venues in the city to be certified as a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design building, with air, power, and water drawn from energy-efficient and environmentally friendly sources.The raw concrete and metal venue offers a column-free performance space featuring 16-foot ceilings, a stage, a bar, and a mezzanine. Here the focal point (aside from the stage) is a 1,600-square-foot pool of water that sits beneath four central seating areas—round, pod-like metal platforms with movable, semicircular red banquettes. Feeding the makeshift lake is water from a well dug especially by the venue's owners, and pumps continuously recycle the water throughout.
Also on the main floor are bathroom facilities, a catering prep area, a full-service bar, a section for a coat check, access to a small outdoor courtyard, and a separate entrance for performers. The mezzanine, which wraps around three sides of the space, overlooks the stage and is furnished with the same banquette seating as the floor below. A loft on the same level is suitable as a V.I.P. room or private event space for as many as 20 people. Scheduled for a winter opening is another performance section on the second floor, which is to be 3,000 square feet of space beneath a gabled roof.
Galapagos Art Space has audiovisual amenities including a projector and screen, as well as a full lighting and sound system. Currently, the space holds 175 seated or 230 for receptions.
