August 12, 2016: SeatGeek to Offer Ticket Purchases Through Apps With New Platform, How the Seattle Art Fair Is Becoming the New Art Basel, Why an L.G.B.T.-Friendly Hotel in New York is Rebranding

1. SEATGEEK TO OFFER TICKET PURCHASES THROUGH APPS WITH NEW PLATFORM: Buying tickets through SeatGeek is about to become very simple for anyone with a smartphone. The ticketing site has announced it will launch SeatGeek Open, a platform that will let users buy tickets with almost every app. Mashable: "Through SeatGeek Open, an Uber customer who was in a ride toward a stadium, for example, could see and purchase tickets available for a game that day. 'Ticketing has long been a closed industry, and one that hasn’t been positively impacted by the power of technology in the same way many other industries have,' SeatGeek co-founder Jack Groetzinger said in a statement. 'We believe the open ecosystem we’ve built will transform the way people access tickets, allowing fans to go to more live events and teams and artists to reach more fans.' SeatGeek Open is a connective tool—it works with apps and brands to bring tickets to their platforms, and the consumer most likely won't even know SeatGeek was involved. SeatGeek's role is on the technology side of things. It will verify ticket barcodes for third parties like Uber and Facebook — something Ticketmaster, which holds a near monopoly over online ticket purchases, has confined within the walls of its site. The platform is focused on apps and mobile, but it would work online on a site like Facebook as well." http://on.mash.to/2b9s5Tb

2. HOW THE SEATTLE ART FAIR IS BECOMING THE NEW ART BASEL: As Art Basel in Miami continues to become more commercialized and less of an underground arts event, the Seattle Art Fair—which is in its second year—might be the new, go-to large-scale event for grassroots art. Playboy: "The brainchild of billionaire Microsoft tech giant, Seahawks owner and avid art collector Paul Allen, the 70,000-square foot, 84-gallery event brought 18,000 visitors to the Emerald City last weekend. A cursory rundown of SAF’s stats, which included an exhibitor list of heavy hitters like Pace and David Zwirner, presents like a fully formed Art Basel air-dropped on the West Coast via Jeff Bezos-commissioned drone, but it was the wave of companion fairs and satellite exhibits that elevated Allen’s main event from what could have been an impressive-yet-boring gathering to a unique addition to the contemporary art scene. A slew of local players and international tastemakers used the weekend as an opportunity to piggyback off of the visibility of Allen’s event, from Greg Lundgren’s Pac Northwest-focused companion fair Out of Sight at the nearby King Street Station, to Superflat, a melting pot of international artists co-curated by Juxtapoz’s Evan Pricco and the prolific Takashi Murakami. Why Seattle and why now? In addition to the fair’s billionaire patron, Seattle houses a huge population of artists doing interesting things in a city without the art-world prestige of L.A., Miami or New York. 'In Seattle, people really focus on the work,' says Greg Lundgren, the man behind SAF’s primary companion fair (whose professional credits also include fine art tombstone maker) and owner of retro Seattle nightlife staples Vito’s and the Hideout. 'It’s honest. It comes from a place of deep contemplation. We have all the ingredients to really start an interesting national and international dialogue. And I think Seattle Art Fair is that thing.' http://bit.ly/2aPdnyB

3. WHY AN L.G.B.T.-FRIENDLY HOTEL IN NEW YORK IS REBRANDING: What was once a popular tourist and gay-friendly hotel in New York, the Out Hotel is being sold to Merchants Hospitality and will be rebranded as a general boutique hotel. The New York Times: “The hotel stands in something of a no-man’s-land between Times Square and the Hudson River. For a while, its big nightclub, XL, drew a crowd. But its relative popularity was short-lived. So, too, was that of Mr. Reisner and Mr. Weiderpass in the gay community. The two business partners (and onetime life-partners) learned the bitter taste of internet notoriety last spring after hosting an event at their home attended by Sen. Ted Cruz, then a Republican presidential candidate, who has been an opponent of marriage equality for gays and lesbians. The hotel tried to play up its gay-branding in certain special events and in its lobby art. Earlier this summer, the lobby walls were adorned with Barbie doll dioramas that depicted various dolls in same-sex situations: two male dolls walking hand-in-hand; two women—one in a white gown, another in a white sleeveless tuxedo—at their wedding. … The necessity for a so-called gay hotel in the center of New York City was never entirely clear. ‘Gays travel a lot and for anyone who travels a lot, the hospitality industry goes out of its way to be very hospitable,’ said Nathan Lump, the editor in chief of Travel & Leisure and editorial director of Time Inc.’s lifestyle group. Attracting gay travelers is an imperative for hotel groups. Many hotels and hotel chains have diversity officers who oversee the process of educating employees and making properties inclusive of all travelers. Hilton published an advertisement in the June isse of Travel & Leisure showing two men, dressed, wearing wedding rings and cuddling in bed. (A social-media backlash to the ad developed several weeks after it was published when a group called the American Family Association started an anti-Hilton petition.)” http://nyti.ms/2b9u4UP

* LOCAL NEWS *

AUSTIN:  The seventh annual Fantastic Arcade, a fan event for arcade games, will take place September 26 in conjunction with Alamo Drafthouse's Fantastic Fest. This year's Fantastic Arcade will have the premiere of several new games in custom-built, free-to-play arcade cabinets at the Highball event center throughout the duration of Fantastic Fest.

CHICAGO:  Brookfield's Zoo's fifth annual Zoo Brew will take place August 26-27. The event will feature 80 beers from around 30 breweries. 

HOUSTON:  Holiday Inn Houston NE-Bush Airport, a 142-room hotel in Humble, opened on August 4.

LAS VEGAS:  GES, a global full-service event production agency, has acquired ON Event Services, a national provider of audiovisual production and technology services.

Db Brasserie’s head sommelier Devin Zendel will welcome guests to experience wines from the Boisset Collection during a wine dinner on October 14 at the restaurant inside the Venetian Las Vegas.

LOS ANGELES:  Sāmbār, a modern Indian restaurant in Culver City, will close August 27 with plans to reopen in September as an Italian restaurant with a new name to be announced. 

Rock and Reilly's, an Irish pub, will relocate from West Hollywood to the Financial District in the space formerly occupied by the Mexican restaurant FOH. The move is expected to take place sometime this fall. 

For information on upcoming events in Los Angeles, visit Masterplanner: http://www.masterplanneronline.com/losangeles

MIAMI/SOUTH FLORIDA:  The seafood restaurant and bar Watr has opened on the rooftop at 1 Hotels & Homes in South Beach. 

The fast casual chicken restaurant Le Chick Rotisserie will open in Wynwood in 2017. The 4,000-square-foot space will be the American version of the European restaurant concept Rotisserie Amsterdam.

Homewood Suites by Hilton Miami-Airport/Blue Lagoon has appointed Chris Hammons general manager. 

NASHVILLE:  The Westin Nashville, which opens September 27, has appointed Don Holowiecki as director of finance; Adam Smith as executive meetings manager of sales; Leisa Recabo as social catering manager; and Michael Pisano as conference service manager.

Nordstrom will present the second annual Off the Record, an fashion and music event set to take place October 29 the Factory at Franklin. The fashion show will include work from designers such as Naeem Khan, Stella McCartney, and John Varvatos. 

NEW YORK:  MTV has announced that Rihanna will receive the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award at the V.M.A.s on August 28.

City Vineyard, operated by the team behind City Winery, has opened at Pier 26 in TriBeCa. The American restaurant can accommodate 60 people seated inside and 200 standing on the roof deck. There is also an outdoor dining area that can seat 20, and a downstairs wine garden that can seat 50.

Actress/model Cindy Guyer has opened wine/tapas bar Guyer's in the Upper West Side space formerly occupied by Wine and Roses. The 1,000-square-foot venue serves Southern-inspired cuisine, and can seat 60 in the main dining room and 16 at the bar.

Artist Spencer Finch will recreate a section of Redwood National Park in California with a 4,500-square-foot mini forest that will feature 4,000 young dawn redwood trees. The installation will be on display October 1-May 13, 2018 at MetroTech Commons in Brooklyn.

The Olana Partnership's 2016 Frederic Church Award Gala will take place October 13 at the Metropolitan Club.

For information on upcoming events in New York, visit Masterplanner: http://www.masterplanneronline.com/newyork

SAN FRANCISCO:  Two Birds/One Stone, a 4,000-square-foot restaurant, has opened in St. Helena. The venue, which offers California-inspired yakitori cuisine, seats 80 in the main dining room and 35 on the patio. 

TAMPA:  Kira Jefferson has been named director of restaurants at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tampa.

WASHINGTON, D.C.:  Ocean Prime, a modern American restaurant and lounge from Cameron Mitchell Restaurants, will open in October in the Colorado Building.

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With contributions from Jenny Berg in Chicago, Alesandra Dubin and Claire Hoffman in Los Angeles, Mitra Sorrells in Orlando, and Carla Hay, Beth Kormanik, Michele Laufik, Jill Menze, and Ian Zelaya in New York.

BizBash Daily is the must-read digest of event industry news from BizBash.com.

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