|

Posted in music | venues on October 30, 2009

Knitting Factory is booking Brooklyn venue Warsaw now

Greenpoint Polish club turned concert venue Warsaw might start having concerts again thanks to Knitting Factory who recently reopened their own permanent space in the neighboring Williamsburg.

The addition of the Warsaw gives the East Coast Knitting Factory talent buying team the flexibility to present concerts in the more-intimate Knitting Factory Brooklyn (capacity approx. 300) or the more expansive Warsaw, a 1,000-capacity showroom.
It'll be like the Union Hall / Bell House of Williamsburg, though with more competition in the same neighborhood. Check out the press release below...

KNITTING FACTORY ENTERTAINMENT BECOMES THE EXCLUSIVE PROMOTER OF THE WARSAW IN BROOKLYN

Knitting Factory Presents, the touring division of parent company Knitting Factory Entertainment, has signed an exclusive concert promotion agreement with the Greenpoint, Brooklyn based venue, Warsaw. Opening in 2001, the Warsaw has become a landmark venue and a trustworthy stop on national tours.

The addition of the Warsaw gives the East Coast Knitting Factory talent buying team the flexibility to present concerts in the more-intimate Knitting Factory Brooklyn (capacity approx. 300) or the more expansive Warsaw, a 1,000-capacity showroom. Pronounced "Best Rock Venue" by New York Magazine, the Warsaw is located in the Polish National Home at 261 Driggs Avenue in Greenpoint/Williamsburg Brooklyn, NY 11222.

Says Knitting Factory Entertainment CEO / President Mr. Morgan Margolis, "This is an exceptional opportunity for us to expand our brand and promoter expertise into a very difficult New York market. I'm excited to be working alongside Warsaw's Mark Chroscielewski to make Knitting Factory Presents and Warsaw a force on the East Coast."

Mr. Chroscielewski, Warsaw's Founder and Managing Director, adds, "In the year we opened our doors, 2001, the Village Voice recognized the Warsaw as the venue which transformed Brooklyn into a stop for national touring acts. By 2003 Zagat's crowned the Warsaw with 'where pierogis meets punk.' Now, with Knitting Factory Presents we will make Brooklyn the premier venue for artists and their fans. It will be hard to tell who'll have more fun!"

The deal was put together by Warsaw's Chroscielewski and Knitting Factory Entertainment's Margolis along with KF Brooklyn Senior Talent Buyer Chris White, and VP of East Coast Operations, Shay Vishawadia. Noted Shay, "I am excited and honored at the chance to present shows and events at the historic Polish National Home, Warsaw. Our goal, working hand in hand with Mark Chroscielewski, is to ensure that we deliver an amazing environment for both artists and patrons."

Chris Moore, Senior Vice President of Knitting Factory Touring, noted that this gives his talent buyers a great flexibility in terms of buying power for the Brooklyn area. "A primary focus of ours is to grow artists from a grass roots level to a 1,000-capacity venue and beyond," he said. "Adding the Warsaw to our repertoire of venues continues with that mission."

Chris White, who will oversee the booking of the venue, concluded by saying, "I'm as equally thrilled for the opportunity to help Knitting Factory Presents grow and develop on the East Coast as I am to be working with the staff at Warsaw again. Given my past success presenting shows at the club it feels completely natural for the Knit to be partnering with them on this venture. I have every confidence that we will achieve great success together."

Tags: Knitting Factory, Warsaw (venue)
posted at 3:40 PM on October 30, 2009 in music | venues | Comments (30)

Comments (30)

I Hope this competition between venues leads to venues having to lower their shows age restrictions.

Posted by Anonymous | October 30, 2009 4:05 PM

i don't.

Posted by jan janson | October 30, 2009 4:26 PM

Wow, that's awesome. Plus there's always the yummy Pierogis!

Posted by Lars | October 30, 2009 4:30 PM

i heart warsaw! good news.

Posted by Anonymous | October 30, 2009 4:31 PM

>>I Hope this competition between venues leads to venues having to lower their shows age restrictions.

Why would competition suddenly change laws ?

Posted by Anonymous | October 30, 2009 4:36 PM

warsaw fucking blows. just another reason not to go to williamsburg.

Posted by Anonymous | October 30, 2009 4:43 PM

The Warsaw is OK -- sound is horrible... Bell House and Union Hall are both doing things right, it's a tough tandem to beat.

Posted by Anonymous | October 30, 2009 4:44 PM

"Bell House and Union Hall are both doing things right"

I love the Bell House, but Union Hall? Not so good. A glorified living room is what it is. Good for singer-songwriter types that don't attract a crowd, but the room is too small for other stuff.

I like the Warsaw. The sound is horrible, but it's not so bad if you try to go up front (which I normally don't do) since you get the sound from the amps and not the PA. The crew there is also nice.

Posted by Anonymous | October 30, 2009 4:49 PM

Chris White!

Posted by anon | October 30, 2009 5:08 PM

Warsaw is such a cool venue. Maybe not the best for sound, but such a cool place. Old Polish punk rock chicks serving sandwiches and perogies! And Polish beer! Where else can you find that? Seriously? Very unique nonetheless

Posted by Anonymous | October 30, 2009 5:34 PM

I love the Warsaw. One of my favorite venues. This is good news to me.

Posted by M | October 30, 2009 5:36 PM

terrible news. warsaw is a horrible venue.

Posted by Anonymous | October 30, 2009 5:49 PM

oh stop whining- this is good news... freakin' babies on this website

Posted by Anonymous | October 30, 2009 6:03 PM

Anyone remember that epic Wilco concert at Warsaw?

Posted by Anonymous | October 30, 2009 7:43 PM

I always liked Warsaw.I miss that place. Mogwai in 2002 was an amazing show. Great beer.

Posted by Anonymous | October 30, 2009 8:50 PM

it aint no Terminal 5

Posted by Anonymous | October 30, 2009 10:31 PM

What's this the 6th or 7th group/person to book Warsaw ?

Posted by Anonymous | October 30, 2009 11:38 PM

I will never ever ever forget the Buzzcocks show at Warsaw. 30 years past their prime, and they wrecked the place. One of my faves of the 00s.

Posted by Anonymous | October 30, 2009 11:49 PM

"warsaw fucking blows. just another reason not to go to williamsburg."


its in greenpoint.

Posted by Anonymous | October 31, 2009 12:53 AM

And the point goes to ...October 31, 2009 12:53 AM !

Not a bad venue. I enjoyed Social Distortion when I saw them there.

Posted by Anonymous | October 31, 2009 2:16 AM

the 21+ restrictions have nothing to do with the law.

in New York State, there is no restriction on under 21 people being in a place that sells alcohol (if you doubt this, look around you at the next Major League Baseball game you go to, or at Knitting Factory).

The recent trend towards 21+ venues in New York is driven entirely by venue owners who only want to let in people who will make money for their bar, and by the fact that it is more expensive to insure an all ages venue.

Hopefully this new competition and the glut of venues will encourage more clubs to go all ages and stop locking out half the audience / participating in age discrimination.

Posted by Anonymous | October 31, 2009 12:58 PM

Warsaw was never a Polish niteclub, it is/was actually the Polish National Home, which is sort of like a VFW hall for the Polish immigrant community.

There were never Polish dj nights or any kind of live rock shows in there before John Fitz started throwing DIY shows there in the early 2000s, after which time several successive big promotion companies got in on the party and got the building owners to sign exclusive deals, none of which worked out well, really.

Posted by Anonymous | October 31, 2009 1:06 PM

woooow :_) New York is driven entirely by venue owners

Posted by فيديو يوتيوب | October 31, 2009 11:09 PM

knitting factory shows are all ages... so does this mean warsaw is going to be too?

Posted by Anonymous | November 1, 2009 1:25 AM

knitting factory shows are 18+, actually.

Posted by Anonymous | November 1, 2009 1:49 AM

woooow :_) New York is driven entirely by venue owners

Posted by Custom Dresses | November 1, 2009 3:20 AM

love warsaw

Posted by Anonymous | November 1, 2009 6:35 AM

"woooow :_) New York is driven entirely by venue owners"

Yes.. that is true. owners of venues "entirely drive" New York. What a stupid comment... are you 9 years old?

Posted by Anonymous | November 1, 2009 10:12 AM

**I love the Bell House, but Union Hall? Not so good. A glorified living room is what it is.**

Therein lies the beauty of it. Seeing Fleet Foxes in your living room is pretty much the best thing ever.

Posted by Anonymous | November 1, 2009 10:22 AM

Actually knitting factory is all ages, under 18 are allowed but have to be with someone over 18. Yah know, a babysitter basically. Cause its the nyc law. But bowery shows are strictly 18+ and 21+.

Posted by Anonymous | November 1, 2009 9:06 PM

Leave a Comment

What's Going On Today? BV Events Contests

Recently

Recent Comments

Recent Galleries

Most Popular

Recent Features

Browse Categories (or Browse Tags)

Blogroll

Blogroll Links

More Blogroll Links »

Dwnld & Stream