Oceana Wolverhampton

Oceana interior shot

WOLVERHAMPTON

OCEANA

VENUES, NOVEMBER 2006, COMMENTS

The Oceana brand continues to spread across the face of UK clubbing, and constitutes a dominant presence in the on-trade - a presence defined by not just the size of the venues, but the speed at which they are opening. The launch in September of Oceana Wolverhampton, the sixth incarnation of the Luminar superclub, was the first of a three phase opening sequence, with Plymouth following in October and Birmingham opening in early November.

It is hard not to be impressed by the sense of occasion at Oceana. Standing against the Wolverhampton skyline, the £5m club presents a huge, blue neon edifice that looks like it has been beamed down from another planet. It is sure to make a dramatic impact on the local late night economy, as evidenced by the volume of taxis that swarmed around the venue and the long queues that snaked outside the 2,300 capacity venue on the opening night. And while Oceana brings out the crowds in force, one of the most positive benefits of big business venues like Oceana is that the operators have the resources to apply the best principles of responsible trading. Both Oceana Bristol and Leeds have won Best Bar None awards for the safest club in Bristol, Leeds and West Yorkshire, whilst the BEDA Club of the Year was won by Oceana Leeds in recognition of the sheer professionalism of the operation - from entertainments to responsible management.

These standards were readily observable on the opening night of Oceana Wolverhampton. The door staff were friendly and helpful, with manager Chris Beaseley taking a pro-active role on managing the front door, while the staff behind the bar exhibited professionalism, enthusiasm and intelligence.

Meanwhile, there is so much to do and see at an Oceana (Wolverhampton has four bars, two nightclubs and a restaurant) that the emphasis on drinking is far removed from the equation, and exploration, surprise and social interaction constitute the key activities.

The venue itself has been created by the amalgamation of two nightclubs (the Atlantis club and a Heroes bar) in the former cinema building on Bilston Street, adjacent to the main shopping route of Dudley Street. The architectural changes to the building were devised by designers Bignell Shacklady Ewing, and involved stripping out much of the old cinema steel work and dropping an enourmous stair well through the three storey complex, around which the individual venues were positioned. The main contractors, WFC, were on hand to make the structural changes, construct the venue’s nine bars, and to co-ordinate the other contractors, spending 18 weeks on site. Smith Electrical Group were hired to provide capacity checks and ensure the supply of power throughout.

Inside the venue, the now familiar rooms have been installed, each one representing a different city at a different time - the futuristic Wakyama, First Port bar, the contemporary Aspen Ski Lodge and Sydney Harbourside restaurant, the Reykjavik Icehouse and the 70s-styled New York Disco, which features Network Lighting Design’s iconic illuminated dance floor. At the top of the stairs, the 19th century Parisian Boudoir serves as a VIP room, and plays on its racey identity with four poster beds, deep carpeting and a collection of Ingres’ nudes on the walls. The theming throughout these areas, which includes imitation bear hides, logs fires and a moose head were supplied by Themed Leisure Ltd. The intricate stylings on the wall are matched by a range of furniture from Angus Macrae Interiors, including a wealth of luxurious seating in the Sydney Harbourside Restaurant, as well as a diverse array of loose furniture that has been worked into the designs of each room.

The main focus of the club is the Icehouse, an intensely wintry dance arena whose interior is full of ice sculptures, large crops of fake icicles, and a pervasive use of white Hymax to give the surfaces of the room a translucent, glacial quality. As always, the contractors sought to build on Oceana’s reputation for extravagant technology. As such, Oceana features an enourmous moving bulkhead onto which a multi-layered set of animations have been projected. The fixture was a bravura display of imagination and craftsmanship from principle contactors WFC, lighting installers Design Intervention and BSE.

Says Brian Hawkins: “Following on from the last Iceahouse in Bristol we were keen to get a bit more excitement into the space, working with Design Intervention on the moving projection drum. The use of textured walls and ‘ice crystal’ colour changing decorative lights by Chantelle Lighting gave more detail than previously, which helped us evoke the frosty feel of the room.”The sound in the Ice House is provided by eight One Voice 15/2 speakers which have been mounted on four elegant and strategically placed loading arms, with each arm rising up from an enclosure housing two OV 118 Bass Units. The installation, devised by CVA, gives the Ice House a powerful and concentrated sound centred on the dancefloor, while around the dancefloor the audio is reinforced by ten One Voice 8 speakers.

As the dust settles on Oceana Wolverhampton, the trade’s attention will turn towards Plymouth and Birmingham to find out what is next for the Oceana brand. For the mean time, Luminar Leisure have another huge venue that offers excellence of service as standard, with an entertainments and technology package.

Words: Leo Batchelor

Images: Jim Ellam

From: November 2006 Issue

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