hospitalitystyle.com

(January 2009) posted on Wed Jan 21, 2009 EST

The Hard Rock Hotel & Casino ’s Wasted Space ushers in a new era of small, exclusive rock clubs.

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By Mary Scoviak

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Wasted Space, the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Las Vegas' newest night spot, has enough leather, studs and ironwork to keep it true to the brand's rocker roots. It's what plays out beyond these signatures that makes it more than just another riff on the classic rock club. At 5,000 square feet, this extrapolated backstage experience tests the appeal of an intimate, high-end anti-club where design is about privilege and personalization.

Conceptualized by motocross sports star (and Pink's ex-husband) Carey Hart and executed by interior designer ZeffDesign, Wasted Space is the antithesis of the typical 30,000- to 40,000-square-foot Sin City mega-club. There's no neon, no flashing color-blocked floor and no strobes. Instead, design focuses on the penthouse decadence only music's stars see.

The wood is dark and rich. Fabrics include sensual velvets, snake skins and plushes with a heavy drape. And the art is commissioned from the painters young Hollywood's collecting, like Daniel Maltzman. Textured finishes give an upmarket edge to natural materials such as glass and stone. Pendants over each booth put every patron in the spotlight. Ambient lighting is softly amber-hued to wash the room with a candlelit quality until a color array changes up the mood when the band or the DJ takes the stage.

"People want something real when they party," says Phil Shalala, the Hard Rock Las Vegas' vice president of marketing. "They're tired of being jammed in with 20,000 others staring up at Britney Spears. If they're paying $1,000 for a night out, they want to be the star."

Tiered seating gives patrons VIP positioning. But don't confuse this with the Lego-like approach that's made some clubs vertical mazes. What's new in this execution is the subtlety. The main area's 17 tables/booths sit on a platform just six inches above the central stage and dance floor, while the lounge at the rear hovers one level up to keep sight lines clear. "You're just steps away from the stage, but you can still tuck back into a corner of the booth and talk," says Shalala. "That's gotten good reaction from celebrities who want some privacy."

A grid of stylized wrought iron railings surrounds each booth for added intimacy. This low-profile way of dividing an open floor plan takes place below eye level. So there is not a bad table and nothing to block anyone's view. It also makes a statement, echoing the glam rock imagery of Maltzman's pop culture subjects and his dramatic use of chiaroscuro. "We were looking for new elements and art that referenced fashion, music and lifestyle but not in a pompous way," Shalala adds.

Nor was Hard Rock looking for class that would appeal to the masses. The accents, like the basic design, had to be for the "indie" crowd. Both the operator and designer liked the fact that Maltzman's work was just being discovered. They wanted that same artisanal flair for the accents. So, they commissioned a regular patron, a local metal artist named Stone, to forge the railings, and build the giant lampshades.

Like the 65-year-old Sir Mick Jagger, this rock haven hasn't lost attitude. Patrons are allowed-nay, encouraged-to dance on the tables. Each booth has a specially reinforced back support that can be lowered to serve as a dance platform. Even the fabric is a heavy-duty weave that can withstand far more than the standard number of rubs. An inventive sound system with sub-speakers under the tables ensures that the beat goes on throughout the club without hitting an ear-shattering decibel level.

 "Trendsetting design isn't about having the most expensive chandelier in town. We weren't looking for anything crazy or anything that blew the budget. Maybe I'm just getting old, but being ‘real' looks really good in this economy," says Shalala.