On Thursday, an events space in Highland Park called Tuxedo launched its new era with a night of house music by Mark Farina, a San Francisco DJ known for his “mushroom jazz” style, and others.
Tuxedo’s general manager Alyssa Prince and talent buyer Jake James say they are taking the venue located at 11745 Woodward Ave. in a different direction.
“We’re bringing in some bigger artists into a smaller room,” Prince says.
While the space was known in recent years for hosting more formal events like the mayor’s inauguration and weddings, Prince and James plan on bringing in DJs, jam bands, comedians, poetry readings, drag shows, and other events aimed at metro Detroit’s arts scene.
Prince says Tuxedo’s current owners acquired the space, a 1917 building that according to the venue was designed by industrial architect Albert Kahn, just before the 2020 pandemic shutdowns.
“It was really broken down and decrepit,” she says. “The whole back wall was out … They made it their passion project.”
The owners rebuilt the space, Prince says, using recycled materials from another building they demolished. “It’s a fancy place made from trash,” she adds.
(Tuxedo takes its name from the nearby side street.)
“Some people might think it’s a warehouse from looking at it,” James says. “It might be, but it’s, like, a really nice warehouse.”
Prince comes from experience in event production, including running an immersive theater troupe at Michigan’s Electric Forest music festival, while James has a booking company called Further Frequencies.
They say what makes Tuxedo different from other venues in the Detroit area is that much of its current staff are artists as well.
“They understand the struggle of being an artist as well as being the attendee,” Prince says. “So we are able to make sure everybody’s experience good.”
The floor is arranged like a grid with square pillars and a high ceiling. Prince says the vision is for a modular space that can be adapted to a variety of uses. The DJ could be relocated from the floor to a loft built on top of the bar, for example, or curtains could be hung to partition the space into other configurations.
“It’s something that can literally morph with whatever we’re trying to do,” Prince says.
A number of couches dot the floor, making for a relaxed vibe.
If all goes well on the ground floor, Prince says there’s a possibility of expanding into the building’s four other floors.
For its bar program, Tuxedo has tapped Sloan Yearry of the Detroit Optimist Society Restaurant Group, with plans to serve beers, cocktails, and nonalcoholic drinks.
Prince says they also plan to hold events that go early into the morning. An event on Friday with DJs Tara Brooks, Daniel Neuland, and others is scheduled to go to 5 a.m.
“A lot of us are in the industry, so we can’t really go out necessarily, but we want to see music,” James says. “The bars close at 2 a.m., but people could come here for three hours, have some nonalcoholic drinks and just chill on the couches and enjoy some music.”
More information about Tuxedo is available at 11745tuxedo.com or on its Instagram page @tuxedo.detroit.
