Mr. West talks to mr. Lewis.

[cpnews]

MR. WEST IS IN ONE OF THOSE AREAS JUST TOO FAR FROM AND JUST TOO CLOSE TO THE REST OF THE CLUBWORLD. A stone’s throw from the Chelsea piers, too far to walk from either the meatpacking club kingdom or the outer Chelsea club mall; it needs to be spot on to make it, as people will tend not to go back if it isn’t good one night. Just a little bit larger than the Eldridge or a breadbox, Mr. West features sound by Dan Agnee and musical direction from everybody’s favorite DJ co-owner Jus Ske. Danny Devine, known about town as a promoter and PR, also owns a piece of the joint. Fabricio, formerly of everywhere and most recently Danny A’s Plaza, will be at the door. The charming Kelly Brody, who I know as Turtle, will be running the table service. She’s real good at her job. Evan Frost, a bright light will be managing. The problem with a small club is there is a limit to how much revenue can be generated and you still have to pay bottle hosts, managers, door people at the same rate a giant club pays them. With multiple owners, investors, rent and insurance etc., it just gets tough. Mr. West holds about a hundred and fifty people if they’re the skinny model/bottle types expected. It is a restaurant early and that might help if it bangs, but it looks like a club to me and that restaurant turns into a club thingy works only sometimes. Launching with the Zac Posen Fashion Week party says they’re serious.

Steve Lewis: I’m sitting with Danny Devine co-owner of Mr. West, a space on 22nd Street just east of the Chelsea Piers, between 10th and 11th right?

Danny Divine: Yeah between 10th and 11th on the West Side Highway.

SL: It used to be Open right?

DD: Open yeah.

SL: Was it anything else?

DD: It was another place called Opus 22

SL: I’ve known you for many years as a PR. A promoter and now you’re an owner.

DD: I’ve promoted before, originally when I came into the business in’94, ’95. I was working in-house at that time with DJ Corbett and Matt D.

SL: Corbett just Facebooked me the other day. Is he a cop now?

DD: I think he’s been a cop for some years now.

SL: He was a DJ and then became a cop.

DD: Yeah. So I was working with those guys and then I started doing all the prep school parties. I worked uptown with Junior Sanchez. It was basically just all the prep school kids promoting.

SL: That was a long time ago. So you were part of that uptown crowd. There’s downtown and uptown – and it’s hard to get downtown to go uptown.

DD: Yes that’s right - uptown goes downtown, downtown doesn’t go uptown much.

SL: So how many clubs have you promoted at?

DD: Over the years?

SL: Yeah.

DD: I did all of Peter’s clubs, from Palladium to Limelight and Club USA, and then after that Club Expo. I worked there for a long time, and I used to do Saturday with Unik and Kiki, and 2Pac was always there.

SL: 2Pac? So you made a transition, at one point you made a transition into PR. Tell me how that happened.

DD: Well I went away to school so I was going in and out of the business; I went away to school in Rhode Island. I actually started doing parties in Boston and then I was offered the position of Director of Events for a clothing designer, Nino Cerruti. I was with them for a while before I left and started the Rydan Group.

SL: Ok and that has something to do with your name right? You’re the Dan.

DD: Yes, mine and Ryan Jacklone’s.

SL: Ok, what was the basis of the Rydan Group?

DD: We started doing weekly parties at night at various spaces, and we were also doing a lot of events for different fashion companies.

SL: How did you make the transition to PR?

DD: While we were working on the events I just got into doing event press, and actually working with some other agencies. Then a lot of the clients wanted to come back to us and that’s when we started taking on month to month retainer clients. I don’t have the exact date that Ryan and I basically went our separate ways but I purchased him out of the company eventually. We’re still great friends, and he’s in fashion now as well. But that’s when I started working with different venues on their events, I would do the PR

SL: PR and promotions, you would mix it up a little bit. You were the only man out there that did both at the same time. you not only do you get the name in Page 6, but you actually throw events and bring people to the club on a large scale. Most public relations firms throw events and bring people sporadically but you actually were as good as most promoters at bringing crowds. Now that it’s many years later, you’ve given up the PR…

DD: I still do a little PR with some events directly. I’m producing a fashion show and an after party in Paris for a lingerie company on the 28th of September and I did a concert overseas with Stevie Wonder in June in Austria, during the soccer championships. I am one on one taking on projects and also taking on the PR as well for that particular event, although not really taking on the retainer month to month.

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