SUNDAY GAZETTE-MAIL
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. - Night after night, Grand Strand vacationersswarm the massive restaurant and shopping complex Broadway at theBeach. On Celebrity Square, the entertainment district, they streaminto an elaborate quadruple nightclub called Celebrations. Many ofthose patrons are from the Mountain State.
Celebrations offers four options under one roof. Customers cankick up their heels at one of three dance clubs - the Malibu SurfBar, Froggy Bottomz and Club Boca - or eat pizza, wings and subs,watch baseball games and NASCAR races, and play sophisticatedvirtual-reality games at the colossal sports bar, Broadway Louie's.
The money West Virginians spend there comes home.
Celebrations is owned by eight Charleston investors, includingretired Charleston architect Bud Sprouse, the designer.
'The funds go back up to local banks,' said Celebrations PresidentDoug Skaff, 'so some of the West Virginia money spent down here iscoming back.'
Skaff said the developers of Broadway at the Beach, Burroughs andChapin, opened the shopping and restaurant area first, then wanted toadd an entertainment district.
'We came up with the idea of a nightclub having several differentvenues,' Skaff said.
Celebrations is the centerpiece of a district lined withnightspots, including the wildly successful piano bar, CrocodileRocks.
'We're the original developers of the Celebrity Square concept,'Skaff said. 'We started the street.'
The project represents an investment of more than $4 million.
The four venues in the Celebrations building are connected,allowing patrons to pass from one to the other with a single covercharge.
Other club operators wanted to do country-western, piano bar,disco and hard rock themes, Skaff said.
'We wanted to do several different venues, so we tried to think ofthe different kinds of music that would appeal to today's market,both locals and vacationers of all ages.'
The musical result is blues and jazz at Froggy Bottomz, the upbeatMiami and Latin sound at Club Boca, and Top 40s for collegiates atthe Malibu Surf Bar.
When the neighboring country-western club folded, the group tookover the 14,000-square-foot building and transformed it into BroadwayLouie's, which opened on Easter weekend.
'It's the hottest thing on the beach right now,' Skaff said.
The cavernous, warehouse-style building has two sides: one asports bar with pool tables and more than 50 TV sets, including 13large screens; the other an arcade with more than $1.5 million worthof virtual-reality games and amusements.
'With this high-tech electronic equipment, you can experienceabout anything - simulated skiing, NASCAR driving, whitewaterrafting, riding a Sea Doo.'
The newest addition is a simulated roller coaster ride.
'It takes you on three different roller coasters in the U.S. Youput on the headgear and it whirls you around. You have the sense ofsmell and the scenery and the feel.'
A popular attraction for some recent visitors from Greensboro,N.C., was a huge gyrating black cube called the Personal MotionTheater.
A mother waiting for her son to emerge explained the attraction insimple terms.
'You move around a lot and throw up after you're done.'
For $5.75 a throw, participants can choose from six motionexperiences, including Star Wars and piloting a jet fighter plane.
The only restaurant in the four-club building, Broadway Louie'sfeatures 'from scratch' pizza, wings and other classic sports barfare; burger and chicken sandwiches served on home-baked rolls and anextensive list of submarine sandwiches.
Froggy Bottomz, designed to resemble a New Orleans bar, offers theonly live music. The Kerry Michaels Band, featuring blues singerKerry Martin and guitarist Michael Stollings, plays nightly exceptFriday when the Tams, Embers and other old-line beach groups revivethe classic beach sound.
On a Friday night, the complex attracts 2,000 to 2,200 people,said manager and vice president Roger Davidson, a Gilmer Countynative.
'Weekends are strong all year because of Myrtle Beach's growingpopulation,' he said, 'and we're hoping the sports bar will help off-season with Monday night football and the Saturday and Sundaygames.'
Broadway at the Beach is located between 21st and 27th streetsnorth on the Highway 17 Bypass.
For information on Celebrations, check the Broadway at the BeachWeb Site, www.broad wayatthebeach.com; or call (803)444-3500.
To contact staff writer Sandy Wells, call 348-5173 or e-mailsandyw@wvgazette.com.
