These two staple nightclubs of Broadway at the Beach are permanently closing
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.
An era has ended in Myrtle Beach nightlife.
Oz the Experience and the connected Malibu’s Surf Bar in Broadway at the Beach, collectively known as Celebrations Nitelife, are permanently closed.
The clubs closed because of the coronavirus pandemic on March 18 and never reopened. Club employees were completing the vacating of their locations on Friday in The Avenue area of Broadway, which is owned by Burroughs & Chapin Co.
“We thank the community for their ongoing support and regret that a combination of the ongoing virus, government, and circumstances beyond our control have ended our nightlife business,” Celebrations Nitelife said in a release Friday.
Nightclubs are being allowed to reopen on Monday after being shut down for four months by S.C. Governor Henry McMaster, but only under severe restrictions including no alcohol sales after 11 p.m. and no standing or congregating inside the club allowed.
Malibu’s was one of the founding nightclubs of Broadway at the Beach when it opened in 1995 and featured an iconic and massive open shark’s mouth behind the DJ booth. It was part of a mega-club with three connected clubs including Froggy Bottomz, which featured a live house band, and Beach Music Cafe, a beach music club.
Beach Music Cafe quickly evolved into Club Boca, which generally featured hip hop music..
A makeover of Broadway four years ago led to the elimination of Club Boca and Froggy Bottomz, which were replaced by American Tap House and Wahlburgers, respectively.
Oz then took over the space that previously housed another original Broadway nightclub called Revolutions that featured disco and contemporary hip hop music, and Oz and Malibu’s were then internally connected.
Celebrations Nightlife may not be done on the Grand Strand.
“After things calm down with this pandemic and everything, we do want to entertain the option of doing something again in Myrtle Beach, but right now we’re just going to lay low,” Celebrations Nightlife chief operating officer Joey Monteleone said. “We enjoy operating in Myrtle Beach and we are considering another operation with Celebrations Nightlife in the near future.”
Celebrations Nitelife also owned a bar/restaurant facing its other clubs across the alleyway of The Avenue (formerly Celebrity Square) and it was last Broadway Louie’s before it was replaced in 2019 by Bar Louie.
The company pointed out in its release that it has contributed several million dollars in employee payroll, local taxes, licenses and rent to the local economy, and has supported numerous local charities by hosting events or through donations and other forms of support.
The Avenue at Broadway now has several closed businesses, as Carolina Comedy Club has also been closed since March and has no events scheduled, according to the calendar on its website.
Burroughs & Chapin had not responded late Friday afternoon to an inquiry regarding the future of the spaces that have been vacated by Celebrations Nitelife.
This story was originally published July 31, 2020 at 2:44 PM.
