Daniel Chavez, owner of Revel Entertainment, stands inside the nearly-completed concert hall at Revel. (Chancey Bush/Journal)
At long last, Revel, Albuquerque’s one-stop shop for all things entertainment will be adding its concert hall – a project that’s been in the works since 2020.
Daniel Chavez, creator and owner of Revel ABQ, said the food court and bars at Revel were designed around the concert hall, which was set to open in summer 2020, just months after their first opening.
“It’s the crown jewel of what Revel is,” Chavez said. “… It was always built around the concert hall.”
The concert hall is also located at Revel’s 4720 Alexander NE location.
The COVID-19 pandemic, which shut down Revel just 17 days after opening, delayed construction of the concert hall until this year.
The concert hall’s grand opening in October will be marked with a performance by country group Midland. The Oct 28 concert is already sold out, but Midland added a second performance at the concert hall a day earlier. Tickets for the Oct. 27 shows are still available.
Chavez has worked in entertainment since 1985 when he opened Albuquerque-based production company NRG Staging. Over the past decades, he noticed that Albuquerque lacked a mid-sized venue for artists.
A new music venue at Revel ABQ is nearly completion this month. (Chancey Bush/Journal)
“Being in the business, I’ve seen a lot of friends coming by in tours who have to drive right by because there’s no place to host them,” Chavez said.
When he saw an old Sports Authority building become available, he sketched the concept for Revel out “on a napkin.” The location is good “from a fan’s perspective, from an artists’ perspective, from a managers’ perspective,” Chavez said.
Revel is hosting a hiring event this Saturday from 9 am to 4 pm to recruit employees for the new concert hall. They’re planning to hire over 100 people, including bartenders, servers, security and more.
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Chavez said that plans to expand Revel into other states have been put on hold, but the ultimate goal is to expand around the country.