Nightscape Slated for Former 12th & Porter Space

If you spent a night or two at 12th & Porter back in the day, you probably already remember the venue as a full-on assault on all your senses.  The erstwhile live music space opened in 1984 and was known for giving Kings of Leon, Keith Urban and many others a place to play before they were famous. Townes Van Zandt and The Protomen are among artists who’ve released live albums recorded in the room, which was known in recent years for its massive lighting rig. The venue has been shuttered since the beginning of the pandemic, and had hosted more private events than public shows in the couple of years prior. However, the brain-warping nature of the place is about to ratchet up a few notches. Nightscape is set to open in the building at 114 12th Ave. N. on a date TBA this fall. 

The idea behind Nightscape, says founder Mike Weinberg, is “a projection-based venue unlike anything in the region.” Weinberg, a former actor, has lived in Nashville for more than six years, including a stint working for Creative Artists Agency. Weinberg describes himself as a serial entrepreneur, having run lighting and sound businesses in high school and college. Nightscape uses projection mapping technology on modular, easy-to-change sets. You’ll experience 360-degree, 3-D surround sound and themed events enhanced by scents and sound. 

“It is immersion in different senses,” says Weinberg. “It will redefine how people can see, create and recreate inside physical spaces.” 

The setup is fully customizable for both private and public ticketed events. Concerts are certainly one possibility. But what if you’d like an immersive sports experience? Nightscape will be capable of giving you a deep-dive into the game of the week with digital projections that make you feel like you’re in the stadium. Future offerings could include yoga or spin classes taught in a virtual forest, or themed dinners under projections of the Northern Lights. There may be some family-friendly events during the day, particularly around the Christmas holiday, but the focus will be grown-up fun.

Nightscape will have a full kitchen, and the food menu will coordinate with the storyline of a given show. Pricing will depend on the specifics of the event. Weinberg estimates a typical tab will be around $100, including food and drink, or about $30-$50 for tickets only. “Our goal is to [price tickets] in line with concerts, a typical night out.” 

Weinberg and his investors, including his former boss at CAA, are launching Nightscape as digital immersive experiences are taking off — see last year’s EAMOTION productions Tempo and Jingle Beat, as well as the Immersive Van Gogh show, a national touring production that comes to town in November. While Weinberg liked the Van Gogh show when he saw it a few years ago, he describes it as “art on walls” — something static. He hopes that Nightscape’s ability to map moving images over objects and change displays “at the snap of your fingers” will create a more dynamic experience.

Before the pandemic, Weinberg had a warehouse space leased to launch Nightscape. Then, of course, plans were put on hold. In the meantime, the 12th & Porter space came available. “That was the ‘aha’ for me,” he says. “I used to book acts there. It has had nine lives.”