As New Yorkers sprawl in the warm summer evenings, a new intergalactic spot titled ‘Xanadu Roller Arts’ makes plans for their nights in the paved lanes of Bushwick, Brooklyn. Founded by Indian-American impresario Varun Kataria, this flamboyant roller rink is just a stone’s throw away from his previous establishments; The Turk’s Inn and The Sultan Room. Scrounging its name from the 1980s disco musical movie ‘Xanadu,’ this multirole space features the only permanent, year-round indoor skating rink in the area. However, its interiors are anything but coy, from pink ceilings to surreally painted and printed walls this roller disco is a vibrant addition to New York’s clubbing scene.

Primordially a sheet metal industrial warehouse that provided The Turk Inn with steel kitchen shelving, is now Xanadu’s variegated address, playing derby with Brooklyn’s nightlife spots. This idiosyncratic cultural establishment is a panoply of spots, housing a skating rink, live music venue, bar area, large bathrooms and a 1000-cap nightclub. Conceptualized amidst the daunting pandemic period with the help of a resident architect friend, Xanadu’s flashy walls parade Kataria’s fancy for music and his ardour for the cultural nuances of the bygone. This crossover between contemporary and vintage entertainment pursuits rejigs New York City’s arts and hospitality scene with its comprehensive corporal sensory experience.

Odd and Unbound 

Once packed with columns, the space posed a challenge for Kataria, who conspired to create an uninterrupted rink where people could dance their hearts out. The ceiling had to be structurally reinforced without columns, so larger beams were used to tackle this challenge. These beams are neatly shrouded by suspended ceilings masquerading as the second ceiling, imbuing an underground vibe to the space. This superfluous ceiling serves as a canvas for Kataria to doodle his lurid designs that are certain to tilt the skaters’ heads. The ceiling features pink and beige swirls traced with red rope lights, underscoring the patterns while endorsing the spaces’ theme.

The structural alterations bestowed a continuum of benefits, allowing a magnanimous hand-painted, Canadian maple hardwood rink to become the larger-than-life core amidst the pulsating niceties. At the ingress of this ethereal, spinning space is a desk for renting skates that finish the guests’ outfit for the jam skate inside. This rental desk is a wooden counter, snugly positioned against a turquoise wall adorned with blue strokes and a signage saying ‘SKATE RENTALS’ in bright orange. Upon entering, visitors are intoxicated by the psychedelic boutade of colours via vivid wallpapers, neon carpets, and wall illustrations creating a dizzying sense of eternal motion throughout the space. As the eyes adapt to the patterned rugs, adorned with swirls and cosmic patterns, induce a hallucinogenic vibe that sets the jam for the vivacious narrative ahead. As one traverses deep into this exuberant den, an orange couch corralling a purple and pink column leads visitors to a deep purple arch. The deliberate layering of colours on the column underscores its distinctive beam braces, supporting the structure with columns spaced apart lending a neoteric and airy vibe to the space.

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The Psychedelic Renaissance

As the club aficionados saunter in the kaleidoscopic spaces, they pass by a bustling bar with a glass countertop and a motley of hues tinting the seating, while perpetuating the concept of colours layering . This bar with backlit glass countertop and the mixing stationed below the counter opposite seems straight out of a sci-fi movie. This eclectic bar escorts one to the flocking ground, where the skaters spin, shuffle and jam skate. The glossy rink hosts circadian open skate sessions and is irradiated by neon track lights cut into the quaint ceilings. These lights project whimsical patterns on the rustic wooden rink imbuing it with the psychedelic vibe completely altering wood’s warmth replacing it with the cool neons. On one side, a colossal stage laps the shiny rink, granting access to the DJs and performers to hold concerts against a colossal LED wall, while on the other side, a banquet seating with multiple entryways completes the immersive rink’s ensemble. 

The resto and bar, illuminated by the glass-block circular windows and earlier passed by, becomes a toe-stop after an incessant spinning session. These glass block windows smear the bar area and adjacent seating area with natural light imbuing the space with a coquette core vibe by the day. Inspired by the Memphis Group design movement, the space boasts an elongated, sloping bar with an infinity mirror-clad top, serving vibrant dishes curated by The Turk’s Inn and The Sultan Room’s executive chef. These dishes sonorously proclaim their cross-cultural references, while vibing with Xanadu’s psychedelic aura. The bar area serves low ABV and non-alcoholic drinks, highlighting a complete menu of distinct draft cocktails. 

Owing to the open plan layout etched only by arches, the circular windows spill light into the far interiors illuminating the graphic walls. Through this bar, guests can sneak a glimpse of the arcades concealing the cobalt lockers with flashy signage illustrating ‘LOCKERS’ and the esoteric electric blue doors. These blue doors obscure a secret club titled ‘Club Flush’, featuring monotone bathrooms– a red and a blue. The red one has a clandestine DJ setup, offering exclusive dancing sessions. On weekends when the skates are safely tucked at the counter, the glossy rink transforms into a dance floor, where bodies vibe to the music and the intergalactic décor.

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In Bushwhick’s heart, swirling lights and rhythmic beats collide to materialize Xanadu Roller Arts, a true kaleidoscope of culture and celebration. Haloed with Kataria’s ostentatious artistic expression and an imminent calendar featuring fusion events like; GOTHSK8, Pride Skate and Ambient Skate, it apprehends New York’s rink rats and social butterflies. The rink also holds daily open skate sessions and weekly expert sessions for every age group with Xanadu’s custom Reidell skates, specially made in America. This ‘freshie’ bar exemplifies Kataria’s proficiency in the hospitality industry with deep-rooted cultural essence skating in every alley. It entices guests to dance and dream under its ever-shifting, luminous canopy and shifting hues.