In between the streets of West Seventh Street and Sixth Street sat a vacant building until a nonprofit organizer remodeled the building into the Music Art and Digital (MAD) Haus venue.
The MAD Haus is not like most venues. It stems from the nonprofit organization, Park Pacific Tower, which was founded by Mike Wylie’s, owner, great uncle more than 30 years ago. Park Pacific Tower is an organization that strives to build residential housing for older adults. Originally, the MAD Haus was not intended to be a music and arts venue.
“The inspiration was more driven by economics,” Wylie said. “After fixing it up, I originally wanted to make it into a music rehearsal facility but it just reminded me of so many great places I’ve seen in LA and Brooklyn and I thought, ‘We gotta make this a performance place.'”
At first, the front of the MAD Haus may not seem like much. However, it is not until walking inside that one realizes the large warehouse-like features it possesses. The concrete walls are dark, except for a few scattered paintings by local artist Liza Mitchell, whose elaborate and vibrant colors help add life to the place.
There is not an actual stage or bar with refreshments. Instead, only a couch is found against the back wall with a few scattered chairs. In true do-it-yourself-like fashion, the MAD Haus crew creates risers as a stage for music gigs; a portable table is used as the refreshment bar where all the money made is funneled back to the nonprofit organization to continue their mission. Newly refurnished restrooms have been added to the venue with a grant the venue received. Besides the portable table and couch, it’s mainly empty space left for people to make use for their creative endeavors.
Behind the venue is an empty grass area, which Wylie hopes to turn into an “art park.” The park would feature paintings by local artists where anyone would be welcome to stop by and enjoy the scenery. To the right of the venue lies a plain wall where he hopes Mitchell will create a “street-scene-like mural.” While the working crew of MAD Haus has been hosting both music and art events, they are still trying to refurnish the area and organize everything.
“We’ve pulled together a bunch of friends and artists, and it’s kind of a volunteer organization we’re trying to figure things out,” Wylie said. “It’s a major learning curve for me.”
Not only is the MAD Haus a perfect venue in welcoming the community, but it is also conveniently located a street over from Pine, where a plethora of restaurants are found, along with transportation that is easily accessible. The surrounding atmosphere is perfect for those with a creative drive.
While the venue is still in the process of officially opening, it has hosted a number of events, including a concert featuring Agent Orange and an art gallery that showcased a 9/11 exhibit by Ron Yates. Wylie hopes to attract the overall community of Long Beach, but especially encourages Cal State Long Beach students to use the venue.
“Keeping it as a large, open room gives it a better fit for the building,” Wylie said. “We’d like to encourage CSULB students to come down and use the space. We’re great believers in the university and think we would greatly benefit if CSULB uses them. The CSULB compartment is something our board gets really excited about.”
Logan Crow, owner of the Long Beach Cinema Tech and programmer of the MAD Haus, specifically focuses on programming for the venue. With Crow’s experience in running his own nonprofit organization, he hopes the venue will become a place to host a diverse range of events.
“I’ve been programming for the space and I would love to see a space in Long Beach that lends itself to a variety of artistic media, not just to concerts,” Crow said. “In the short time we’ve had a play, an art exhibit, photography exhibition, an all ages show, fashion show, and I love that sort of arrangement. Just because of the fact that its empty, it plays to every possibility it can.”
The Mad Haus is located at 624 Pacific Ave. For more information, visit facebook.com/MADhausLB.
