Inside “Mirage 4.0”: Avant Gardner CEO Josh Wyatt’s New Vision for Brooklyn’s Biggest Club

Josh Wyatt has seen the negative comments on Reddit. He’s watched the TikTok videos too. As the first-ever CEO of Avant Gardner, the venue and events company behind The Brooklyn Mirage, he cares deeply about what fans are saying: online, offline, anonymously or not.

After a long career in hospitality, Wyatt was hired in October to rebrand and revamp Avant Gardner, the colossal East Williamsburg nightclub complex known for hosting some of the biggest names in electronic music. The 51-year-old Harvard-educated executive welcomes fan feedback, but he’s quick to note what feels constructive and what leans toward trolling. “There’s a lot of — how should I say this politely — misunderstanding in terms of the level of deeply sophisticated, globally experienced partners and collaborators that are working on this,” Wyatt explained of the open-air club’s bold new redesign, dubbed “Mirage 4.0.” “We took this very seriously. This is a new era for the company. Obviously, I’m very aware of certain things circulating online where you have a 24-year-old TikToker, who has no professional experience, making opinions on what is, frankly, the most sophisticated prefabricated wood structure ever built in the United States.”

In an exclusive interview with BKMAG just days before the venue’s first party, Wyatt opened up about his vision and how Avant Gardner will be “forcefully transparent” moving forward. First and foremost, he wants to stop rumors about the Mirage not being ready on May 1, promising they’ll “100 percent” be open.

“It’s an interesting sociological experiment watching some of the comments come in,” Wyatt noted. “Obviously, we love and respect all of our fans, but I would argue, let the artists, let the creators, let the professionals cook—and come and see what we actually deliver.”

Mirage 4.0

What Wyatt and Avant Gardner have promised to deliver is nothing short of breathtaking. Looking at renderings of the newly designed Brooklyn Mirage, one can’t help but be in awe.

A futuristic-looking structure featuring three levels of mezzanines looks straight out of The Metropolitan Opera. The stage, soaring 65 feet in the air, is built entirely out of wood. It’s easy on the eye, and sustainable too. A massive screen with more than 3,000 LED tiles wraps around the DJ booth. One hundred precision-calibrated speakers and subwoofers dot the dancefloor, strategically placed for optimal sound. A fully kinetic shutter system for the screen sits at the ready. When closed, it pays homage to the early days of the Mirage. When opened, it promises the same breathtaking visuals of last season, synced seamlessly to the music. The malleability promises no two shows would ever be the same.

Wyatt is refreshingly candid about his employer’s checkered past, making no excuses for previous missteps. He acknowledges the need for a fresh start, and said he’s fully committed to changing fans’ perception. Alterations, though, weren’t going to cut it. Wholesale changes were needed in design, culture, and on-site operation. “I believe that given some of the challenges and the past—before my time, to be clear—that incremental change was not gonna do it,” he said. “I felt that it would have created more pressure on me. It would have created more pressure on the company to try to tinker around the edges. I felt that this was not an around-the-edges nip and tuck. This had to be a fundamental rebuild of how we do business.”

One point of emphasis was improving the General Admission experience. To accommodate the expansion of the venue’s capacity from 4,500 to 6,500, Wyatt said they’ve “dramatically expanded” the GA dance floor, doubling its previous size, and installing a second room called AG Arts. Some shows, including an upcoming Martinez Brothers event, will also offer access to a second stage in The Great Hall. “I’m reading comments saying, ‘We’re packed like sardines, we can’t dance, it looks like they built a VIP palace.’ It’s just not true,” he says. “It’s fake news.” Other improvements include easier entry, better-trained security guards and support staff, more sight lines to the DJ, additional space to conduct “side quests,” safer conditions outside the venue, and cheaper beverages.

Starting prices on well drinks have dropped to $15. Ready-to-drink beverages like canned cocktails come in at $12. A new “Sunset Cocktail” happy hour offers $10 specials and $8 beers. “We’ve absolutely looked at the pricing for GA and addressed it,” Wyatt says. “Come the first night and take a photo of the drink prices if you don’t believe me. I actually went through the menu personally. We’re below any other venue in Brooklyn. I can guarantee you no one else can beat it.”

The venue’s food options will also be upgraded. They’ve teamed up with Brooklyn staple Smorgasburg—a wildly popular weekly vendor’s market in Williamsburg and Prospect Park—to bring in top-tier food trucks. The first rotation of vendors includes Burger Supreme, Hen House, Home Frite, Soft Swerve, and Tosh’s Patties. “The Bodega,” a nod to New York City’s ubiquitous corner stores, will sell clubbing essentials like earplugs, sunglasses, and candy. They’ve installed 2,500 lockers instead of a more expensive coat check. They’ve built 15 water stations all over the campus—a welcome addition, as far too many venues across the city lack adequate free water access. These small details, Wyatt says, don’t “sound like a big deal and it’s maybe not press release worthy, but they’re important.”

The Brooklyn Mirage is also offering membership plans starting at $1,900, which contain tickets to every party—including Black Coffee’s residency and Keinemusik in Flushing Meadows Corona Park—dedicated entry, and a one-time $100 food and beverage credit. Single ticket prices still lean on the more expensive side, but Wyatt says talent costs, insurance rates, and rent have all dramatically increased. But, he says, compared to other venues with a single room and $22 drinks, you’re still getting more bang for your buck.

Those who want a more luxurious experience, or to celebrate a big night, can still do so with a table in the VIP areas lining the sides of the dance floor.

A Checkered Past

It’s hard to find a club kid or audiophile in New York City who hasn’t attended a show at the Mirage.

As the second-largest venue in Brooklyn, only after Barclays Center, Mirage has hosted some of the biggest names in music, including David Guetta, J Balvin, Carl Cox, and Drake. Avant Gardner consistently ranks in DJ Mag‘s top 100 clubs in the world. This year it came in at No. 17, one spot behind legendary Berlin venue Berghain, and it was named North America’s Best Large Club in 2022 and 2023. Record labels and brands like Anjunadeep and Boiler Room routinely curate events at the space, and there are few better feelings than dancing on a warm summer day to Lee Burridge’s “All Day I Dream” party. But the venue’s isolated location, coupled with previous managerial mistakes, created a complicated relationship with the nightlife community.

Surrounded by warehouses and waste facilities, the 80,000-square-foot event complex isn’t exactly in an ideal location for a nightclub. Eighteen-wheelers and double-decker sightseeing buses dot the streets. The closest subway stop is a 12-minute walk. Just blocks away sits Newtown Creek, one of the most polluted waterways in the United States, undergoing a massive federal cleanup. In the summer of 2023, two patrons of the Mirage—one of whom was denied entry due to intoxication—were found dead in the creek. Another person was allegedly kidnapped near the venue. And there have been at least three drug overdose deaths at the complex since it opened in 2017.

There were also allegations of oversold shows, though Wyatt firmly denies them. Partygoers have complained of brusk security teams decked out in military-esque gear confiscating Narcan, a nasal spray that can reverse narcotic overdoses in emergency situations. There has been a seemingly never-ending battle with the New York State Liquor Authority since the venue opened, and it has had a contentious relationship with the local community board.

Avant Gardner also bought the Electric Zoo music festival in 2022, and had a disastrous first year in an incident that has been compared to Fyre Festival. The three-day event had its first day cancelled, its second day delayed, and some ticket holders were denied entry on the final day due to overcrowding. Refunds were offered, though that did little to quell viral vitriol.

Turning a new leaf

As Wyatt likes to point out, all of those stumbles happened before he was brought on to lead the company. “I’m aware of the company’s history, but I’m a new CEO,” Wyatt says. “I have a complete 180-degree change that I’ve enacted into the company since October. It’s been dramatic, it’s been intense.”

With previous stints working for hostels, luxury hotels, and upscale members’ clubs, Wyatt is wired to put patrons first. And from day one, he did that. One of his initial decisions was to throw a free party in October as a thank you to fans at the end of last season. “Free” is not a word often associated with a party at the Mirage, let alone one headlined by a major band like Jungle.  At the end of the show, a video montage told patrons to expect a makeover next season. This was the equivalent of a restaurant announcing “under new management.” Attendees of that show saw it as a positive first step toward fostering a new relationship with its fans.

“If they can replicate the Jungle experience, I would go back to the Mirage more often than I did in the past, because that night was so much fun,” says Bushwick resident and longtime Mirage patron Meghna Fogla. “Security was faster than usual. It was less packed. My friends and I were able to go to the bathroom, get drinks, and come back to our meeting spot with no issue,” Fogla added.

“We all had service. I felt safe. It was just a pleasant experience. That Jungle set was promising. If that could be the norm instead of the exception, that would be great.” Soon after that show, a letter from Wyatt was published promising sweeping changes, including more room to dance, better sound quality, enhanced hospitality, increased neighborhood safety, added cell phone service, and organized pickup and dropoff areas.

Six months later, Wyatt and his team claim they’ve delivered on each of those promises. But high expectations, flashy renderings, and an ambitious $10 million redesign come with increased scrutiny. Add in the pressure to course-correct from previous blunders, and there’s a seemingly small margin for error. Wyatt, however, seems up for the challenge, calling it an “honor and privilege” to be in his position.

Though he’s the first to admit there will be hiccups along the way. “To be clear, will we get everything right on May 1? Of course not,” he says. “I mean, this is a huge operation that we’re about to open. Certainly, there will be missteps along the way, and it will take time. This is not gonna be like a well-oiled machine on May 1st, as with any hospitality opening, whether you’re opening a hotel, restaurant, or a venue, it takes time to tweak and tinker and to look at what works and what doesn’t work. So we’re committed, obviously, to that constant improvement.”

Jennifer Gutiérrez, the council member representing the area, said she’s eager to see how the Mirage’s improvements benefit public safety, but she wants to ensure the venue can peacefully coexist with a busy manufacturing zone .”That means everything from managing crowds and patrons and keeping them safe to cleaning the streets,” she said. “Our district’s economy depends on the health of both the industrial sector and venues like this—and everyone operating here must be held to a standard that protects that balance.”

Like many other fans, Fogla is cautiously optimistic but is rooting for the Mirage’s success. “I know it’s under new management, but the name is still attached, so it’s hard to separate the two for now,” Fogla says. “But if they actually deliver on everything they promise, they would get old fans to come back because Mirage has been here for so long, and so many of us have seen our favorite DJs and had so many unforgettable nights there.”

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