The Underground, Dillon’s new music venue and nightclub, seeks to bring electric late-night fun to Summit County
Venue will offer residents access to neighboring bowling alley Elevation Bowl off Dillon’s Main Street
Robert Tann/Summit Daily News
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct a name and the days the nightclub intends to be open.
Summit County residents seeking a late-night, high-energy space featuring music, drinks and vibrant atmosphere can now look no further than The Underground — a recently unveiled music venue and nightclub in Dillon.
The Underground is the brainchild of staff at Elevation Bowl, a bowling alley on Dillon’s Main Street located directly next door. After nearly a year of planning, the nightclub celebrated a soft launch on April 6 and has already broken in its neon lights and booming sound system. The Underground will officially welcome itself to the public with a grand opening on Saturday, April 15.
“We just wanted something that was fun, that brings music,” said General Manager Sharlee Hughes. “Music is my favorite thing in the world.”
The space has recently catered to electronic dance music, but Hughes — who formally served as bar manager for Elevation Bowl — said The Underground will strive to bring a variety of acts from metal to reggae and even comedy nights.
Beyond being a fun and carefree environment for the county’s 21 and older crowd, Hughes said the space will seek to host other community events, like art shows.
“Everybody’s really excited … we want to have something for everyone,” Hughes said. “It brings people together. It’s just so much fun seeing people happy and running around dancing. It just makes me really happy.”
The Underground has also already shown community members what it has to offer after hosting a spontaneous event on April 5.
After Boulder native Ehren River Wright, better known by his DJ name SoDown, canceled plans to play a pop-up show on Loveland Pass, Hughes said the venue opened its doors to the artist and crowd of roughly 200 that night.
“I couldn’t stop smiling,” Hughes said of the event.
The Underground’s neighboring bowling alley, which shares the same liquor license, offers residents a two-in-one deal.
“You can go between them. That’s a pretty cool feature of the space,” said Elevation Bowl General Manager Alex Ray. “The idea is to have a late-night atmosphere where people can come and bowl if they want … or they can go over and dance and party.”
Ray said there was a sense of demand for more late-night options, especially on the Dillon side of the county.
“We really wanted to offer that to the public,” he said. “A late-night, fun activity coupled with bowling is very unique.”
The Underground, located at 135 Main St. in Dillon, plans to be open Fridays through Mondays from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. each week, according to Hughes, who added that it will not charge entrance fees — at least for now.
Hughes said that as she and other staff work to make The Underground a go-to party destination for county residents, they will likely eye cover charges later this summer with the goal of hosting after-parties for artists who play at Dillon Amphitheater.
Saturday’s grand opening event will feature live music from Breckenridge-based DJ Tyler Brants, also known as LittleFoot, as well as a free late-night shuttle and vendors offering “giveaways, tastings — all sorts of fun stuff,” Hughes said. There will be no entrance fee and doors will open at 9 p.m.
Residents seeking more information or who are looking to book a private event can reach out to Hughes at shar@elevationbowl.com.
Robert Tann/Summit Daily News
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