The resurrection of the iconic establishment hidden deep in the Berkshire woods is also the debut for the Dream Away’s new management.
“We've been doing a lot of clean up at the site, we've been installing a new audio system to raise the level of quality for live music and have it a pass around the space to be more audible, and we're getting more done outside to set up more outdoor areas for people to experience," Scott Levy told WAMC. "And it's been a lot of fun, a lot of challenges, and we've had a lot of excitement behind us from the public who's supporting us and wanting to come back to the Dream Away.”
Levy is one of the lodge’s new owners, who bought it from longtime proprietor Daniel Osman in the fall of 2022. The group says it will maintain the Dream Away’s unique ambiance, which embraces the rustic and the kitschy in equal measure.
“They're going to see the Dream Away as they know it," said Levy. "Interior-wise, tiptop shape, ready to go. A brand-new sound system in the music room to make the music that much better for both the audience and for the bands, the experience is going to be higher level. They're going to see interaction inside and outside, if we get great weather. It's the Dream Away that they know and love, and they're coming back to see it. And that's what we want to give them.”
Since the fall, there has been some shakeup among the new ownership. A Brooklyn restauranteur once part of the team is no longer a co-owner.
“Dan Giddings is staying on as a consultant for the Dream Away and he's been in amazing support system and a great friend to not only myself and Andy but to the Dream Away Lodge and spirit and the history of the Dream Away,” Levy told WAMC.
A new co-owner has emerged in Andy McDowell.
“Scott and friends introduced me to the possibility of getting involved in the Dream Away Lodge last summer, and I visited a few times, I met Daniel Osman, just kind of hung out here with my wife, and we were seduced by the place," McDowell told WAMC. "And so, Scott and I continued the talks through the fall, and ended up deciding to kind of shake hands and move forward.”
He’ll focus on booking musical acts at the storied venue.
“The tradition that was here already is super strong," said McDowell. "I was not lucky enough to actually ever be at the Dream Away to see a performance. But I've certainly studied up and I've been in touch with a ton of the musicians that have played here, and a ton of amazing talent has passed through this place. So, the primary focus is to bring that back, to engage with all the amazing musicians that played here before.”
McDowell will draw on his experience owning and operating Brooklyn bar Pete's Candy Store for over 20 years.
“I want to build on what was here, which is anything from singer songwriter to folk to alternative rock to straight up rock and roll to experimental, classical," he said. "I feel like the sky's the limit, and as the word spreads that we're reopen and that we have a great sound system, we'll be able to reach out to new talents and maybe be successful as this place has been before in getting musicians that would normally play bigger venues, ticketed venues with paid attendance to play this smaller but renowned venue.”
The booking choice for Saturday night’s reopening party is a nod to continuity.
“We got Mike and Ruthie of the Mammals who have played the Dream Away many times, and they also happen to be the act that played the closing night show during COVID when the Dream Away sadly closed, and we felt like it would be fitting to bring them back to bring us full circle at the reopening and play a packed house for our reopening," said McDowell.
The new incarnation of the Dream Away will open without a permanent chef on staff.
“What we have is Brian Alberg, who's the owner of the Break Room in North Adams and the former chef of the Red Lion Inn, curating a wonderful menu for our customers who are going to come," said Levy. "He's going to offer his catering, his delicious catered menu to our customers, and they're going to be able to take his food and take a seat and enjoy the music and the bar and the atmosphere. But we look to announce our chef in the near future, and start incorporating our chef in later, end of May and then early June.”
As the hours count down to the reopening party Saturday at 5, Levy has a simple message to fans of the Dream Away old and new.
“It's going to be a lot of fun," he said. "And they should come.”
While it will operate on a limited schedule for the first few weeks of its return, the lodge will be open Wednesday through Sunday as of May 15th.
By way of disclosure, the Dream Away Lodge has been a WAMC underwriter.
