Producers Will Create a ‘Russian’ Supper Club for Relaunched ‘Natasha’ Musical

A vacant lot in Manhattan’s meatpacking district is being transformed into New York’s latest theater spectacle, a sexy Russian supper club that will be the new home of “Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812,” Dave Malloy’s acclaimed electro-pop opera that ran at Ars Nova last fall.

The Broadway producers Howard and Janet Kagan (“Pippin”) announced on Monday that they were teaming up on the $2.5 million venture with Randy Weiner, a lead producer of the site-specific sensation “Sleep No More” in West Chelsea, and Simon Hammerstein, Mr. Weiner’s partner in the Box nightclub.In an interview Mr. Kagan said that “Comet,” based on part of “War and Peace,” will run May 1-Sept. 1 in a temporary structure at the corner of West 13th Street and Washington Street near the High Line, in a lot owned by Romanoff Equities.

The 6,000-square-foot structure, to be called Kazino, will have an authentic Russian menu and bar as well as singers, cabaret artists, and possibly a contortionist or two who will perform before and after “Comet.” (Patrons can dine and drink there without seeing the show.) Mr. Kagan said he was aiming for “a fully immersive, party atmosphere experience similar to ‘Sleep No More,’” the hallucinatory mash-up of “Macbeth” and Hitchcock.

He said he is currently talking to theater owners about another ambitious idea: Turning a Broadway house into an even bigger version of Kazino by putting a giant platform of tables, banquettes and performing space over the orchestra seats, and staging “Natasha” there next season.

Mr. Kagan, a board member at Ars Nova, said he and his wife were entranced by the show there, which featured a modest menu and a bottle of vodka on every table. They connected with Mr. Weiner through his wife, Diane Paulus, who is the director of “Pippin.”

“Randy immediately thought the show would work best in a true nightclub environment,” Mr. Kagan said. “Kazino won’t be as racy as the Box, and won’t be open til 4 a.m. - the community board didn’t want that - but it will have an original, glamorous, exciting feel. I think it will become as much as a phenomenon as ‘Sleep No More.’”

Many of the original “Natasha” cast members from the Ars Nova production are set to reprise their roles at Kazino. Rachel Chavkin will again direct.