It’s hard to imagine a time when Joe Bravo wasn’t a nightlife guy. But long before he was heading up parties and pool clubs, Bravo originally went to college to become a teacher.
“I went to school in Kansas and I played sports, so I had to get a night job,” he says. After working in a handful of small honky-tonk bars in the Midwest, Bravo returned to Las Vegas to teach but quickly landed a gig at sizzling-hot Studio 54. “I was in the right place at the right time. That was kind of the heyday, it was the wild, wild West. You saw all kinds of crazy stuff. I got to see the evolution, and as it evolved, I evolved with it.”
Bravo’s go-getter spirit serves him well in his current position, overseeing various facets of the Hard Rock Hotel’s party scene, most notably the pioneering dayclub Rehab, which turns 13 years old this year. “This is the one that started the daylife scene,” he says. “With Rehab, you’re measuring yourself against seasons past; you’re standing on the shoulders of everybody who came before you. My vision is to go back to what made Rehab great.”
The club, which celebrates its grand opening this weekend, is undergoing a multi-year remodel, including the installation of new bungalows last year and a revamp of the stage this year, along with revved-up bottle presentations, a not-yet-unveiled nighttime concept and a handful of other surprises.
“We’re here to give our guests a story at the end of the day. We want them to go, ‘That was awesome, I can’t wait to get home and tell my friends, and I can’t wait to do it again.’” Rehab Beach Club grand opening with Knife Party and R3HAB at the Hard Rock Hotel, April 23-24.
