San Antonio location of Austin's Barbarella club closes after just 4 months

Barbarella, the popular nightclub in Austin's Red River Cultural District, expanded into the Alamo City this spring. However, the SA satellite has shut its doors after just four months in business.

The club made no announcement about the closure. Rather, Barbarella appeared to drift away into the dark void of space.

As of Tuesday, the sign at the 2211 San Pedro Ave. location had already been taken down. The club's social media pages had also been deleted.

Billed as a "queer dance club for people who hate dance clubs," the nightspot followed much the same formula that found success in Austin's nightlife epicenter. Themed nights included TuesGayz, '80s nights, Y2K nights and more.

On Wednesday, an employee of the building's management company working on-site confirmed that the club was no more. The person, who declined to be named, said he was unsure why the nightspot shut down but said that "San Antonio just didn't work out — obviously."

The Current was unable to reach Barbarella's owner Jon-Erik Garcia, also known as Glitoris, for comment on the sudden closure.

A new club called The Factory is already set to open in the San Pedro space this Friday, the employee from the property management company said. The forthcoming venue will feature '80s new wave, darkwave and punk, he added.

The Factory's name may be an homage to Tony Wilson's legendary club in Manchester, England, of the same name. Joy Division, New Order, the Psychedelic Furs and other new wave bands performed at the nightspot, and some of those same acts were signed to Wilson's Factory Records.

During Wednesday's visit, the former Barbarella site was a flurry of activity as workers moved furniture around in apparent preparation for the new club. Liquor bottles were strewn across the bar counter, a tell-tale sign of the rapid turnover in the space.