Ashley Kontnier
DRIFTWOOD — Following a nearly five-month closure, and the sale of the building falling through, Mercer Street Dancehall is scheduled to reopen its doors Sunday, April 19.
Nicholas Dotin and his wife, Gay Dotin, opened Mercer Dancehall Feb. 1, 2013, after their then-14-year-old daughter expressed a desire to have a local place to line dance. This dinner-time conversation led the family to negotiate a deal for the building, formerly owned by the late H.C. Carter, in Driftwood.
For 12 years, residents and visitors, alike, boot-scooted and boogied across the hickory wood dance floor — the best and only of its kind in the area, according to Nicholas — to various country musicians.
As their daughter grew up and the couple aged, they started to dream of retiring.
“We had been running the dance hall as a family business for 13 years and it's a lot of work. We're both in our 60s now and it was just time,” said Nicholas. “We [also] felt the business could even grow more if it had new blood, new ownership.”
The family listed the building for sale approximately two years ago and went under contract in 2025, with an expectation to close the sale in early January 2026.
“So, our last show was New Year's Eve and it was very successful,” he recalled. “And then, we started the shutdown process, but unfortunately, the sale never was able to close. The last straw was this past week and so, we have made the decision to reopen.”
They will start by opening only on Sundays, as they have learned that is a very popular day for people to go two-stepping, with shows from 3-6 p.m.
“As I've always said, it allows people to sleep in on Sunday and go to church and have their brunch and then, come dancing and be home and go to bed by eight o'clock,” Nicholas explained.
Eventually, they plan to add Saturdays back in, as well.
First up on the schedule for the reopening is the Austin-based dancehall band, Tumbleweed Hill, which recently released a country, two-stepping rendition of Pete Townsend’s "Let my Love Open the Door." The dancehall will open at 2 p.m. for the 3 p.m. show.
Additional shows include:
• April 26: Craig Howell
• May 3: Weldon Henson
• May 10: Monte Good
• May 17: Grouchy Like Riley
While, ultimately, the couple still hopes to sell the building, in order to visit their daughter in New York City and travel more, they are looking forward to welcoming back approximately half of their old staff and seeing people at the dancehall again.
As for the future, the co-owners have a few goals: “We're hoping to see people make new friends [and] bring people out to experience it for the first time. We're also hoping that whoever does end up buying us will take the dancehall to the next level. I really think that can happen with the right people, but time will tell,” Nicholas concluded.
For more information on upcoming shows, visit www.mercerdancehall.com or follow Mercer Dancehall on Facebook or Instagram. The dancehall is located at 23490 Ranch Road 12 in Driftwood and can be reached at 512-858-4314.
