A pop-up Stardust rink will let the good times roll at Guildford Town Centre in Surrey until the end of October.
Opened Thursday (Sept. 12), the temporary "Skate Stardust" attraction brings retro vibes to a vacant retail unit in the Centre Court of the mall, where the Stardust brand was launched before moving to Whalley in the 1970s.
With flashing lights and music, the 2,762-square-foot rink and lounge offers "a nostalgic escape" free of charge, with rentals available for skates and gear ($2, $5) for donation to Surrey Fire Fighters Charitable Society.
Reserved time slots are filling up quickly for the 65-skater-capacity rink, Kiran Deol, Guildford Town Centre's marketing manager.
"We wanted to capture the original essence of Stardust," she said on opening day. "It really does have a '90s vibe and it's a lot of fun, with great music, great energy in there. We're super excited.
"This idea has been in our back pocket for a while," Deol added, "and it just fit perfectly into our calendar of events this year, the right moment."
Theme nights on the Skate Stardust calendar include Disco, Country, K-Pop, Swifties, Broadway, Bollywood, Bandits basketball, Drag and Halloween, with music curated by DJ Flipout. For those who can't skate, lessons by Rolla Skate Club experts are available on Sept. 25, Oct. 9 and Oct. 23, from 6 to 8 p.m.
Deol said she used to skate at the Stardust location in Whalley, a landmark gathering spot until its .
"Fun fact, the original Stardust ownership group, their first rink was actually here in this mall in the late '60s," Deol noted. "It was semi-outdoor and half indoor and you could see around it. Lots of local residents have been telling us their experience at that original roller rink where they learned how to skate. It's been amazing, all the stories people have shared with us.
"I think that's why it was full-circle for the original Stardust owners to grant us exclusive rights to bring it back here," she added. "That really meant a lot to us, and we wanted to do it right by them, and I think we've accomplished that, judging by the number of bookings we've had and how many people seem to be enjoying the space."
Deol said the Oct. 31 closing date is firm for the mall's Skate Stardust rink.
"After October, we go into the holidays, which we launch Nov. 12, and we have a super exciting initiative planned for holiday here," she explained. "But hey, if it goes really great and people want it back, we could always bring it back next year."
Elsewhere in Surrey, a larger Roller Disco rink is now open at the , in Bridgeview. The new amusement park is located two doors west of the old one, in the same large building, where a church and storage facility was, next door to The Hive climbing centre.The vacated space is where an indoor go-kart track will be built in coming months.
