Event Space ‘Dx’ Dances into Harvard Square

Event space Dx @Dunster will open next month in Harvard Square at the former location of John Harvard’s Brewery & Ale House.

The entertainment venue, located in the Harvard Square shopping center known as The Garage, will boast video screens, an audio system, and a bar. The space is prepared to host private events, corporate functions, and live entertainment.

Dx is owned by Cambridge attorney and entrepreneur Sean D. Hope — who also founded Cambridge dispensary Yamba Market — and former Cambridge City Councilor Larry Ward.

The opportunity to start Dx arose during the Covid-19 pandemic, when the mass closing of restaurants opened up several spaces in Harvard Square to new commercial tenants.

Hope said his venture is part of a new wave of businesses to revive the area’s entertainment scene post-pandemic.

“We really wanted to be part of that renaissance of Harvard Square,” Hope said in an interview.

Ward added that with the recent influx of national brands to Cambridge’s downtown, the city is at risk of losing its “charm.”

“We want to be a part of making sure that the local scene stays alive,” Ward said.

Hope and Ward have known each other for a long time, but they said this is their first time working together on a venture of this scale.

“We sort of see things from a very similar lens, but we come from very different backgrounds,” Ward said.

The duo's differing experiences have allowed them to overcome logistical hurdles including lengthy licensing processes and getting up to code, they said.

“The biggest challenge is just getting in there and really bringing something to the people that they want,” Ward said.

However, Hope added that he sees the challenges facing businesses in Harvard Square, such as Covid-19 and high recent prices, as a source of potential.

“They created a lot of hardship, but they also created opportunity,” Hope said.

Going forward, Hope and Ward hope to expand the business into a broader enterprise focused on entertainment. In addition to the event space, this could include adult gaming as well as virtual reality experiences in the Garage.

Tying together this vision for an entertainment complex is the

Hope said the name “Dx,” which stands for “Destination x,” ties together his vision for an entertainment complex: The “Destination” is the space that the business provides and “x” is the variable that “allows you to insert your own experience.”

He added that behind his plans lies a “passion for placemaking,” or the practice of building a forgotten spot into something new.

“The design, the spacing, the ethos, you know — the little touches is what makes it a place, as opposed to just an empty box,” Hope said.

Clarification: January 29, 2024

This article has been updated to clarify that Sean Hope founded Cambridge dispensary Yamba Market, but does not run the day-to-day operations of the business.

—Staff writer Michael A. Maines can be reached at michael.maines@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @m_a_maines.