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A nightclub or dance club is a club that is open at
night Night, or nighttime, is the period of darkness when the Sun is below the horizon. Sunlight illuminates one side of the Earth, leaving the other in darkness. The opposite of nighttime is daytime. Earth's rotation causes the appearance of ...
, usually for
drinking Drinking is the act of ingesting water or other liquids into the body through the mouth, proboscis, or elsewhere. Humans drink by swallowing, completed by peristalsis in the esophagus. The physiological processes of drinking vary widely among ...
,
dancing Dance is an art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoire of movements or ...
and other entertainment. Nightclubs often have a bar and discotheque (usually simply known as disco) with a dance floor, laser lighting displays, and a stage for
live music A concert, often known informally as a gig or show, is a live performance of music in front of an audience. The performance may be carried by a single musician, in which case it is sometimes called a recital, or by a musical ensemble such as an ...
or a
disc jockey A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at nightclubs or music fes ...
(DJ) who mixes recorded music. Nightclubs tend to be smaller than live music venues like
theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a Stage (theatre), stage. The performe ...
s and
stadium A stadium (: stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage completely or partially surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit ...
s, with few or no seats for customers. Nightclubs generally restrict access to people in terms of age, attire, personal belongings, and behaviors. Nightclubs typically have dress codes to prohibit people wearing informal, indecent, offensive, or
gang A gang is a social group, group or secret society, society of associates, friends, or members of a family with a defined leadership and internal organization that identifies with or claims control over Wiktionary:territory#Noun, territory in a ...
-related attire from entering. Unlike other entertainment venues, nightclubs are more likely to use bouncers to screen prospective patrons for entry. The busiest nights for a nightclub are Friday and Saturday nights. Most nightclubs cater to a particular music genre or sound for branding effects. Some nightclubs may offer food and beverages (including alcoholic beverages).


Terminology

In some countries, nightclubs are also referred to as "discos" or "discothèques" ( or , outdated; nowadays: ); ;
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
, Portuguese, and
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...
: ''discoteca,'' ''antro'' (common in Mexico), and ''boliche'' (common in Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay), ''discos'' is commonly used in all others in Latin America). In
Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...
ディスコ, ''disuko'' refers to an older, smaller, less fashionable venue; while クラブ, ''kurabu'' refers to a more recent, larger, more popular venue. The term ''night'' is used to refer to an evening focusing on a specific genre, such as "
retro Retro style is imitative or consciously derivative of lifestyles, trends, or art forms from the past, including in music, modes, fashions, or attitudes. It has been argued that there is a nostalgia cycle in popular culture. Definition The term ...
music night" or a "singles night". In Hong Kong and China, nightclub is used as a
euphemism A euphemism ( ) is when an expression that could offend or imply something unpleasant is replaced with one that is agreeable or inoffensive. Some euphemisms are intended to amuse, while others use bland, inoffensive terms for concepts that the u ...
for a
hostess club A hostess club is a type of night club found primarily in Japan which employs mostly female staff and caters to men seeking drinks and attentive conversation. Host clubs are a similar type of establishment where mostly male staff attend to women. ...
, and the association of the term with the sex trade has driven out the regular usage of the term.


History


Early history

In the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
,
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
increasingly became the national capital for tourism and entertainment. Grand hotels were built for upscale visitors. New York's theater district gradually moved northward during this half century, from The
Bowery The Bowery () is a street and neighbourhood, neighborhood in Lower Manhattan in New York City, New York. The street runs from Chatham Square at Park Row (Manhattan), Park Row, Worth Street, and Mott Street in the south to Cooper Square at 4th ...
up
Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...
through Union Square and
Madison Square Madison Square is a public square formed by the intersection of Fifth Avenue and Broadway at 23rd Street in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The square was named for Founding Father James Madison, the fourth president of the United St ...
, settling around
Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and Neighborhoods in New York City, neighborhood in the Midtown Manhattan section of New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway (Manhattan), ...
at the end of the 19th century. Stars such as
Edwin Booth Edwin Thomas Booth (November 13, 1833 – June 7, 1893) was an American stage actor and theatrical manager who toured throughout the United States and the major capitals of Europe, performing Shakespearean plays. In 1869, he founded Booth's Th ...
and
Lillian Russell Lillian Russell (born Helen Louise Leonard; December 4, 1860 or 1861 – June 6, 1922) was an American actress and singer. She became one of the most famous actresses and singers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, praised for her beaut ...
were among the early
Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...
performers.
Prostitutes Prostitution is a type of sex work that involves engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-p ...
served a wide variety of clientele, from sailors on leave to playboys. The first nightclubs appeared in New York City in the 1840s and 1850s, including McGlory's, and the Haymarket. They enjoyed a national reputation for
vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a drama ...
, live music, and dance. They tolerated unlicensed liquor, commercial sex, and
gambling Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of Value (economics), value ("the stakes") on a Event (probability theory), random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy (ga ...
cards, chiefly Faro. Practically all gambling was illegal in the city (except upscale
horseracing Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its bas ...
tracks), and regular payoffs to political and police leadership was necessary. Prices were high and they were patronized by an upscale audience. Timothy Gilfoyle called them "the first nightclubs". By contrast, Owney Geoghegan ran the toughest nightclub in New York from 1880 to 1883. It catered to a downscale clientele and besides the usual illegal liquor, gambling, and prostitution, it featured nightly fistfights and occasional shootings, stabbings, and police raids.
Webster Hall Webster Hall is a nightclub and concert venue located at 125 East 11th Street, between Third and Fourth avenues, near Astor Place, in the East Village of Manhattan, New York City. It is one of New York City's most historically significant ...
is credited as the first modern nightclub, being built in 1886 and starting off as a "social hall", originally functioning as a home for dance and political activism events. Reisenweber's Cafe is credited for introducing
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
and
cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, casino, hotel, restaurant, or nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or drinking, ...
to New Yorkers.


Jukebox and prohibition

The
jukebox A jukebox is a partially automated music-playing device, usually a coin-operated machine, that plays a user-selected song from a self-contained media library. Traditional jukeboxes contain records, compact discs, or digital files, and allow user ...
(a coin-operated record-player) was invented by the Pacific Phonograph Company in 1889 by its managers Louis Glass and his partner William S. Arnold. The first was installed at the Palais Royale Saloon,
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
on November 23, 1889, becoming an overnight sensation. The advent of the jukebox fueled the
Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic b ...
-era boom in underground illegal
speakeasy A speakeasy, also called a beer flat or blind pig or blind tiger, was an illicit establishment that sold alcoholic beverages. The term may also refer to a retro style bar that replicates aspects of historical speakeasies. In the United State ...
bars, which needed music but could not afford a live band and needed precious space for paying customers. Webster Hall stayed open, with rumors circulating of
Al Capone Alphonse Gabriel Capone ( ; ; January 17, 1899 – January 25, 1947), sometimes known by the nickname "Scarface", was an American organized crime, gangster and businessman who attained notoriety during the Prohibition era as the co-foun ...
's involvement and police bribery. From about 1900 to 1920,
working class The working class is a subset of employees who are compensated with wage or salary-based contracts, whose exact membership varies from definition to definition. Members of the working class rely primarily upon earnings from wage labour. Most c ...
Americans would gather at
honky tonk A honky-tonk (also called honkatonk, honkey-tonk, honky tonk, or tonk) is either a bar that provides country music for the entertainment of its patrons or the style of music played in such establishments. It can also refer to the type of piano ...
s or
juke joint Juke joint (also jukejoint, jook house, jook, or juke) is the African-American vernacular term for an informal establishment featuring music, dancing, gambling, and drinking, primarily operated by African Americans in the southeastern United St ...
s to dance to music played on a piano or a jukebox. With the repeal of Prohibition in February 1933, nightclubs were revived, such as New York's
21 Club The 21 Club, often simply 21, was a traditional American cuisine restaurant and former prohibition-era speakeasy, located at 21 West 52nd Street in New York City. Prior to its closure in 2020, the club had been active for 90 years, and it had ...
, Copacabana,
El Morocco El Morocco, sometimes nicknamed Elmo or Elmer, was a 20th-century nightclub in the Manhattan borough of New York City. It was frequented by the rich and famous from the 1930s until the decline of café society in the late 1950s. It was know ...
, and the
Stork Club Stork Club was a nightclub in Manhattan, New York City. During its existence from 1929 to 1965, it became one of the most prestigious clubs in the world. A symbol of café society, the wealthy elite, including movie stars, celebrities, showgi ...
. These nightclubs featured
big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s and ...
s. During America's Prohibition, new speakeasies and nightclubs appeared on a weekly basis.
Texas Guinan Mary Louise Cecilia "Texas" Guinan (January 12, 1884 – November 5, 1933) was an American actress, producer, and entrepreneur. Born in Texas to Irish immigrant parents, Guinan decided at an early age to become an entertainer. After becoming a s ...
opened and ran many, and had many padlocked by the police.
Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater ...
had its own clubs including the
Cotton Club The Cotton Club was a 20th-century nightclub in New York City. It was located on 142nd Street and Lenox Avenue from 1923 to 1936, then briefly in the midtown Theater District until 1940. The club operated during the United States' era of P ...
. Midtown New York had a string of nightclubs, many named after bandleaders such as
Paul Whiteman Paul Samuel Whiteman (March 28, 1890 – December 29, 1967) was an American Jazz bandleader, composer, orchestral director, and violinist. As the leader of one of the most popular dance bands in the United States during the 1920s and early 193 ...
,
Vincent Lopez Vincent Lopez (December 30, 1895 – September 20, 1975) was an American bandleader, actor, and pianist. Early life and education Lopez was born of Portuguese immigrant parents in Brooklyn, New York City, United States, Distinguished Americ ...
, and
Roger Wolfe Kahn Roger Wolfe Kahn (October 19, 1907 – July 12, 1962) was an American jazz and popular musician, composer, bandleader (Roger Wolfe Kahn and His Orchestra) and an aviator. Life and career Roger Wolfe Kahn (originally spelled "Wolff") was born i ...
who opened Le Perroquet de Paris at a cost of $250,000. It was billed as America's most beautiful and sophisticated nightclub and featured the young Kahn and his band most evenings.


Pre-WWII


Europe

Pre-World War II
Soho SoHo, short for "South of Houston Street, Houston Street", is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Since the 1970s, the neighborhood has been the location of many artists' lofts and art galleries, art installations such as The Wall ...
in
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
offered
café society Café society was the description of the "Beautiful People" and " Bright Young Things" who gathered in fashionable cafés and restaurants in New York, Paris and London beginning in the late 19th century. Maury Henry Biddle Paul is credited wi ...
,
cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, casino, hotel, restaurant, or nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or drinking, ...
,
burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.
jazz, and bohemian clubs similar to those in New York,
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
, and
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
. Nightclubs in London were tied much to the idea of "
high society High society, sometimes simply Society, is the behavior and lifestyle of people with the highest levels of wealth, power, fame and social status. It includes their related affiliations, social events and practices. Upscale social clubs were open ...
", via organisations such as the
Kit Kat Club The Kit-Cat Club (sometimes Kit Kat Club) was an early 18th-century English club in London with strong political and literary associations. Members of the club were committed Whigs. They met at the Trumpet Tavern in London and at Water Oakley i ...
(which took its name from the political
Kit-Cat Club The Kit-Cat Club (sometimes Kit Kat Club) was an early 18th-century English club in London with strong political and literary associations. Members of the club were committed Whigs (British political party), Whigs. They met at the Trumpet Tavern ...
in
Pall Mall, London Pall Mall is a street in the St James's area of the City of Westminster, Central London. It connects St James's Street to Trafalgar Square and is a section of the regional A4 road (England), A4 road. The street's name is derived f ...
) and the Café de Paris. The
43 Club The 43 Club or "The 43" was a nightclub at 43 Gerrard Street in Soho, London that became notorious during the Jazz Age for outrageous parties frequented by the decadent rich and famous. Local myth provides many tales of provocative, licentious an ...
on Gerrard Street was run by
Kate Meyrick Kate Meyrick (7 August 1875 – 19 January 1933) known as the 'Night Club Queen' was an Irish night-club owner in 1920s London. During her 13-year career she made, and spent, a fortune and served five prison sentences. She was the inspiration fo ...
the 'Night Club Queen'. Meyrick ran several London nightclubs in the 1920s and early 1930s, during which time she served prison sentences for breaching licensing laws and bribing a police officer. In this era, nightclubbing was generally the preserve of those with money. In Paris,
Josephine Baker Freda Josephine Baker (; June 3, 1906 – April 12, 1975), naturalized as Joséphine Baker, was an American and French dancer, singer, and actress. Her career was centered primarily in Europe, mostly in France. She was the first Black woman to s ...
ran several nightclubs during the 1920s including Chez Josephine, as did her friend Bricktop who ran Bricktops. Jazz singer and Broadway star
Adelaide Hall Adelaide Louise Hall (20 October 1901 – 7 November 1993) was an American-born UK-based jazz singer and entertainer. Her career spanned more than 70 years from 1921 until her death. Early in her career, she was a major figure in the Harlem Ren ...
and her husband Bert Hicks opened the nightclub ''La Grosse Pomme'' on Rue Pigalle in
Montmartre Montmartre ( , , ) is a large hill in Paris's northern 18th arrondissement of Paris, 18th arrondissement. It is high and gives its name to the surrounding district, part of the Rive Droite, Right Bank. Montmartre is primarily known for its a ...
on December 9, 1937. Hall and Hicks also owned the chic Florida Club in London's Mayfair. In Germany during the
Golden Twenties The Golden Twenties (), also known as the Happy Twenties (), was a five-year time period within the decade of the 1920s in Germany. The era began in 1924, after the end of the hyperinflation following World War I, and ended with the Wall Stree ...
, there was a need to dance away the memories of the
First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
. In Berlin, where a "
tango Tango is a partner dance and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay. The tango was born in the impoverished port areas of these countries from a combination of Arge ...
fever" had already swept dancing establishments in the early 1910s, 899 venues with a dancing licence were registered by 1930, including the Moka Efti, Casanova, Scala, Delphi-Palast (destroyed in WW2, replaced by the Delphi Filmpalast), Kakadu, Femina-Palast, ''Palais am Zoo'', ''Gourmenia-Palast'', ''Uhlandeck'', and the
Haus Vaterland Haus Vaterland (Fatherland House) was a pleasure palace on the south-east side of Potsdamer Platz in central Berlin. Preceded by Haus Potsdam, a multi-use building including a large cinema and a huge café, from 1928 to 1943 it was a large, famous ...
. In the 1920s, the
nightlife Nightlife is a collective term for entertainment that is available and generally more popular from the late evening into the early hours of the morning. It includes pubs, bars, nightclubs, parties, live music, concerts, cabarets, theatre, ...
of the city was dominated by party drugs such as
cocaine Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...
. Hundreds of venues in the city, which at the time had a sinful reputation, offered in addition to bars, stages, and dance floors an erotic nightlife, such as small booths where lovers could withdraw to for intimate moments. These venues were aimed at rich and poor people,
gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...
s,
lesbian A lesbian is a homosexual woman or girl. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with female homosexu ...
s, nudists, and gangsters alike.


Asia

In 1930s
Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
, the big clubs were The Paramount Club (opened in 1933) and
Ciro's Ciro's (later known as Ciro's Le Disc) was a nightclub on Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood, California owned by William Wilkerson. Opened in 1940, Ciro's became a popular nightspot for celebrities. The nightclub closed in 1960 and was reopen ...
(opened in 1936). Other clubs of the era were the Metropole and the Canidrome.
Jazz band A jazz band (jazz ensemble or jazz combo) is a musical ensemble that plays jazz music. Jazz bands vary in the quantity of its members and the style of jazz that they play but it is common to find a jazz band made up of a rhythm section and a ho ...
s, big bands, and singers performed for a bowtied clientele. The Paramount and Ciro's in particular were fiercely rivalrous and attracted many customers from the underworld. Shanghai's clubs fell into decline after the Japanese invasion of 1937 and eventually closed. The Paramount reopened after the communist victory in 1949 as The Red Capitol Cinema, dedicated to
Maoist Maoism, officially Mao Zedong Thought, is a variety of Marxism–Leninism that Mao Zedong developed while trying to realize a socialist revolution in the agricultural, pre-industrial society of the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic o ...
propaganda films, before fading into obscurity. It reopened as The Paramount in 2008.


World War II years

In
occupied France The Military Administration in France (; ) was an interim occupation authority established by Nazi Germany during World War II to administer the occupied zone in areas of northern and western France. This so-called ' was established in June 19 ...
,
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
and
bebop Bebop or bop is a style of jazz developed in the early to mid-1940s in the United States. The style features compositions characterized by a fast tempo (usually exceeding 200 bpm), complex chord progressions with rapid chord changes and numerou ...
music, and the
jitterbug Jitterbug is a generalized term used to describe Swing (dance), swing dancing. It is often synonymous with the lindy hop dance but might include elements of the Jive (dance), jive, east coast swing, collegiate shag, Charleston (dance), charlesto ...
dance were banned by the
Nazis Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...
as "decadent American influences", so as an act of resistance, people met at hidden basements called ''discothèques'' where they danced to jazz and
swing music Swing music is a style of jazz that developed in the United States during the late 1920s and early 1930s. It became nationally popular from the mid-1930s. Swing bands usually featured soloists who would improvise on the melody over the arrangement ...
, played on a single turntable when a jukebox was not available. These discothèques were also patronized by anti-
Vichy Vichy (, ; ) is a city in the central French department of Allier. Located on the Allier river, it is a major spa and resort town and during World War II was the capital of Vichy France. As of 2021, Vichy has a population of 25,789. Known f ...
youth called zazous. In
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...
, there were underground discothèques patronized by anti-Nazi youth called the "
Swing Kids The Swing Youth () were a youth counterculture of jazz and Swing (genre), swing lovers in Nazi Germany, Germany formed in Hamburg in 1939. Primarily active in Hamburg and Berlin, they were composed of 14- to 21-year-old Germans, mostly middl ...
".


Post-WWII: Emergence of the disc jockey and discothèque

The end of World War II saw the beginning of a transformation in the nightclub: no longer the preserve of a moneyed elite, over several decades, the nightclub steadily became a mass phenomenon. In Germany, the first discothèque on record that involved a
disc jockey A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at nightclubs or music fes ...
was Scotch-Club, which opened in 1959. Its, and therefore the world's first DJ was 19-year-old local cub reporter Klaus Quirini who had been sent to write a story about the strange new phenomenon of public record-playing; fueled by
whisky Whisky or whiskey is a type of liquor made from Fermentation in food processing, fermented grain mashing, mash. Various grains (which may be Malting, malted) are used for different varieties, including barley, Maize, corn, rye, and wheat. Whisky ...
, he jumped on stage and started announcing records as he played them and took the stage-name DJ Heinrich. In the US, Connie's Inn and the
Cotton Club The Cotton Club was a 20th-century nightclub in New York City. It was located on 142nd Street and Lenox Avenue from 1923 to 1936, then briefly in the midtown Theater District until 1940. The club operated during the United States' era of P ...
in
Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater ...
, NY were popular venues for white audiences. Before 1953 and some years thereafter, most bars and nightclubs used a jukebox or mostly live bands. In Paris, at a club named Le Whisky à Gogo, founded in 1947 on the
rue de Seine The Rue de Seine () is a street in the 6th arrondissement of Paris. It is one of the most sought after streets in Paris due to its history and very close proximity to the Louvre and other famous Parisian landmarks. The Rue de Seine and surroundi ...
by Paul Pacine,
Régine Zylberberg Régine Zylberberg (born Régina Zylberberg; 26 December 1929 – 1 May 2022), often known mononymously as Régine, was a Belgian-born French singer and nightclub impresario. She dubbed herself the "Queen of the Night". Early life Rachelle Zy ...
in 1953 laid down a dance floor, suspended coloured lights, and replaced the jukebox with two turntables that she operated herself so there would be no breaks between the music. This was the world's first-ever "discothèque". The Whisky à Gogo set into place the standard elements of the modern post-World War II ''discothèque''-style nightclub. In London, by the end of the 1950s, several of the coffee bars in London's Soho introduced afternoon dancing. These prototype discothèques were nothing like modern-day nightclubs, as they were unlicensed, daytime venues where coffee was the drink of choice and that catered to a very young public – mostly made up of French and Italians working illegally, mostly in catering, to learn English, as well as
au pair An au pair (; : au pairs) is a person working for, and living as part of, a homestay, host family. Typically, au pairs take on a share of the family’s responsibility for child care as well as some homemaking, housework, and receive a monetary ...
girls from most of western Europe. A well known venue was Les Enfants Terribles at 93 Dean St., in
Soho SoHo, short for "South of Houston Street, Houston Street", is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Since the 1970s, the neighborhood has been the location of many artists' lofts and art galleries, art installations such as The Wall ...
, London. Initially opening as a coffee-bar, it was run by Betty Passes who claimed to be the inventor of
disco Disco is a music genre, genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightclub, nightlife, particularly in African Americans, African-American, Italian-Americans, Italian-American, LGBTQ ...
after she pioneered the idea of dancing to records at her premises' basement in 1957. It stayed popular into the 1960s. It later became a 1940s-themed club called the Black Gardenia but has since closed. The Flamingo Club on
Wardour Street Wardour Street () is a street in Soho, City of Westminster, London. It is a one-way street that runs north from Leicester Square, through Chinatown, London, Chinatown, across Shaftesbury Avenue to Oxford Street. Throughout the 20th century th ...
in London ran between 1952 and 1967 and was known for its role in the growth of
rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated within African American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predomina ...
and jazz in the UK. It earned a controversial reputation with gangsters and prostitutes said to have been frequent visitors in the 1960s, along with musicians such as
the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...
.


1960s

Discothèques began to appear in New York City in 1964: the
Village Vanguard The Village Vanguard is a jazz club at Seventh Avenue South in Greenwich Village, New York City. The club was opened on February 22, 1935, by Max Gordon. Originally, the club presented folk music and beat poetry, but it became primarily a jaz ...
offered dancing between jazz sets; Shepheard's, located in the basement of the Drake Hotel, was small but popular; L'Interdit and Il Mio (at
Delmonico's Delmonico's is a series of restaurants that have operated in New York City, and Greenwich, Connecticut, with the present version located at 56 Beaver Street in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Manhattan. The origin ...
) were private; the
El Morocco El Morocco, sometimes nicknamed Elmo or Elmer, was a 20th-century nightclub in the Manhattan borough of New York City. It was frequented by the rich and famous from the 1930s until the decline of café society in the late 1950s. It was know ...
had an on-premises disco called Garrison; and the
Stork Club Stork Club was a nightclub in Manhattan, New York City. During its existence from 1929 to 1965, it became one of the most prestigious clubs in the world. A symbol of café society, the wealthy elite, including movie stars, celebrities, showgi ...
had one in its Shermaine suite. Larger discos opened in 1966: Cheetah, with room for 2000 dancers, the
Electric Circus ''Electric Circus '' (also known as ''EC'') is a Canadian live dance music television program that aired on MuchMusic and Citytv from September 16, 1988, to December 12, 2003. The name originated from a nightclub that once existed at Citytv's fir ...
, and Dom. While the discothèque swept Europe throughout the 1960s, it did not become widely popular in the United States until the 1970s, where the first
rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...
generation preferred rough and tumble bars and taverns to nightclubs until the disco era. In the early 1960s, Mark Birley opened a members-only discothèque nightclub, Annabel's, in
Berkeley Square Berkeley Square is a garden square in the West End of London. It is one of the best known of the many squares in London, located in Mayfair in the City of Westminster. It was laid out in the mid 18th century by the architect William Kent, ...
, London. In 1962, the Peppermint Lounge in New York City became popular and is the place where
go-go dancing Go-go dancers are dancers who are employed to entertain crowds at nightclubs or other venues where music is played. Go-go dancing originated in the early 1960s at the French bar Whisky a Gogo, located in the town of Juan-les-Pins. The bar's n ...
originated. Sybil Burton opened the "Arthur" discothèque in 1965 on East 54th Street in
Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
on the site of the old El Morocco nightclub and it became the first, foremost, and hottest disco in New York City through 1969. In Germany in the 1960s, when Berlin was divided by the
Wall A wall is a structure and a surface that defines an area; carries a load; provides security, shelter, or soundproofing; or serves a decorative purpose. There are various types of walls, including border barriers between countries, brick wal ...
,
Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
became Germany's epicenter of nightlife for the next two decades with numerous nightclubs and discothèques such as Big Apple, PN hit-house, Tiffany, Domicile, ''Hot Club'', ''Piper Club'', ''Why Not'', ''Crash'', ''Sugar Shack'', the underwater discothèque Yellow Submarine, and Mrs. Henderson, where stars such as
Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English musician. He is known as the lead singer and one of the founder members of The Rolling Stones. Jagger has co-written most of the band's songs with lead guitarist Keith Richards; Jagge ...
,
Keith Richards Keith Richards (born 18 December 1943) is an English musician, songwriter, singer and record producer who is an original member, guitarist, secondary vocalist, and co-principal songwriter of the Rolling Stones. His songwriting partnership wi ...
,
Freddie Mercury Freddie Mercury (born Farrokh Bulsara; 5 September 1946 – 24 November 1991) was a British singer and songwriter who achieved global fame as the lead vocalist and pianist of the rock band Queen (band), Queen. Regarded as one of the gre ...
, and
David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...
went in and out and which led to artists such as
Giorgio Moroder Giovanni Giorgio Moroder (, ; born 26 April 1940) is an Italian composer and music producer. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Father of Disco", Moroder is credited with pioneering Euro disco and electronic dance music. His work ...
,
Donna Summer Donna Adrian Gaines (December 31, 1948May 17, 2012), known professionally as Donna Summer, was an American singer and songwriter. She gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s and became known as the "Queen of Disco", while her music ...
, and Mercury settling in the city. In 1967, Germany's first large-scale discothèque opened in Munich as the club Blow Up, which because of its extravagance and excesses quickly gained international reputation. In parallel, the
hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, counterculture of the mid-1960s to early 1970s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States and spread to dif ...
movement spawned Britain's first club for
psychedelic music Psychedelic music (sometimes called psychedelia) is a wide range of popular music styles and genres influenced by 1960s psychedelia, a subculture of people who used psychedelic drugs such as Dmt, DMT, Lysergic acid diethylamide, LSD, mescaline, ...
, the
UFO Club The UFO Club ( ') was a short-lived UK underground, British counter-culture nightclub in London in the 1960s. The club was established by Joe Boyd and John Hopkins (political activist), John "Hoppy" Hopkins. It featured light shows, poetry r ...
(at the Blarney Club, 31
Tottenham Court Road Tottenham Court Road (occasionally abbreviated as TCR) is a major road in Central London, almost entirely within the London Borough of Camden. The road runs from Euston Road in the north to St Giles Circus in the south; Tottenham Court Road tu ...
, London from 23 Dec 1966 to Oct 1967) which then became the
Middle Earth Middle or The Middle may refer to: * Centre (geometry), the point equally distant from the outer limits. Places * Middle (sheading), a subdivision of the Isle of Man * Middle Bay (disambiguation) * Middle Brook (disambiguation) * Middle Creek ...
club (at 43 King Street) and eventually the Roundhouse in 1968. Both the UFO Club and Middle Earth were short-lived but saw performances by artists such as house-band
Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experiments ...
,
Soft Machine Soft Machine are an English Rock music, rock band from Canterbury, Kent. The band were formed in 1966 by Mike Ratledge, Robert Wyatt, Kevin Ayers, Daevid Allen and Larry Nowlin. Soft Machine were central in the Canterbury scene; they became o ...
,
Procol Harum Procol Harum () were an English rock music, rock band formed in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, in 1967. Their best-known recording is the 1967 hit single "A Whiter Shade of Pale", one of the few singles to have sold more than List of best-selling si ...
,
Fairport Convention Fairport Convention are an English British folk rock, folk rock band, formed in 1967 by guitarists Richard Thompson (musician), Richard Thompson and Simon Nicol, bassist Ashley Hutchings and drummer Shaun Frater (with Frater replaced by Marti ...
,
Arthur Brown Arthur Brown may refer to: Entertainment * Arthur William Brown (1881–1966), Canadian commercial artist * H. Arthur Brown (1906–1992), American orchestral conductor * Arthur Brown (musician) (born 1942), English rock singer * Arthur Brown, ...
, and
Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...
; DJ
John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), better known as John Peel, was an English radio presenter and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original disc jockeys on BBC Radio 1, broadcasting regularly from ...
was a regular. These clubs germinated what would later become the underground gig scene of the 1970s and 1980s, at venues such as the
100 Club The 100 Club is a music venue located at 100 Oxford Street, London, England, where it has been hosting live music since 24 October 1942. It was originally called the Feldman Swing Club, but changed its name when the father of the current owner ...
and The Clarendon in Hammersmith. During the 1960s, the Clarendon was a
country & western Country (also called country and western) is a music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is primarily focused on singing sto ...
club, having earlier been an upmarket jazz,
dining A restaurant is an establishment that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services. Restaurants vary greatly in a ...
, and dancing club in the pre-War era. In the north of England, the distinct
northern soul Northern soul is a music and dance movement that emerged in Northern England and the Midlands in the early 1970s. It developed from the British Mod (subculture), mod scene, based on a particular style of African American music, Black American ...
movement spanned
Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
's Twisted Wheel Club, the Blackpool Mecca, Cleethorpes Pier, and the Wigan Casino, known for the acrobatic dancing of its clubgoers; each of these clubs was known for all-nighters.


1970s: Disco

Disco has its roots in the underground club scene. During the early 1970s in New York City, disco clubs were places where oppressed or
marginalized Social exclusion or social marginalisation is the social disadvantage and relegation to the fringe of society. It is a term that has been used widely in Europe and was first used in France in the late 20th century. In the EU context, the Euro ...
groups such as gay people,
African Americans African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa ...
,
Latinos Hispanic and Latino Americans are Americans who have a Spanish or Latin American background, culture, or family origin. This demographic group includes all Americans who identify as Hispanic or Latino, regardless of race. According to th ...
,
Italian Americans Italian Americans () are Americans who have full or partial Italians, Italian ancestry. The largest concentrations of Italian Americans are in the urban Northeastern United States, Northeast and industrial Midwestern United States, Midwestern ...
, and
Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
could party without following male to female dance protocol or exclusive club policies. Discothèques had a law where for every three men, there was one woman. The women often sought these experiences to seek safety in a venue that embraced the independent woman – with an eye to one or more of the same or opposite sex or none. Although the culture that surrounded disco was progressive in dance couples,
cross-genre A hybrid genre is a literary or film genre that blends themes and elements from two or more different genres. Hybrid genre works are also referred to as cross-genre, multi-genre, mixed genre, or fusion genre. Some hybrid genres have acquired thei ...
music, and a push to put the physical over the rational, the role of women looked to be placed in the role of safety net. It brought together people from different backgrounds. These clubs acted as safe havens for
homosexual Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between people of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" exc ...
partygoers to dance in peace and away from public scrutiny. By the late 1970s, many major U.S. cities had thriving disco club scenes centered on discothèques, nightclubs, and private loft parties where DJs would play disco hits through powerful
PA system A public address system (or PA system) is an electronic system comprising microphones, amplifiers, loudspeakers, and related equipment. It increases the apparent volume (loudness) of a human voice, musical instrument, or other acoustic sound sou ...
s for the dancers. The DJs played "a smooth mix of long single records to keep people 'dancing all night long. Some of the most prestigious clubs had elaborate lighting systems that throbbed to the beat of the music. The genre of disco has changed through the years. It is classified both as a musical genre and as a nightclub; and in the late seventies, disco began to act as a safe haven for social outcasts. This club culture that originated in downtown New York, was attended by a variety of different ethnicities and economic backgrounds. It was an inexpensive activity to indulge in, and discos united a multitude of different minorities in a way never seen before; including those in the gay and
psychedelic Psychedelics are a subclass of hallucinogenic drugs whose primary effect is to trigger non-ordinary mental states (known as psychedelic experiences or "trips") and a perceived "expansion of consciousness". Also referred to as classic halluci ...
communities. The music ultimately was what brought people together. Some cities had disco dance instructors or dance schools that taught people how to do popular disco dances such as "touch dancing", the " hustle", and the " cha-cha-cha". There were also disco fashions that discotheque-goers wore for nights out at their local disco, such as sheer, flowing
Halston Roy Halston Frowick (April 23, 1932 – March 26, 1990), known mononymously as Halston, was an American fashion designer, who rose to international fame in the 1970s. Halston's minimalist, clean designs, which were often made of cashmere or ...
dresses for women and shiny polyester Qiana shirts for men. Disco clubs and "hedonistic loft parties" had a club culture with many Italian American, African American, gay, and Hispanic people. In addition to the dance and fashion aspects of the disco club scene, there was also a thriving
drug subculture Drug cultures are examples of countercultures that are primarily defined by spiritual, medical, and recreational drug use. They may be focused on a single drug, or endorse polydrug use. They sometimes eagerly or reluctantly initiate newcomers, ...
, particularly for
recreational drugs Recreation is an activity of leisure, leisure being discretionary time. The "need to do something for recreation" is an essential element of human biology and psychology. Recreational activities are often done for enjoyment, amusement, or plea ...
that would enhance the experience of dancing to the loud music and the flashing lights, such as
cocaine Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...
(nicknamed "blow"),
amyl nitrite Amyl nitrite is a chemical compound with the formula C5H11ONO. A variety of isomers are known, but they all feature an amyl group attached to the nitrite functional group. The alkyl group (the amyl in this case) is unreactive and the chemical ...
"
poppers Poppers are recreational drugs belonging to the alkyl nitrite family of chemical compounds. When fumes from these substances are inhaled, they act as potent vasodilators, producing mild euphoria, warmth, and dizziness. Most effects have a r ...
", and the "other quintessential 1970s club drug
Quaalude Methaqualone is a hypnotic sedative. It was sold under the brand names Quaalude ( ) and Sopor among others, which contained 300 mg of methaqualone, and sold as a combination drug under the brand name Mandrax, which contained 250 mg me ...
, which suspended motor coordination and turned one's arms and legs to
Jell-O Jell-O (stylized in all caps) is an American brand offering a variety of powdered gelatin dessert (fruit-flavored gels/jellies), pudding, and no-bake cream pie mixes. The original gelatin dessert ( genericized as jello) is the signature of ...
". The "massive quantities of drugs ingested in discotheques by newly liberated gay men produced the next cultural phenomenon of the disco era: rampant
promiscuity Promiscuity is the practice of engaging in sexual activity frequently with different partners or being indiscriminate in the choice of sexual partners. The term can carry a moral judgment. A common example of behavior viewed as promiscuous by man ...
and public sex. While the dance floor was the central arena of seduction, actual sex usually took place in the nether regions of the disco: bathroom stalls, exit stairwells, and so on. In other cases, the disco became a kind of "main course" in a
hedonist Hedonism is a family of philosophical views that prioritize pleasure. Psychological hedonism is the theory that all human behavior is motivated by the desire to maximize pleasure and minimize pain. As a form of egoism, it suggests that people ...
's menu for a night out." Well known 1970s discothèques included celebrity hangouts such as Manhattan's Studio 54, which was operated by Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager. Studio 54 was notorious for the hedonism that went on within; the balconies were known for sexual encounters, and drug use was rampant. Its dance floor was decorated with an image of the "Man in the Moon" that included an animated cocaine spoon. Other 1970s discothèques in New York City were Manhattan's Starship Discovery One at 350 West 42nd Street (Manhattan), 42nd Street, Roseland Ballroom, Xenon (nightclub), Xenon, The Loft (New York City), The Loft, the Paradise Garage, a recently renovated Copacabana, and Aux Puces, one of the first gay disco bars. The album cover of Saturday Night Band's ''Come On and Dance, Dance'' featured two dancers in the Starship Discovery One. In San Francisco, there was the Trocadero Transfer, the I-Beam (nightclub), I-Beam, and the End Up. In Spain during the 1970s, the first clubs and discos opened in Ibiza, an island which had been a popular destination for hippie travelers since the 1960s and now was experiencing a tourist boom. The first ever "Superclub" in Ibiza was the now-abandoned "Festival Club" at Sant Josep de sa Talaia, which was built between 1969 and 1972 and serviced tourists who were bused in until it closed in 1974. Responding to this influx of visitors, locals opened the first large clubs Pacha Group, Pacha, Amnesia (nightclub), Amnesia, and the Privilege Ibiza, Ku-club (renamed Privilege in 1995). By the early 1980s, the term "disco" had largely fallen out of favour in the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
.


1970s: Glam and punk rock

In parallel to the disco scene and quite separate from it, the glam rock (T. Rex (band), T. Rex, David Bowie, Roxy Music) and punk rock cultures in London produced their own set of nightclubs, starting with Billy's at 69 Dean Street (known for its David Bowie nights), Louise's on Poland Street (the first true punk club and hangout of the Sex Pistols, Siouxsie Sioux plus the Bromley Contingent, and then Blitz (the home of the Blitz Kids (New Romantics), Blitz Kids). Crackers (nightclub), Crackers was a key part of the jazz-funk scene and also the early punk scene via its Vortex nights. The underground warehouse party scene was kicked off by Toyah Willcox with her Mayhem Studios at Patcham Terrace in Battersea. The emergence of this highly experimental artistic scene in London can be credited almost entirely to Rusty Egan, Steve Strange, the Bromley Contingent's Philip Sallon, and Chris Sullivan. Dozens of clubs came and went, but one of the original batch, and being London's longest running one-nighter club, Gaz's Rockin' Blues, is still going as of 2020. The new wave music scene grew out of Blitz and the Cha Cha Club in Charing Cross. Whilst overall, the club scene was fairly small and hidden away in basements, cellars, and warehouses, London's complicated mix of punk, New Romantic, New Wave, and gay clubs in the late 1970s and early 1980s paved the way for acid house to flourish in the late 1980s, initially with Shoom and two acid house nights at Heaven (nightclub), Heaven: Spectrum and Rage. In the north of England, what later became the "alternative" scene was centred around the Roxy/Bowie room at Pips in Manchester, which opened in 1972; as small as this scene was, many notable figures attended the club, and Joy Division played their first gig there, billed as "Warsaw" before changing their name that night.


1980s: New wave, post-punk, goth, rave, and acid house

During the 1980s, during the New Romantic movement, London had a vibrant nightclub scene, which included clubs like The Blitz, Batcave (club), the Batcave, the Camden Palace, and Club for Heroes. These clubs grew out of the earlier Gargoyle Club#The Mandrake, Mandrake and Billy's (later Gossip's) at 69 Dean Street, in the basement below the ground floor Gargoyle Club. Both music and fashion embraced the aesthetics of the movement. Bands included Depeche Mode, Yazoo (band), Yazoo, The Human League, Duran Duran, Eurythmics, and Ultravox. Reggae-influenced bands included Boy George and Culture Club, and electronic music, electronic vibe bands included Visage (band), Visage. At London nightclubs, young men would often wear make-up and young women would wear men's suits. Leigh Bowery's Taboo (nightclub), Taboo (which opened in 1985) bridged the New Romantic and acid house scenes. With the birth of house music in the mid-1980s and then acid house, kickstarted by Chris Sullivan's The Wag Club (on the site of the earlier The Flamingo Club), a cultural revolution swept around the world; first in Chicago at the Warehouse (nightclub), Warehouse and then London and New York City. London clubs such as Clink Street, Revolution in Progress (RiP), Philip Sallon's The Mudd Club, Danny Rampling's Shoom (starting in December 1987 in the basement of Southwark's Fitness Centre), Paul Oakenfold's Spectrum (nightclub), Spectrum, and Nicky Holloway's Trip (nightclub), The Trip fused the eclecticism and ethos of [Ibiza with the new electronic music from the US. The largest United Kingdom, UK cities like Birmingham, Leeds (The Orbit), Liverpool (Quadrant Park and 051), Manchester (The Haçienda), Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle, and Swansea, and several key European places like Paris (Les Bains-Douches), Ibiza (Pacha Group, Pacha), and Rimini, also played a significant role in the evolution of Clubbing (subculture), clubbing, DJ culture, and nightlife. Significant New York nightclubs of the period were Area (nightclub), Area, Danceteria, and The Limelight. However, the seismic shift in nightlife was the emergence of Rave, rave culture in the UK. A mixture of free and commercial outdoor parties were held in fields, warehouses, and abandoned buildings, by various groups such as Biology, Sunrise, Confusion, Hedonism, Rage & Energy, and many others. This laid the ground for what was unfold in the 1990s, initially in the United Kingdom, Germany, and the United States and then worldwide from the 2000s onwards.


1990s, 2000s, and 2010s

In Europe and North America, nightclubs play disco-influenced dance music such as house music, techno, Eurodance and other dance music styles such as electronica, breakbeat, and trance music, trance. Most nightclubs in major cities in the U.S. that have an early adulthood clientele, play hip hop, dance-pop, house, and/or trance music. These clubs are generally the largest and most frequented of all of the different types of clubs. Techno clubs are popular around the world since the early 1990s. Well known examples of the 1990s include Tresor (club), Tresor, E-Werk (Berlin), E-Werk, and Bunker (Berlin), Bunker in
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
; Omen and Dorian Gray (club), Dorian Gray in Frankfurt; Ultraschall, , and Natraj Temple in Munich; and Stammheim in Kassel. The Castlemorton Common Festival in 1992 triggered the UK government's Criminal Justice Act, which largely ended the rave movement by criminalizing any gathering of 20 or more people where music ("sounds wholly or predominantly characterized by the emission of a succession of repetitive beats") was played. Commercial clubs immediately capitalized on the situation causing a boom in "Superclubs" in the UK, such as Ministry of Sound (London), Renaissance (club), Renaissance, and Cream (nightclub), Cream (Liverpool). These developed the club-as-spectacle theme pioneered in the 1970s and 1980s by Pacha (Ibiza) and Juliana's, Juliana's Tokyo (Japan), creating a global phenomenon; however, many clubs such as The Cross (nightclub), The Cross in London, preserved the more underground feel of the former era. Since the late 2000s, venues that received high media attention include Berghain in Berlin and Fabric (club), Fabric in London. Video art has been used in nightclubs since the 1960s, but especially with the rise of electronic dance music since the late 1980s. VJing gained more and more importance. VJs ("video jockeys") mix video content in a similar manner that DJs mix audio content, creating a visual experience that is intended to complement the music.


2020s

The 2020s started with the global COVID-19 pandemic, which closed nightclubs worldwide – the first ever synchronized, global shutdown of nightlife. In response, online "virtual nightclubs" developed, hosted on videotelephony, video-conferencing platforms such as Zoom (software), Zoom. As countries relaxed lockdown rules following drops in case numbers, some nightclubs reopened in repurposed form as sat-down pubs. As vaccine rollouts reached advanced stages, nightclubs were able to reopen with looser restrictions, such as producing Vaccine passports during the COVID-19 pandemic, certification of full vaccination upon entry.


Entry criteria

Many nightclubs use bouncer (doorman), bouncers to choose who can enter the club, or specific lounges or VIP areas. Some nightclubs have one group of bouncers to screen Client (business), clients for entry at the main door, and then other bouncers to screen for entry to other dance floors, lounges, or VIP areas. For legal reasons, in most jurisdictions, the bouncers have to check ID to ensure that prospective patrons are of legal drinking age and that they are not intoxicated already. In this respect, a nightclub's use of bouncers is no different from the use of bouncers by pubs and sports bars. However, in some nightclubs, bouncers may screen patrons using criteria other than just age and intoxication status, such as dress code, guest list inclusion, and physical appearance. This type of screening is used by clubs to make their club "exclusive", by denying entry to people who are not dressed in a stylish enough manner. While some clubs have written dress codes, such as no ripped jeans, no jeans, no gang clothing, and so on, other clubs may not post their policies. As such, the club's bouncers may deny entry to anybody at their discretion. The guest list is typically used for private parties and events held by celebrity, celebrities. At private parties, the hosts may only want their friends to attend. At celebrity events, the hosts may wish the club to only be attended by A-list individuals.


Cover charge

In most cases, entering a nightclub requires a flat fee, called a cover charge. Some clubs waive or reduce the cover charge for early arrivers, special guests, or women (in the United Kingdom this latter option is illegal under the Equality Act 2010, but the law is rarely enforced, and open violations are frequent). Friends of the bouncer (doorman), doorman or the club owner may gain free entrance. Sometimes, especially at larger clubs in Continental European countries, one gets only a pay card at the entrance, on which all money spent in the discothèque (often including the entrance fee) is marked. Sometimes, entrance fee and cloakroom costs are paid by cash, and only the drinks in the club are paid using a pay card. Some clubs offer patrons the chance to sign up on their guest list. A club's guest list is a special promotion the venue offers separate from general admission. Each club has different benefits when you are signed up on their guest list. Some of the benefits of being on a club's guestlist are: free entry, discounted cover charge, the ability to skip the line, and free drinks. Many clubs hire a promotions team to find and sign up guests to the club's guest list.


Dress code

Many nightclubs enforce a dress code in order to ensure a certain type of clientele is in attendance at the venue. Some upscale nightclubs ban attendees from wearing trainers (sneakers) or jeans while other nightclubs will advertise a vague "dress to impress" dress code that allows the bouncers to discriminate at will against those vying for entry to the club. Many exceptions are made to nightclub dress codes, with denied entry usually reserved for the most glaring rule breakers or those thought to be unsuitable for the party. Rave parties typically both allow and encourage the wearing of clubwear, deliberately skimpy and outrageous clothing designed for dancing and exhibitionism. Certain nightclubs like fetish club, fetish nightclubs may apply a dress code (Fetish fashion, BDSM) to a leather-only, rubber-only, or fantasy dress code. Dress code criteria can be an excuse for discriminatory practices, such as in the case of Carpenter v. Limelight Entertainment Ltd.


Exclusive nightclubs

Large cosmopolitan cities that are home to large affluent populations (such as Atlanta, Chicago, Sydney, Los Angeles, Melbourne, Miami, New York City, and
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
) often have what are known as exclusive boutique nightclubs. This type of club typically has a capacity of less than 200 occupants and a very strict entrance policy, which usually requires an entrant to be on the club's guest list. While not explicitly members only clubs, such as Soho House (club), Soho House, exclusive nightclubs operate with a similar level of exclusivity. As they are off limits to most of the public and ensure the privacy of guests, many celebrities favor these types of clubs to other, less exclusive, clubs that do not cater as well to their needs. Another differentiating feature of exclusive nightclubs is that they are known for having a certain type of crowd, for instance, a fashion-forward, affluent crowd or a crowd with a high concentration of fashion models. Many exclusive boutique clubs market themselves as being a place to socialize with models and celebrities. Affluent patrons who find that marketing message appealing are often willing to purchase bottle service at a markup of several times the retail cost of the liquor.


Substance abuse

A distinctive feature of a nightclub is also the fact that it can serve as a hub for substances like alcohol (drug), alcohol, which could affect third parties, creating a negative externality of consumption. The culture of nightclubs create a sense of consuming alcohol in larger quantities than usual. A study in São Paulo looking to identify causes of binge drinking found that environmental variables such as more number of dancefloors, higher level of noise, and 'all you can drink' services to be significantly linked to binge drinking. Furthermore, the culture created around nightclubs to indulge in 'pre-drinking' accentuates the amount of alcohol consumed, which leads to more problems in residential areas off nightclub premises (for example, a higher chance of participating in a fight). Moreover, young consumers of nightclubs who tend to binge drink are often found to be less safe during sexual encounters as a result of the alcohol, which could lead to the spread of Sexually transmitted infection, STDs. A big issue that stems from Alcohol abuse, alcohol and Substance abuse, drug abuse in nightclubs is transportation. Private cars are the most prominent mode of transportation to and from nightclubs, and the use of drugs and alcohol in nightclubs are reported to increase the number of risky behaviors, such as driving under the influence or taking a lift from someone under the influence. A portion of driving customers, despite drinking less than non-driving customers, are still observed to have alcohol levels above the legal threshold after a night out at a nightclub.


Photography

In some nightclubs professional photography, photographers will take publicity photos of patrons, to use in advertising for the nightclub. Digital single-lens reflex camera, Digital SLR cameras and speedlight flash units are typically used. Concert photography and event photography are used to provide clubgoers with a memorable keepsake in addition to promo material used by clubs. Some nightclubs (and in particular techno clubs) pursue a strict no photo policy in order to protect the clubbing experience, and smartphone camera lenses of visitors are occasionally taped up with stickers when one enters the venue.


Bouncer

Most nightclubs employ teams of bouncer (doorman), bouncers, who have the power to restrict entry to the club and remove people. Some bouncers use handheld metal detectors to prevent weapons being brought into clubs. Bouncers often eject patrons for reasons such as possession of Recreational drug use, party drugs in the venue, physical altercations with other patrons, and behavior deemed to be inappropriate or troublesome. Bouncers only allow a certain number of people into a club at a time by counting heads in order to prevent stampedes, and fire code, or liquor licensing violations. They also enforce a club's dress code upon entry. Many clubs have balcony areas specifically for the security team to watch over the clubbers.


Floor show

Some nightclubs present a 'floor show', a series of acts by comedians, dancers, models, singers, and other entertainers, which can be similar to
cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, casino, hotel, restaurant, or nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or drinking, ...
.


Serious incidents

* 20 September 1929: Study Club fire, early dance club fire that killed 22 in Detroit, Michigan, US * 23 April 1940: Rhythm Club fire, 209 killed at nightclub fire at Natchez, Mississippi, Natchez, Mississippi, US * 28 November 1942: Cocoanut Grove fire, 492 killed in a nightclub fire at Boston, Massachusetts, US * 1 November 1970: Club Cinq-Sept fire in a nightclub just outside the small town of Saint-Laurent-du-Pont, Isère in south-eastern France; 146 people killed * 8 March 1973: Whiskey Au Go Go fire, 15 killed after firebombing at Fortitude Valley, Queensland, Fortitude Valley, Brisbane, Australia * 2 August 1973: Summerland disaster, 51 killed at fire at Summerland leisure centre at Douglas, Isle of Man * 28 May 1977: Beverly Hills Supper Club fire, 165 killed and 200 injured in nightclub fire at Southgate, Kentucky, Southgate, Kentucky, US * 14 February 1981: Stardust fire disaster, 48 killed and 214 injured at nightclub fire at Dublin, Republic of Ireland * 17 December 1983: Alcalá 20 nightclub fire, 82 people were killed and 27 injured in Madrid, Spain * 25 March 1990: Happy Land fire, 87 killed in a nightclub fire at Happy Land, The Bronx, New York City * 20 December 1993: Kheyvis fire, 17 killed in a nightclub fire at Buenos Aires, Argentina * 27 November 1994: Yiyuan Disco fire, 233 killed in a nightclub fire at Fuxin, China * 18 March 1996: Ozone Disco fire, 162 dead and 95 injured at a nightclub in Quezon City, Philippines * 30 October 1998: Gothenburg discothèque fire, 63 people killed, 214 injured in a nightclub fire at Gothenburg, Sweden * 1 June 2001: Dolphinarium discotheque massacre, Suicide bombing at the Dolphinarium discothèque in Tel Aviv, Israel * 12 October 2002: 2002 Bali bombings, 202 killed by large bombs * 7 December 2002: Cowgate#2002 fire and modern history, Cowgate fire, Edinburgh, Scotland * 17 February 2003: E2 nightclub stampede, Chicago, Illinois, 21 killed and over 50 injured * 20 February 2003: The Station nightclub fire, 100 killed at nightclub fire in West Warwick, Rhode Island, West Warwick, Rhode Island * 30 December 2004: República Cromañón nightclub fire, 194 killed and 714 injured in a nightclub fire at Buenos Aires, Argentina * 18 June 2007: Gatecrasher One#2007 fire, Gatecrasher One Fire, Sheffield, England * 1 January 2009: Santika Club fire in Santika Club in Watthana, Bangkok, Thailand, 61 killed and at least 212 injured * 5 December 2009: Lame Horse fire, a fire at the Lame Horse nightclub killed at least 155 people and injures 79 others in Perm, Russia. * 27 January 2013: Kiss nightclub fire, 242 died in stampede in Brazil * 30 October 2015: Colectiv nightclub fire, 55 killed and 180 injured in Romania * 12 June 2016: 49 people Orlando nightclub shooting, killed in an attack (shooting spree) at the Pulse (nightclub), Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, Orlando, Florida * 1 January 2017: At least 35 people Istanbul nightclub shooting, killed in an attack on the Reina nightclub in Istanbul, Turkey * 8 April 2025: 231 people Jet Set nightclub roof collapse, killed in a roof collapse at the Jet Set nightclub in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic


See also

* Dance hall * Dance music * Dance party * Go-go dancing * Nightclub act * Rave * Outline of entertainment


References


External links

* * * * {{Authority control Nightclubs, Types of drinking establishment DJing Restaurants by type Concert halls Underground culture Organized crime activity