ARTS
AND
ENTERTAINMENT
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WASHINGTONBLADE.COM
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VOLUME
49
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ISSUE
26
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JUNE
29,
2018
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PAGE
31
Town Danceboutique takes its victory lap this weekend. For many years, the club was the hub of D.C. gay nightlife. Other spaces, such as Cobalt and the long-shuttered Apex and Omega, had dance floors, but Town was always the biggest and most heavily attended. WASHINGTON BLADE FILE PHOTO BY WYATT REID WESTLUND
Town’s swan song Danceboutique ends decade-plus in business with mega party weekend By MARIAH COOPER mcooper@washblade.com Town Danceboutique, a staple in D.C. nightlife, shuts its doors permanently on Sunday, July 1 after more than a decade of serving the area’s LGBT community. Owners Ed Bailey, John Guggenmos and Chachi Boyle announced the news last June after Bristol Capital Corp sold the building located at 2009 8th St., N.W. to the Jefferson Apartment Group. The space, which became a local gay hotspot, will be turned into an apartment complex. Since 2007, Town has hosted bear happy
hours, performances from “RuPaul’s Drag Race” favorites, appearances from adult entertainment stars, election night watch parties and much more. It was sort of an unofficial successor to shuttered LGBT hubs such as Tracks and Velvet Nation. Bailey says Town has remained consistently crowded during its 11 years in business. The crowds kept the staff, which fluctuates between 40-50 people, busy. The number has dwindled as staff have begun seeking employment
elsewhere as the closing approaches. Town won dozens of awards in the Blade’s annual Best of Gay D.C. readers poll. Its drag cast Ladies of Town were perennial winners for many years. As for the DJs and drag performers that kept Town buzzing each weekend, it appears that relief and sadness are the consensus. While some have already sought gigs at other establishments, Bailey says others, including himself, are looking forward to a break.
“Many of the people who work with us haven’t had a weekend off in years and they’d like one. I jokingly say all the time I’d like to actually watch ‘Saturday Night Live’ when it’s actually live. It’s been years and years since I’ve actually been able to do that,” Bailey says. However, the loss of Town weighs heavy on Shi-Queeta Lee who is the last drag performer from the original cast CONTINUES ON PAGE 40