Danceteria was a popular nightclub in New York City, operating from 1979 through 1986. The club
occupied three different locations in Manhattan. The original Danceteria opened on West 37th
Street and catered to a diverse after-hours crowd coming from the downtown rock clubs and
various gay discos. An illegal unlicensed facility, this space was closed after only a year by the
fire department.
The second, most famous setting was in a six-floor building on West 21st Street. The space opened
to massive crowds and critical acclaim in 1982. High profile DJ’s spun, bands performed, and
music videos played on multiple monitors. The club became the recognized center of new wave
music. The B-52’s, New Order, Duran Duran, Billy Idol, The Smiths, Depeche Mode, Berlin, Sonic
Youth, Nick Cave, Violent Femmes, Cyndi Lauper, Run-DMC, and the Beastie Boys all performed on
Danceteria’s stages. Performance art and the work of visual artists were also presented, including
that of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring (a former Danceteria busboy), RuPaul, and Karen Finley.
In the sphere of pop culture, Danceteria was most famous for acting as the primary force in the
career of Madonna. A coat-check girl at the time, she convinced a DJ to play her demo record
and the rest is history.
In what seems to be an unwritten law in New York, any building that houses something artful and
interesting must be replaced by luxury condominiums. Such was the fate of Danceteria when it was
sold in 1986. The third location opened in 1990 in the run-down Martha Washington Hotel on East 30th
Street and lasted until 1993. Danceteria had a second life as a successful nightclub at several
locations in Manhattan’s summer home, the Hamptons on Long Island, from 1984 until 1996.
Haoui Montaug, a doorman for Danceteria and other high profile clubs, created No Entiendes, a
traveling cabaret of edgy acts and performance artists. Chazz Dean and James Siena were asked
by Montaug, after he saw Stereotype at the Pyramid Club, to become a regular part of the
cabaret’s lineup. Montaug always introduced them as “The Dancing Poets.” Also included in
Montaug’s diverse and oft-changing roster were Karen Finley, John Sex, Dean and the Wienies,
Frieda, The Pop Tarts, and The Me Generation. About the cabaret’s fourth anniversary performance
at Danceteria, Michael Musto wrote in his Village Voice column La Dulce Musto, “No Entiendes
cabaret – still the best awful and worst fabulous show in town. James Siena and Chazz Dean did
riotous synchronized dance/poetry recitations of New York mantras like ‘Blaine, don’t you love
black enamel vases?’ and ‘Oh Dorothy, cut the crap!’” Dinah Prince’s column Downtown in the
Daily News also made note of “‘dancing poets’ James Siena and Chazz Dean who did three
brilliantly choreographed Dada-esque rap pieces.” Montaug’s comment on No Entiendes was,
“It’s a real mish-mosh. Some brilliance, some horror. We’ve had complaints lately that the show
has been too good.”
Watchface performances at Danceteria:
Stereotype
Stereotype in Quad