Club Purgatorio
Filed under Event, Event Planning, Review
| October 15, 2009 | to | October 31, 2009 |
“We’re deeply sorry for your loss.”
Welcome to hell. Who knew the afterlife would be so exciting? From the producers of The Box comes Club Purgatorio, a mix of burlesque and horror. From October 15th to the 31th, Club Purgatorio will be hosting the city’s most intense Halloween party for two weeks straight.
On Saturday, we were invited to Perez Hilton’s press preview of the club, where we got a glimpse of our own death. At the start of the maze, I was escorted to my very own coffin, I was dropped off in Hell and was greeted by weird, lurking monsters and girls dancing with whips and machetes. On the small stage, the zombie emcee invited audience members to play “Kill the Virgin,” where a stunning blond “virgin” was hypnotized, de-clothed, and met her untimely death.
The thick, red “blood” shot I choked down earlier was beginning to come back up, so I made my way to Purgatory. This showroom, set up with a jazz lounge-type feel, was where the main entertainment took place. The hostess of the night was a sultry singer who got the crowd riled up with her soulful voice and her romp-shakin’ dancers. Various performers took the stage, including an awesome Michael Jackson dance medley. Between all the different variety acts, there were girls (and one male gaysian) that took to the platforms in their leather lingerie and torn fishnets and danced seductively, hanging from the ropes on the rafters with props and gadgets.
Perez Hilton himself went on stage to thank everyone for joining him for the evening, and outed Jude Law being in the audience as well. About a minute after Perez went back to his seat, Jude Law himself walked in front of me with his posse and a stream of excitable fans. I was momentarily star struck, but then I got my act together and decided to stalk him wherever he went. So I followed him up the stairs to:
Heaven. It was a crazy disco party with blaring music, lights, colors, and strobes. And of course it wouldn’t be heaven without dancing fairies! There were glamorous people in costumes, and everyone was having a great time dancing. I lost Jude Law in the chaos, but I managed to find my way outside onto the rooftop. Unfortunately, it was raining and there was limited space with covered seating, but the cold air was a nice welcome from all the sweaty bodies.
Simon Hammerstein and Randy Weiner, founding partners of The Box, got it right that kids shouldn’t be the only ones to have fun on Halloween. Weiner said, “We want to invite our guests to live in a strange and sexy world for a night. We want to give people the chance to dance, drink, and party the night away in an environment designed to thrill.” And thrill us, it did. The 15,000 sqare foot nightclub space was transformed into a fantastical world of sexy mystery and fear. Somehow it’s appropriate that Hell is hidden away in Times Square.
Explanations of the theatrics do not do Club Purgatorio justice – and I wouldn’t want to ruin the surprise for you, dear readers – so you will just have to experience the horrors and excitement for yourself. Tickets range from $40, for regular weekday admission, to $80, for VIP tickets on Halloween evening.
See you in hell – we’ll be waiting.
Yours,
Von
Photos by Thom Kaine.
Club Purgatorio
268 W. 47th Street
at 8th Avenue
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