A Touch of Weimar Cabaret in Times Square
Boîte: Paradise Club
Times Square
Times Square will be the crossroads of the world, however in phrases of night time life it would as effectively be the Bermuda Triangle: a spot the place huge desires go to fade. So go away it to Ian Schrager, the hotelier and former Studio 54 co-founder, to attempt to deliver some nocturnal buzz again.
In March, he opened Paradise Club, a Weimar-ready cabaret spectacle at his newest resort, the 452-room Times Square Edition. It contains a two-hour flooring present, “The Devouring” (courtesy of House of Yes), that may be a high-concept reimagining of a William Blake poem and options half-clothed acrobats, ballerinas and an operatic cowl of “Closer” by Nine Inch Nails. The total impact is someplace between Cirque du Soleil and a Super Bowl halftime present, reimagined by Twyla Tharp.
The Place
The membership is on the seventh flooring of the Tokyo-style resort, the place the elevator opens onto a darkened house the scale of a big New York steakhouse. The décor feels very den-of-sin, with its Hieronymous Bosch-inspired murals and a gloriously hellish crimson electrical supernova overlaying the ceiling.
The Crowd
With a ticket value of $195 (dinner is included; drinks will not be), the cabaret crowd is what it’s possible you’ll anticipate: hedge-fund sorts rocking hockey-puck-size watches and designer wrap clothes; middle-aged tech bros in expensive-looking black T-shirts; executive-class vacationer on the lookout for a bit New York intercourse and sizzle; and the occasional desk full of membership children in black eye shadow, all grown up and apparently able to courageous Midtown. Diners on a relative price range can select to take a seat on the bar for $95 (snacks included).
The Playlist
The present bubbles together with a globe-trotting mix of soul-tinged dance music and electronica (“Can’t Turn Around,” by the Foreign Exchange; “Yali Yali” by Nese Karabocek). After the two-hour extravaganza, the house turns into a nightclub, with big-name D.J.s together with Q-Tip, Mark Ronson and Questlove spinning.
Getting In
Tickets can be found on Eventbrite and soon OpenTable, as well as by phone or email. Partygoers seeking to hit just the nightclub can expect a velvet-rope door policy and a $20 to $30 cover charge.
Drinks
Patrons feeling flush can spring for a $670 bottle of 2006 Tattinger Comtes de Champagne or sample a $25 Manhattan (bourbon or tequila) from a drink trolley that circles the room. The 12-course menu includes caviar nachos and Yozu oysters on the half shell, courtesy of John Fraser, a Michelin-starred chef.
Paradise Club, 20 Times Square (near West 47th Street); 917-558-0376; paradiseclubnyc.com. Cabaret show, Wednesday through Saturday, 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. Dance party, Thursday through Saturday, 11 p.m. to 4 a.m.
Get more stuff like this
Subscribe to our mailing list and get interesting stuff and updates to your email inbox.