Studio 54, the PG Version, Returns for One Night Without Liza, Calvin, or Andy
This morning, Studio 54 will wake up with a hangover, look around the floor for its clothes, and try to remember what happened last night. Now a dowager theatre home to the Roundabout, Studio will recall celebrating like it was 1977 last night, and was younger than springtime.
Oh yes, Studio 54. Liza, Calvin, Andy, Halston, Truman Capote. Bianca Jagger on the white horse. The doormen, the barricades, the coke, and the quaaludes. In 1977, New York City was pretty much on the skids. Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager threw the most decadent party in the history of the world. It would have gone forever except for tax evasion and jail for the owners. When it came back, under Mark Fleishmann, it was cool but not the same. Nothing ever is.
So last night, Sirius XM recreated Studio for just one night in its original home, now the Roundabout Theater’s place of business. Sirius XM has a Studio 54 channel that plays disco music from the era, so they commemorated it by reviving the club–down to the big silvery moon with the coke spoon hovering over the stage. And if you build it, they will come–from former doormen Richie Notar and Marc Benecke, to pr lady Myra Scheer to Schrager (now a wildly successful hotelier) to Carmen D’Alessio, who did all the legendary events. Liza and Calvin did not attend. But Keith Richards and Patti Hansen made the scene, along with Kevin Bacon, Naomi Campbell, Cameron Diaz, Clive Davis, Nikki Haskell, Denise Rich, Susan Lucci, Randy Jones from the Village People, Carol Alt, Donald and Melania Trump, Lance Bass and some reality TV people.
I heard Gayle King was there. Ryan Phillippe was expected as we were leaving. Scott Greenstein and Steve Leeds from Sirius got kudos for pulling it off– the stage throbbed with dancers, the deejay mixed Gloria Gaynor and Donna Summer circa 1977 with Lady Gaga and Adele. The boy waiters were shirtless, and wore electric blue hot pants. Drag queens were de rigeur. There was a slight smell of marijuana, but nothing like the old days. No smoke, and no coke. Perrier was poured in the entry way. But the party was still going on, well after 2am. The irony: Marc and Richie wouldn’t have let most of those people in, back in the day. As Faulkner put it, Memory believes before knowing remembers.
The story that was told in the article above is very close to the truth…What was missing was THE REAL DISCO MUSIC played on turntables ( 1200’s) by a OLD school DJ like myself.. Who was there in the hey day…!!! Most of the people would have NEVER gotten in… It was shotty to say the least…Numerous people saked what it was like back in the day.. My answer nothing like this.!!! The theatre seats still in place downstairs and in the balcony.. plus no main bar downstairs and no VIP rooms in the basement… JOKE ..!! that’s what is was…Mark was actually upset, due to the fact that he should have ran the front door just like he did so many years ago…Then maybe the real deal could have taken place.. AGAIN the MuSIC was TERRIBLE…Dr. Love
While Nicky Siano’s set was magic, I feel like Avicii (the second dj) destroyed all the magic with the first record he played. Modern pop dance music is such utter crap compared to the masterpieces (knowon and unknown) of that bygone era. I do wish they’d let Nicky Siano keep the helm!