The Side Show Club

A journey into Cape Town’s counterculture

A giant, ghoulish disembodied head bobs over the heaving dance floor to the beat of thumping electro. Like a ghost-like show reel, scenes flash across the bodiless kewpie doll face in time to the music.

Freaky.

It’s Friday, the night the club was named for - ‘The Friday Night Side Show’ -  and silhouettes of gyrating dancers pulse through the laser-veiled haze of the club.

Once merely a regular party targeted at the indie electro crowd and the stylish premium party people, the debauchery now has a permanent home.  The nightclub has an other-worldly feel – it’s as if once inside their velvet curtain you’ve been transported to a twisted fairy-tale; an anarchistic place, absent of all law and order.

Formerly known as the Fez Club, one of Cape Town’s most iconic venues, The Side Show has retained the spirit of Moroccan mayhem—just with a younger edge. Both the crowds and the line-ups are attracting more of the underground scene, making it a very fun place to be.

A loony labyrinth

Like a playground for grown-ups, there’s much to explore in this plush venue: four bars, a Bedouin-covered smoking deck, a VIP balcony stretching the length of the venue, a separate upstairs VIP section, and carousel-style booths with wine-coloured cushions that run along the main dance floor. The seating is also walled in with mirrors, so expect to feel as in you’re in a funhouse.

The warren-like set up gives the club an intimate atmosphere, helped by the moody lighting. But don’t be fooled, the bones of the building can hold in a rip-roaring party; the official capacity stands at 1300 people.

Nights of carnage

The Friday nights will remain the same, with a focus on the counterculture, indie electro, dub step, and drum and bass genres. The dance floor will continue to receive a regular spanking from top international as well as local DJs, such as Haezer, Niskerone, Counterstrike, Pascal & Pearce, Double Adapter and Riot Squad.

The club is also open on Saturday nights, which have been billed as ‘event nights’. In winter expect a full schedule of trance parties: a host of international psy acts and the cream of the South  African psychedelic crop will perform for fortnightly ‘Psyde Show’ nights.

The Saturdays in-between will alternate between electro nights, with the likes of international acts Electric City taking centre stage, and house parties with Ministry of Sound.

Also on offer are catered functions, from corporate to celebratory. The Side Show has retained the rights to The Brassiere’s  performances (the restaurant at The Fez), and is able to twirl out a burlesque dancer and a steak dinner at a moment’s notice.

So, next time you’re looking for a fun night out, take a stroll down Mechau Street and be prepared to misbehave as soon as you cross that velvet curtain.

Stay in the loop with our weekly newsletter and find us on Facebook and Twitter.

Another hot new club worth checking out is The Dragon Room.