New dance spots in Cape Town


There’s a bit of a dance revival going on in Cape Town at the moment. No longer just the domain of youngsters in their twenties, those in their thirties (and forties) have declared it’s time to take to the dance floor once more!

Two great new venues to keep in mind (that I’ve found) are:

Chukkachurri in Cobern Street in Greenpoint is an Argentinian bar that offers ‘deep tech Fridays’ and ‘80s/indie Saturdays’, as well as a very alluring promise of free entry every day! It’s technically a bar, but it’s a large double storey bar, with a see-through dance floor on the top floor. Yip, you read that right – the ceiling above the bar on the ground floor is totally see-through (some kind of heavy duty transparent material) so that people on the top floor dancing to the DJ’s tunes are dancing on the heads of those on the bottom floor. It’s a little odd at first, but soon becomes quite a novelty factor – just beware, ladies, and don’t wear short skirts!

The music on indie night is great stuff – recognisable, fun tunes that get everyone dancing. And with a spacious verandah on the bottom floor and a top verandah to catch a cool breeze and cool down from rocking the dance floor, it’s the perfect place to put on your dancing shoes. I do have one caveat, though: we were expecting an Argentinian theme to the bar, but we weren’t expecting an Argentinian polo theme. So there’s a fair amount of horsey paraphernalia that doesn’t quite match the relaxed vibe of the bar. Still, check it out and see for yourself!

The other big dance theme to sweep Cape Town of late is the swing movement.  Organised by culture talent collective, these almost-monthly parties feature swing DJs, full dress-up from men and women alike (think swirly skirts, pearls, flashy hair accessories for the ladies, waistcoats, hats and fitted pants for the men) and an inevitable photo booth on a red velvet couch where almost everyone ends up looking stylish and suave. Of course, swing is all about the music, not the style – and the music is very, very good. Infectiously dance-able and the kind of tunes to put you in a great mood.

So far there have been four or five parties, all with slightly different themes: Swing is the new black, Swing on in, Swing Royale (Are you catching on to the recurring theme here?) and the venues are generally either the Albert Hall in Woodstock or Club Voom-Voom in Greenpoint. For many Capetonians it seems to be more of a movement than simply an excuse for a good party (and a dress up!) Some have even gone so far as to say that swing will be the next craze sweeping South Africa.

Whether or not that’s true remains to be seen, but these parties are a great way to see how Cape Town unwinds – come to the next one and say hi!

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