NIGHTCLUB

A nightclub (also known simply as a club, discotheque or disco ) is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night. A nightclub is generally distinguished from bars, pubs or taverns by the inclusion of a dance floor and a DJ booth, where a DJ plays recorded dance, hip hop, rock, reggae and pop music.

The music in nightclubs is either live bands or, more commonly ,a mix of songs played by a DJ through a powerful PA system. Most clubs or night clubs cater to certain music genres, such as techno, house music, trance, heavy metal, garage, hip hop, salsa, dancehall, Drum and Bass, a Dubstep or soca music. Many clubs also promote playing the Top 40 which has most of the night playing the most broadcast songs of the previous week.

Entry Criteria.

Many nightclubs choose who can enter on bases other than just age,e.g. dress code and guest list. This is used to make their status as a nightclub more "exclusive". Quite often, there are no clear policies governing entry to a nightclub, thereby allowing the doormen to deny entry to anybody at their discretion.

Cover charge.

In most cases, entering a night club requires a flat fee called a cover charge. Early arrivers and women may have their cover charge waived or reduced ( in the United Kingdom, this latter option is illegal under the Equality Act 2010 but the law is rarely enforced and open violations are frequent ).Friends of the doorman or the club owner may gain free entrance. Sometimes, especially at larger clubs in continental European countries, one only gets a pay card at the entrance, on which all money spent in the discotheque (often including the entrance fee ) is marked. Sometimes, entrance fee and cloakroom costs are paid by cash and only the drinks in the club are paid using a pay card.

Guestlist.

Many nightclubs operate a "guestlist" that allows certain attendees to enter the club for free, or at a reduced rate. Some nightclubs have a range of unpublicised guestlist options ranging from free to reduced, to full price with line by-pass privileges only. Nightclub goers that are on the guestlist usually have a separate queue and possibly a separate entrance to the one used by full price paying attendees. It is not uncommon for the guestlist line-up to be as long or longer than the full-paying or ticketed queues. Some nightclubs allow clubbers to register for the guestlist through their websites.

Dress code.

Many nightclubs enforce a dress code in order to ensure a certain type of clientele is in attendance at the venue. Some upscale nightclubs ban attendees from wearing trainers or jeans, while other nightclubs will advertise a vague "dress to impress" dress code that allows the bouncers to discriminate at will against those vying for entry to the club. Many exceptions are made to nightclub dress codes, with denied entry usually reserved for the most glaring rule breakers or those thought to be unsuitable for the party. Certain niche clubs like fetish nightclubs may apply a leather-only, rubber-only or fantasy dress code. The dress code criterion is often an excuse for discriminatory practices, such as in the case of Carpenter v. Limelight Entertainment Ltd.

Association.

Many nightclubs will only allow entry by association. A number of gay nightclubs that prefer to cater to an exclusively male clientele will deny entry to a group of lesbians but will welcome a lesbian with a number of gay friends.