Here Paris: Le Cirque du Bonheur, Crazy vs. Cool

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Friday 30th September the well-known Institut Bonheur, an group that dedicates itself primarily to the organization of unconventional nights out, gave a kick-start to the Parisian winter clubbing season by inaugurating the Cirque du Bonheur. The crazy circus themed parties will take place every Friday and Saturday and will host DJs from around the world every time. Every week the guest DJs will always play minimal-style music, giving a sense of continuity between one weekend and the next. The guest-list is very well selected, and it is not uncommon to see a European socialite.
The opening night saw the famous Canadian duo Art Department on the decks, playing deep minimal-house music. Their five-star music enhanced by a top league sound system rocked the room. There was only one condition to be allowed in: dressing up. In the queue, that was already extremely long by 11.30pm, there were magicians, Indians, fluorescent wigs and painted faces.
After midnight entry is almost impossible unless you have a table, but once inside, the doors open to an adult playground.
Long stairs covered by a red carpet take you down to a first floor where the cloakroom and a stall selling masks and more dress-ups can be found. More stairs lead down to the main room: the room is decorated following the circus theme too. Over the DJ stage is an enormous white tiger head with a disco ball in its mouth.
After 1am, the room is full of young and not-so-young people. The separated smoking area is a considerable luxury, seeing the distance between the dance floor and the entrance, and the number of people that stand in the way.
The atmosphere is psychedelic: girls dance on small balconies that hang around the room, and the ceiling is adorned by flashing circus lights.
For those who love to live outside the box, but without getting too far away from normality, Le Cirque du Bonheur is the perfect mix. Other than the enormous entry queue and the impossible access after midnight, there are no negative sides to Cirque du Bonheur: just the desire to have fun in a fantasy world until the early hours of the morning.

Ilaria Maria Sofia Gilardini