Pan Club Copenhagen
Encyclopedia
Pan Club Copenhagen was a gay club in central Copenhagen
, Denmark
which closed in 2007 after having been in operation on various locations in Copenhagen since 1970. Pan was one of Europe
's biggest gay clubs and the biggest in Copenhagen
. It attracted a large number of people, particularly in the weekends with Saturday being the biggest night. While people of almost all age groups came to the club, it was most popular with younger gay men and lesbians. It also attracted a heterosexual crowd, and in periods it was one of the more fashionable places to go in Copenhagen with many celebrities visiting the club.
The club was originally run and owned by "LBL", the Danish national organization for gays, lesbians and bisexuals.
The place has since become a commercial venue and has changed owners several times. Most recently, it was taken over by three males, Munir, Rico and Sadi in 2005 until it closed in 2007.
Located at Knabrostræde 3 in the city center, the club had four floors (although not all floors were open at all times) for a total of 2 dance floors and 6 bars. The ground floor featured the cloakroom. The first floor (also known as Pan One) played mostly dance music
. The second floor (Pan Two) featured primarily new and old pop music. The third floor featured a karaoke bar and a view over the dance floor of Pan Two. There was also a mezzanine
between the first and second floors, offering a view over Pan One along with couches for hanging out. In the summer, one could sit in the open-air yard right outside the club.
Britney Spears
visited the club in 2004 the night before her concert in Copenhagen.
During the last years of the club's operation, the fraction of heterosexuals attending the club steadily increased. This generated negative comments from members of the homosexual crowd who, while generally being welcome to heterosexuals, also wanted to keep the place a gay club.
In Denmark it is illegal to restrict access to a club to people of a particular sexual orientation. In September 2006 the club announced a new system that would require guests to show a member card before being allowed to enter the club. The member card was to be ordered from the club website. Guests would be admitted if accompanied by a card holder and tourists would be allowed to enter without a card. The club owners cited a growing number of heterosexual people entering the club just to get a look at the homosexuals, as the motivation for this measure. The member card requirement was put into effect on April 1, 2007. However, a few days later the club announced that it was shutting down, citing a decreasing number of visitors as the reason. April 14, 2007 was the last night the club was open to the public.
In the building that used to host PAN, a new nightclub, K3 opened in April 2007. It doesn't cater specifically to the homosexual community but describes itself as gay-friendly. In August 2008, it was reported that the K3 club would be hosting gay parties under the name "PAN retro", with the first party planned for December 28, 2008.
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
which closed in 2007 after having been in operation on various locations in Copenhagen since 1970. Pan was one of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
's biggest gay clubs and the biggest in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
. It attracted a large number of people, particularly in the weekends with Saturday being the biggest night. While people of almost all age groups came to the club, it was most popular with younger gay men and lesbians. It also attracted a heterosexual crowd, and in periods it was one of the more fashionable places to go in Copenhagen with many celebrities visiting the club.
The club was originally run and owned by "LBL", the Danish national organization for gays, lesbians and bisexuals.
The place has since become a commercial venue and has changed owners several times. Most recently, it was taken over by three males, Munir, Rico and Sadi in 2005 until it closed in 2007.
Located at Knabrostræde 3 in the city center, the club had four floors (although not all floors were open at all times) for a total of 2 dance floors and 6 bars. The ground floor featured the cloakroom. The first floor (also known as Pan One) played mostly dance music
Dance music
Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement...
. The second floor (Pan Two) featured primarily new and old pop music. The third floor featured a karaoke bar and a view over the dance floor of Pan Two. There was also a mezzanine
Mezzanine (architecture)
In architecture, a mezzanine or entresol is an intermediate floor between main floors of a building, and therefore typically not counted among the overall floors of a building. Often, a mezzanine is low-ceilinged and projects in the form of a balcony. The term is also used for the lowest balcony in...
between the first and second floors, offering a view over Pan One along with couches for hanging out. In the summer, one could sit in the open-air yard right outside the club.
Britney Spears
Britney Spears
Britney Jean Spears is an American recording artist and entertainer. Born in McComb, Mississippi, and raised in Kentwood, Louisiana, Spears began performing as a child, landing acting roles in stage productions and television shows. She signed with Jive Records in 1997 and released her debut album...
visited the club in 2004 the night before her concert in Copenhagen.
During the last years of the club's operation, the fraction of heterosexuals attending the club steadily increased. This generated negative comments from members of the homosexual crowd who, while generally being welcome to heterosexuals, also wanted to keep the place a gay club.
In Denmark it is illegal to restrict access to a club to people of a particular sexual orientation. In September 2006 the club announced a new system that would require guests to show a member card before being allowed to enter the club. The member card was to be ordered from the club website. Guests would be admitted if accompanied by a card holder and tourists would be allowed to enter without a card. The club owners cited a growing number of heterosexual people entering the club just to get a look at the homosexuals, as the motivation for this measure. The member card requirement was put into effect on April 1, 2007. However, a few days later the club announced that it was shutting down, citing a decreasing number of visitors as the reason. April 14, 2007 was the last night the club was open to the public.
In the building that used to host PAN, a new nightclub, K3 opened in April 2007. It doesn't cater specifically to the homosexual community but describes itself as gay-friendly. In August 2008, it was reported that the K3 club would be hosting gay parties under the name "PAN retro", with the first party planned for December 28, 2008.