A Heritage Building With a Century of Entertainment
The building at 1022 Davie Street was designed by local architect Thomas Hooper in the early 1900s, with the Vancouver Heritage Foundation citing a 1911 building permit and completion around 1914. It opened as the Lester Dancing Academy (originally Lester Court), a dance hall run by instructors Frederick and Maud Lester, and was renamed the Embassy by the 1940s. The Vancouver Heritage Foundation recognizes the site through its Places That Matter program, with a plaque commemorating its long entertainment history.
From Psychedelic Rock Club to Celebrities
In the 1960s the room became Dante's Inferno, a rock club, and then Retinal Circus in 1967, a psychedelic concert venue that drew touring acts including Janis Joplin, the Grateful Dead, the Velvet Underground, Led Zeppelin, and The Doors. After a stint as a strip club in the 1970s, the Kerasiotis brothers bought the building in 1983 and relaunched it as the Rock Palace; it became Celebrities in 1987. The Kerasiotis family, second-generation Greek immigrants who previously ran Olympia Pizza in Kitsilano and opened the early Vancouver gay bar Luvafair, built Celebrities into a hub for Davie Village's gay community.
Queer Nightlife and Electronic Dance Music
Celebrities is one of the anchor venues of Davie Village, Vancouver's gay village, and works as an electronic and dance-music hub with an inclusive atmosphere. Recurring nights include Stereotype Fridays, which feature international DJs, and Playhouse Saturdays, primarily house music. The club hosts touring DJs and live events alongside its regular club nights; electronic acts to play the room include Skrillex, deadmau5, David Guetta, Avicii, Tiesto, Diplo, Above & Beyond, Porter Robinson, and REZZ.
The Room: A Renovated Split-Level Dance Space
After a roughly $1 million renovation, Celebrities reopened in March 2013. It is a large split-level space of about 7,000 square feet with high ceilings, a wide open dance floor, a wraparound balcony overlooking the floor, two VIP areas, and a Funktion-One sound system paired with a full lighting and video show. Listed capacity is 600 standing and 500 seated.
