Club Cumming

Club Cumming's facade is made of black painted wood, and it is not marked by any signage on the street. One of the murals features Nashom Wooden, a longtime staple of the New York City queer nightlife scene, alongside Daniel Nardicio, a local promoter who is also co-owner of the bar. Of Club Cumming's clientele, The New York Times said, "On a recent Saturday night, the crowd was a tightly packed mix of neighborhood gay men in vintage T-shirts brushing up against Becky types in black and gender-non-conforming millennials wearing glittery tanks, colorful scarves and the occasional boa. It was sometimes hard to tell where the show ends and the audience begins." among the most common of which are live music, DJ sets, lounge acts, drag shows, go-go dancing and "raunchy readings". In addition to live entertainment, the bar used to host a weekly knitting circle called "Stitch and Bitch". It also holds book clubs, piano nights and a "gender-fluid dance party" called "Femme". Cumming lives nearby and stops in frequently; he is known to perform, tend bar, DJ, and mingle with the crowd when he does. While mobile devices are not prohibited inside, he discourages their use "to make people talk to each other instead of looking at their phones". Club Cumming is a popular stop for celebrities who visit New York City, and Broadway actors frequent the venue on Mondays, when their plays typically do not run. ==History==

Background and opening founded Club Cumming in his Broadway dressing room. While appearing in Cabaret on Broadway in 2014, Cumming ran a makeshift nightclub called Club Cumming in his dressing room. They partnered with that venue's proprietors, Darren Dryden and Ben Maisani, to renovate the space and open a new establishment. Due to Cumming's high profile, Club Cumming began attracting press months before its debut. The week it opened in September 2017, Paul McCartney, Emma Stone and Cumming gave an impromptu performance of "Part of Your World" while spending an evening there. Since then, figures including Justin Vivian Bond, Billie Jean King, Adele, Jennifer Lawrence and Vanessa Williams have also made appearances. Licensing incident In February 2018, it came to light that Club Cumming had not acquired permission to host live events, and it was ordered to halt its shows. This was due to what Nardicio called "a rookie mistake": when he and Cumming had applied for the bar's liquor license, they had done so as an establishment without live entertainment. The state liquor authority received complaints from the local community board, and the authority charged Club Cumming with failure to conform. After hearing this testimony, the community board voted unanimously to extend the bar's licensing to cover live events, with the stipulation that such events not be ticketed or charge cover fees. COVID-19 pandemic and George Floyd protests Club Cumming ceased operation in March 2020, when all New York City nightlife venues were ordered to shutter due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In April, Alan Cumming organized the Club Cumming Community Chest to support staff and performers out of work during the pandemic. During the June 2020 George Floyd protests in New York City, the venue operated as a safe haven for Black Lives Matter protestors, providing shelter, first aid, and supplies like water and personal protective equipment. Cumming donated a portion of the Community Chest's funds to Black Lives Matter, and the club, which was not in the direct path of any protests, also stored supplies for demonstrators. In August 2020, the club, still closed, debuted a live-streamed cabaret series. The series' schedule through the fall included artists like Sharon Needles, Judy Gold and Ute Lemper. On New Year's Eve, Club Cumming held a socially distanced outdoor dinner celebration. Hosted by Kareem McJagger, the party featured entertainment by Dirty Martini, Emma Craig, Militia Vox and other local talent. Following this, the club began to host more on-site, outdoor events, including a party to commemorate the Inauguration of Joe Biden. Its Valentine's Day celebration featured Nicky Doll. Since reopening at full capacity in May 2021, the venue has required proof of vaccination against COVID-19 for entry. ==Reception==

Club Cumming has been well received by both the public and the nightlife industry. In 2019, it won the title of Best Bar at the Glam Awards, an annual ceremony à la the Oscars for queer entertainers, promoters and venues in New York City. The club ranked first on Time Out 2022 list of "the 24 best gay bars in NYC". Gothamist wrote that the establishment "fills a niche that has been slowly eaten away by rising rents and sanitized street corners. Club Cumming attempts to fill the gap with a bit of imagination, served up with just the right amount of polish/un-polish." That publication also noted a selection of events that had recently occurred at the club and complimented the spontaneity they injected into its atmosphere. A GrandLife.com review reads, "No matter the night's curation, you're sure to have a wild time." ==See also==