High-pitched screams and bodies shrieking with joy from electronic music… You might think it’s 2am in this Kiev nightclub, but it’s actually only 6pm. Gray Cat (Le Chat Gris) is a daytime nightclub! Night owls have been dancing there since 1 p.m.
The schedule may seem strange, but these young people who have lived under Russian invasion and curfew for eight months have learned to take advantage of it.
The profits from this “oxygen” evening will be donated to the Ukrainian army. (AGATHE MAHUET / RADIO FRANCE)
“That’s better because after an afternoon here you can go home pretty early and have the whole night ahead of you,” enthuses Pavlo. Going out early also allows you to be fit for the next day, add Ivan and George, who we meet in the smoking area: “You have to get used to partying in the afternoon anyway. There’s no other way at the moment.”
Several Kiev clubs now offer this formula. The one we are in is a bit underground. Near the DJ, a young girl is dancing topless. Almost Berlin atmosphere despite that big Ukrainian flag on the wall. And sometimes a “Slava Ukraini” (“Honour of Ukraine”) sounds from the dance floor. Dance like a snub to Russia, even if many of these young people (20 years old on average) come mainly to clear their heads. “You know, being here for a whole afternoon makes it possible to forget reality, the bombings, the sirens… It’s relaxing!” confides David, who came to celebrate with his girlfriend Vika. The war forced them both to flee Mariupol to Kyiv.
While the clubbers dance on the dance floor, a rock concert takes place in a side room of the nightclub. (AGATHE MAHUET / RADIO FRANCE)
The revelers sometimes have a beer in hand, but we don’t see many tipsy people. Ivan explains that it’s not necessarily about drinking, but above all about doing something useful for the country. As is often the case when an event has been organized since the beginning of the Russian invasion, all profits from this afternoon of clubbing will be donated to the Ukrainian army. Objective: “Kill the Russians,” adds George. Andryi, the organizer, will not receive any money that evening: “We give all proceeds to the army because if we can have these parties, it is thanks to our soldiers. It is thanks to you that we are alive. ”
“Even in times of war we manage to have fun, relax, distract and dance. That is beautiful.”
Andryi, organizer of the “Oxygen” evening
at franceinfo
Two rooms, two atmospheres. In the next room there is a rock concert in front of 200 people. Andryi congratulates himself: No power failure in the neighborhood tonight, that was far from agreed. “We named the evening ‘Oxygen’ because it’s like a breath of fresh air”. Almost 7 p.m., more than two hours to celebrate, take a deep breath and forget yourself. A powerful “Davaï, davaïïïï!” (“Go! Go!”) can be heard despite the DJ’s powerful beats.
“You have to get used to partying in the afternoon”: The youth of Kyiv dance in discos during the day – report by Agathe Mahuet
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