It’s Friday night, and Neighbors Bar and Bistro is packed with people waiting for the weekly performance of Shebang, a local, and flamboyant, dance group. The anticipation grows as the audience eagerly awaits performers Bianca, Daphne, Diva, Galaxy and Karess. Then the lights are dimmed and the music starts playing. The room is filled with applause as three women step out from behind the sparkling curtains hanging at the back of the stage. Karess, Galaxy and Daphne kick off the show with a dance performance.
Midway through the song, Diva runs onto the stage, clearly out of breath, to take her place between Daphne and Karess. “I never had to change sex so fast,” she says into the microphone once the opening number is done. “I ran like Carl Lewis in the 1984 Olympics.”
During the show, each performer dances two to three times. Audience members stand around the edge of the stage, holding out tips for their favorite performers and hoping for a kiss in return. Occasionally, one of the performers will pluck a dollar bill out of the front of a fan’s pants with her teeth.
The dances this evening are interspersed with routines from the performers, a birthday celebration and a dance contest. Daphne calls all the birthday women and men onto the stage, where they each receive a spanking and a picture of Shebang. Karess picks out audience members to participate in a dance contest. The winner receives a free drink.
The performers enjoy the audience participation.
“Hearing the audience scream and yell, that’s what gets us going,” said Daphne, who has been performing for almost 27 years. “I love making them happy, making their night.”
This is Shebang’s sixth season. The group has been performing at Neighbors since 2000.
“This is the first time that we’ve actually had a weekly performance,” Daphne said. “Neighbors has been wonderful. It brings the crowd in. It’s just amazing.”
“I think people are very comfortable here,” said Bevin Densmore, a Neighbors employee who has worked there for more than a year. “I constantly hear people saying you can be yourself and that’s why they’re comfortable here.”
Shebang attracts so many people that it is a good idea to call ahead and reserve a table to avoid being stuck standing at the back.
“It’s such a big party,” Bevin said. “Everyone loves Shebang Fridays.”
After the Shebang performance, the crowd moved onto the dance floor.
“I always say it’s a dance party afterwards, because it really is,” Bevin said. “I know a lot of people even come for just that.”
Neighbors is located at 1417 Villard St. There is a $5 cover to get in the door on Shebang Fridays. The show starts between 10 p.m. and10:30 p.m. The environment is friendly and the performers are entertaining.