Star Gays

Saturday, March 20, 1982
The Concert Hall

Having two dance floors at the Masonic Temple allowed DJs to spin particular musical genres in the separate dance spaces. On the upstairs dance floor at the Masonic Temple, DJs would predominantly feature disco and similar upbeat dance music, with loud speakers accompanied by videos, lasers, and special effects. 

“I always started my sets with James Brown’s ‘Get Up Offa That Thing’. The folks that frequented these dances were locals looking for something different and many out-of-towners who didn’t have bars or clubs where they lived. As a result, the music needed to include current, old, and commercial hits.”

- Bob Harrison Drue, GCDC DJ

"The main floor was primarily where the guys danced. The music was loud and you could feel it right into your bones. People would come in and within minutes, the guys would be shirts off and the dance floor would have sweat rolling down the pillars. It was something to see!"

- Philip Share, GCDC Organiser

The record budget was substantial for the large upstairs dance floor; by mid-1982, the disco record budget was increased to $300, while the downstairs record budget remained at $100. 

"The DJs upstairs were from various gay male bars, so they would go for high-energy disco music over the big speakers. Upstairs you were dancing, not talking. I remember dancing close to the speakers and you know, just getting caught up in that with a number of people. So, it was lights flashing, lots of sexy men around with their shirts off so it was kind of an ecstatic kind of moment, in a very positive sense of what the ecstasy of dancing could be like when everyone’s all in the same mode and dancing together."

- Ed Jackson, GCDC Attendee