Grooving and Moving With Hip-High Hipsters Parents Pleased With Play Date That Features Adult Beverages
By Petula Dvorak
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, May 5, 2008; B01
She was tearing up the dance floor, spinning while the flashing green and hot-pink lights bounced off a disco ball and "You Should Be Dancing" boomed over the sound system. Then, curly haired dance diva Peyton Campbell broke it down, old-school, to "Brick House."
Then she took a nap.
That was the scene yesterday as 2-year-old Peyton and other tiny dancers burned off energy at one of the hottest shows touring the party circuit, Baby Loves Disco. Sold out weeks ago, it was a 300-person play date that mixed Bud Light and ba-bas, sequined halter tops and Huggies.
Once a month, the latest in I-don't-wanna-grow-up parenting hits the District at the edgy nightclub of the moment, the Rock and Roll Hotel. The H Street Northeast club, which had been booze-soaked and packed with 20-somethings just hours earlier, was triple-scrubbed, festooned with balloons and padded with colorful foam floor tiles yesterday afternoon to host clubbers who are twentysomething inches.
"No more Barney!" Ivie Higgins roared as he hoisted a glass and twisted to "Superfreak" with his 20-month-old daughter, Isabella.
"I know, I know. It's more for the parents," said Higgins, who came to H Street from Silver Spring and described himself as "coming on 40" years old.
"But it's so nice to be here and do something different with my daughter for a change," he said.
Parents who are tired of the birthday party-park-pizza place-Gymboree circuit and determined not to give their lives entirely over to their pint-size dictators are flocking to the Baby Loves Disco tour. Tickets are $12 for all walking humans. They often sell out minutes after going online.
"It's one of those things that works for everybody. And especially, we see lots of dads. It's an interesting thing, the dads coming," said Susannah Monteith, sister-in-law of the co-founder of Baby Loves Disco and the local mommy host.
It began in Philadelphia in 2004, when Heather Murphy Monteith, a mom, rented a club one weekend and realized her vision of a cool place for kids and parents to have fun. Andy Hurwitz went to one of the parties, thought it was fantastic and partnered with Monteith to spread the idea to New York.
The circuit now covers nearly 30 U.S. cities, from Honolulu to Boston, and eight foreign countries. The founders search for nightclubs that are open to being associated with children (not all clubs want to taint their hip factor), have a good venue with play space and "chill-out" rooms, and will strive for parent-approved cleanliness, Susannah Monteith said.
"The clubs are triple-cleaned," she said. "Then I come, like, two hours before the event and clean some more. And we put plugs on all the outlets, that kind of stuff."
For kids, there are unlimited, free boxes of organic juice, crackers, pretzels and other finger snacks offered at a knee-level buffet table.
The dance floor has hula hoops, scarves, maracas and streams of bubbles. There are face painters, balloon animals, glittery nail polish stations and temporary-tattoo artists.
Yesterday, in an upstairs room decorated to look like blood was dripping from the walls (Rock and Roll Hotel decor, not Baby Loves Disco), there was a diaper-changing station near the photo of infamous Sex Pistols couple Sid and Nancy. Another chill-out room had colorful carpets, books, wooden toys and comfortable couches that have certainly seen plenty of action but were home to rows of breast-feeding moms yesterday afternoon.
The hallway had fliers from old concerts, most featuring '80s punk bands -- Sonic Youth, Black Flag, Black Market Baby, G.B.H. (remember their "City Baby's Revenge" album?).
"Well, I can say it looks a lot different in the daylight," said Yvonne Neal, 34, who surveyed the well-lit club and cringed at her hazy memories of other nightclub encounters. She was hanging with her 5-year-old, Kara. "It's really fun now to watch her dance with other kids."
Yes, of course. Dancing and socializing and fun.
But for many parents, the beauty of Baby Loves Disco is summed up in one phrase: Bar's open.
Tim Wynne took a long pull on his rum and Coke. He was glad that he could buy a drink. He was, after all, huffing on the dance floor, his 11-day-old son, Henry, strapped to his chest in a Baby Bjorn and his wild 2-year-old, A.J., wiggling across the room.
His wife, Becky, was delighted to get back into a nightclub so soon after childbirth.
"When you become a parent, you suddenly stop being this person you've been all these years, and that part is hard," she said.
The magic of the place was also clear for Dan and Barb Scheeler, who were both drinking pints of Guinness while their boys, 3 and 5, waited for balloon animals.
"That balance of something for kids and something for grown-ups is so important and hard to find," said Dan Scheeler, who has taken the family from Alexandria to H Street twice this year for Baby Loves Disco.
On the dance floor, DJ Adolph Brown took the crowd through the '80s. The dads lifted Coronas in the air. Some hollered when the Pet Shop Boys began singing. They spun their little dates around, singing to their West End Girls.
For some of the younger set, this was a chance to practice their moves with the ladies. David, 18 months, eyed an older woman: Lilah, 2. She was the quirky type, one leg warmer, a pink tutu, blond ringlets and a killer smile. He took a big pull off his juice box and wobbled up to her, a typical nightclub move. He attacked with fervor, giving her a giant, sloppy hug.
His mom, Sharon Boesen, dived in and pried him off her. "A little more gentle next time, David," she said.
Baby Loves Disco welcomes kids up to 7 years old. David will have plenty of time to hone his pickup line.