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Dance Clubs
Whether it's with soul nights, '80s parties or dubstep bashes, Portland's dance clubs will get you moving.
John Patrick Pullen
Know Before You Go
The statewide mask mandate has been lifted. However, some venues may still request or recommend mask-wearing.
Additionally, some venues may require proof of vaccination and/or a negative COVID test for entry. Please check with individual events on their policies and hours of operation before visiting, and continue to be patient, flexible and kind, especially if asked to mask up or share your vaccination status. These measures are in place to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Portland may be best known for its indie music, but with a wide variety of dance clubs, the city has a rhythm that’ll get just about anyone moving.
Dance Clubs by Neighborhood
Old Town Chinatown
Portland’s densest concentration of dance clubs is in the Old Town Chinatown nightlife district. Bars like Stag PDX and the Southern-themed Dixie Tavern are at the epicenter. Gay nightclub CC Slaughters boasts a live DJ seven nights a week; Wednesdays are all-request dance nights.
Dance enthusiasts could spend months grooving their way through Portland.
Downtown Portland
With a big neon sign that says “Dance,” Lola’s Room is hard to miss, located below the Crystal Ballroom. Regular ’80s and ’90s nights ensure that you’ll be glad you popped into this intimate space.
Central Eastside
Running everything from DJ sets to local performers, Holocene has mixed music with visuals for a decade-plus, turning an old auto-parts warehouse into a 5,000-square-foot temple to art and audio. Its inner southeast Portland neighbor 45 East also rocks a converted industrial space, with an upstairs lounge and downstairs dance floor hosting frequent EDM shows.
Across town, The Goodfoot Lounge is where locals go for laid-back nights of festival-style stomping on the hardwood dance floor. Great for small music and big laughs, the two-level dance hall plays everything from funk to dubstep, so long as it gets the crowd moving.
The big basement dance floor at the log-cabin-themed Doug Fir Lounge gets plenty of traffic on its electro-pop and hip-hop nights, though most of the time the club stays true to the city’s indie-rock ways with live performances.
Other popular options in Southeast include Crush, Trio Club, and The Coffin Club (formerly known as Lovecraft Bar).
Northeast Portland
Aztec Willies in Northeast Portland’s Lloyd neighborhood is a go-to for salsa and Latin grooves, with different offerings nearly every night. Church, an ironic Roman Catholic-themed bar, brings live music and DJ sets in a cozy space on Sandy Boulevard.
Dance Clubs by Style
Bossanova Ballroom
On Tuesday nights the Bossanova takes things down a notch by offering soulful, sultry blues music. Stop by before the dance for a free introductory lesson hosted by the Portland Blues and Jazz Dance Society. There’s no partner required, which is perfect if you’re flying solo. If not, enjoy cuddling up to your sweetie in a close embrace and swaying the night away.
Bushwackers
It doesn’t get more honky-tonk than Bushwackers, the premier spot for bass-thumping, foot-stomping country dance. Show off your two-step, boogie with the line dancers or waltz around the perimeter of the Texas-sized dance floor at this venue in Tualatin, 20 minutes south of downtown Portland. Belt buckles and cowboy boots aren’t required, but you might want to make room in your luggage, just in case.
The Coffin Club
A horror-themed bar complete with a child-sized coffin as decoration? Yep, Portland has that. Get your goth on at The Coffin Club (previously known as Lovecraft Bar) where Thursday is the darkest night of the week, thanks to DJ Carrion’s steady stream of industrial and darkwave.
Lola’s Room
Located on the second floor of the iconic McMenamins Crystal Ballroom, Lola’s Room plays host to Portland’s favorite dance party, ‘80s Video Dance Attack. Every Friday night, break out your scrunchies and lace up your high-top Chucks to relive MTV’s heyday and bop your head to your favorite throwbacks. Classic music videos are projected across giant screens, so it’s a lot like when you used to dance along with Paula Abdul’s “Cold Hearted Slave” in your living room (but with less carpet burn). Prefer songs and styles from the following decade? Dance to hits by Nirvana and Snoop Dog at “Comes As You Are: 90s Dance Flashback” on Saturday nights.
Tango Berretin
Portland has one of the largest Argentine tango communities in North America, with studios offering lessons, practicas and milongas (social dances) almost every night of the week. At the heart of the scene is the Tango Berretin. Owned by world-renowned tango instructor Alex Krebs, this intimate dance hall injects the old-world charm of dimly lit Spanish salons and a tango’s overt sensuality. The popular Saturday night milonga is prefaced with a beginner lesson and frequently hosts live music.
Trio Club
Trio Club is a neon beacon that beckons night owls hungry for a slice of Miami’s nightclub vibe. It looks a bit out of place in Portland, but for fans of salsa, it feels like home. With three different dance floors and DJs spinning everything from traditional mambo to Latin EDM, the Trio Club’s Salsa Sunday is sure to keep you shimmying into the wee hours of Monday morning. (The party goes ‘til 4 a.m.!)
More Nightlife
Portland comes to life after-house with special events and activities.
Live Music Venues in Portland
From gritty rock to velvety jazz, Portland’s live music scene offers tunes for all types.
LGBTQ+ Nightlife
Portland has no shortage of LGBTQ-owned and queer-friendly bars and clubs. Whether you're looking for a relaxing night with friends, a high-energy dance party or a drag show, Portland delivers.
Young, Gifted and Brown Fosters Community Through Dance in Portland
Y.G.B. aims to create healing spaces for Black and Brown Portlanders through music, dance and collaborative experiences.
Nightlife Events
Enjoy a night out in Portland with these upcoming events.
Nintendo Night
4th Wall has a Nintendo Switch, a pile of games, and a 150 inch projector screen. They also have beer, pizza, and popcorn, a little something for everyone. 8/3 – Family Game Night8/10 – Jackbox Night8/17 – Mario Kart Tournament ($5 entry)8/24 – Smash Bros Tournament ($5 entry)
Old School Hip Hop Throwdown
Come and get down with Portland’s own DJ O.G.ONE for an Old School Hip Hop & RnB dance party at the official kick-off of Portland Hip Hop Week! David Jackson, aka O.G.ONE is one of the industry’s most respected DJs. With over 25+ years of experience, O.G.ONE is considered a legendary Staple in the Pacific…
Backstreet Boys
The Backstreet Boys are thrilled to announce their biggest arena tour in 18 years along with the release of their new album DNA. The DNA World Tour is the eleventh concert tour by American vocal group, the Backstreet Boys in support of their tenth studio album, DNA. The tour will perform over 150 shows in…
Tuesday Trivia at the 4th Wall
Every Tuesday is Trivia Night at the 4th Wall. Flex your nerd knowledge on our one-of-a-kind pop culture gauntlet. This month’s themes are: 8/2 – Disney8/9 – Gilmore Girls8/16 – Game of Thrones8/23 – Always Sunny in Philadelphia8/30 – The OfficeThe game kicks off at 7, but they fill up fast, so getting in early…
Butter: The Comedy Show
The churning of cream transforms its components into a semi-solid emulsion that’s used to make things better. That product is called butter, and so is this comedy show. It’s not the show that is butter, but those solitary moments that everyone shares at the show. This butter has a live band, silly antics, a try-hard…
Saturday Slasher Takeover
4th Wall’s friends over at Forgotten Fantasies are once again taking over the Saturday Slashers programming for an evening full of film roasts, kill counts and VHS trash. Silly, retro fun for everyone.
UNLIMITED PERFECTION™
WERM presents UNLIMITED PERFECTION™ Featuring: Swan Meat [Cologne]MURDER CLUB [Toronto]djX [LA]PLUS [PDX]Sammy and Harry [PDX]Swan Meat is a record producer and DJ from Washington, D.C., based in Cologne, Germany. Since breaking onto the scene in early 2017 with her debut EP, BOUNTY (Permalnk), a tribute to classic Metroid games, she has carved out her niche…
Twin Peaks Bingo
Like every town you’ve ever seen and no place you’ve ever known. Join The 4th Wall PDX and guest host Thom Hilton (@thomjh) for a night of damn fine (and beer and pizza) coffee and bingo. Play along to a special screening of the 90-minute pilot episode for a chance to win themed prizes. This…
Homegrown Gameshow: Jasonerdy
Its… Jasonerdy ‘What is: Everyone’s favorite gameshow with a unique 4th Wall twist?’ Jason, our founder and owner, is also obsessed with Jeopardy and will be cooking up his very own spin on the classic gameshow, and YOU CAN PLAY ALONG The event is free, and the questions will be nerdy. BE THERE.
Joe Pera
Joe Pera is a standup comedian, writer, and filmmaker from Buffalo, NY now living in New York, NY. Joe is best known for his current Adult Swim series, ‘Joe Pera Talks With You’, which The LA Times refers to as ‘TV’s quietest, most artful comedy’. He has performed his subdued standup on Conan, Late Night…
Burlynomicon – A Darkly Decadent Burlesque Revue
Burlynomicon – 11th ANNIVERSARY SOIREE – SEPTEMBER Some times are more apt for celebration than others…and every second Tuesday of the month for the past 11 years, we have celebrated art, beauty, and fantasticness of the darkly decadent variety without fail. On Tuesday, September 13, Burlynomicon – A Darkly Decadent Burlesque Revue celebrates our 11th…
Trivia Night at the Aerie
Bridgetown Trivia brings the fun to The Aerie at Eagle Landing on the second Wednesday of each month starting in February. Order some food, grab a drink and be ready to rumble. This is a free event for those over 21 years of age. Proof of vaccination is required at entry.
Jackie Kashian
Jackie Kashian back in Portland Last heard on NPR and seen on HBO’s 2DopeQueens, her albums have been #1 on Amazon, iTunes and have over 20 million listens on Spotify and Pandora. She has two podcasts; The Dork Forest (since 2006) where she talks with people about what they love to do, think about and…
Freaky Deaky Portland
Disco Donnie and Red Cube Presents: FREAKY DEAKY 2022 at the Portland Expo Center Featuring: SVDDEN DEATH, CLOZEE, LSDream, Riot Ten, Mersiv, Kaivon, Ravenscoon, Level Up, Zingara, and Kumarion Doors Open at 6 PM both days 18+ Event | 21+ To Drink
Portland Erotic Ball
The 2022 Portland Erotic Ball returns to the historic Crystal Ballroom on Saturday, October 29th, 2022. The Erotic Ball has become Portland’s biggest, sexiest adult Halloween party for 22 years and takes place on all 3-levels of the renowned venue. Hosted by Emmy-nominee, Sasha Scarlett, Portland Erotic Ball features Soul Vaccination, burlesque, circus acts, aerial…
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