The closing of Parthenon - end of an era

After Avalon the hit kept going closer. Parthenon will close by the end of the year. Devastating hit for New York. Best efforts were not enough. This is the place of some of my fondest memories.

I was very sad to read this, especially on the heels of Avalon closing. Wishing all the best to Mistress Ariana as well as gratitude for all that she's done for the scene.

Mistress Ariana deserves praise and gratitude for the institution she created. But this is about so much more. This has been the premier hub for independents in New York for many years.

Mistress Ariana deserves high praise for what she has done. This is the end of an era. Remember, in the dirty old '80s and '90s in Manhattan dungeons were located in Chelsea, the Village (I remember a couple of Mistress Belle de Jour's places), in the West 30s in old factory buildings. They opened there because the rent was cheap and it was not residential. When I started sessioning in the early '70s with Belle she had a storefront on East 12th Street but many Mistresses listed in the old Screw Magazine did sessions in apartments. The scene gradually exploded and there were a dozen or more dungeons, beginning in the late '70s and through 1990 when BDSM was still underground to a large extent. By the '90s the action went to dungeons but a few of the Mistresses I saw were advertising in New York Magazine's personal ads section and they worked in apartments in those areas.

From what I've heard rents are going down in Manhattan and all over NYC. Maybe dungeons will make a comeback when the pandemic ends. But the rent bargains of the '70s and '80s for large dungeon spaces are no more.

For me there will not be another Parthenon, but I really think there is a light at the end of the tunnel and that there will be opportunities next year for the open minded. Lower rents in big cities will help.

We can only hope that something wonderful will raise from the ashes of this ordeal.

It's always darkest before dawn...

It is funny, I used the same quote on the same subject a few days ago. But there are a few months until then.

The Parthenon is now officially closed and is in dismantling mode, which is taking a whole team of people to do. All of the major equipment is going to new homes but a lot of the toys, pictures and other things are going into storage while Mistress Ariana decides what she wishes to do next.

In what would seem like a bizarre twist, I am actually here helping with everything but the explanation may give the touring Dommes on the board hope. Nemy, of Latex Nemesis fame, is building what should be a world class 3000+ sq ft dungeon in Detroit that will obviously follow in The Rubber Studio tradition (although like the Parthenon, it will service almost all interests) and have a specific focus on providing a unique and amazing experience for the Dommes that visit.

Some of the Parthenon equipment that will be moving to this new dungeon includes, but is not limited to, the legendary Challenger rig from the red room; the gold suspension rig from the corner of the penny room; the classic birthing chair; the bondage bed/cage from the red room; Ariana's throne (which I already got in trouble for sitting in when tattletale Nemy snapped a photo and texted it to Mistress Ariana); and enough other smaller stuff to help fill a 26 ft U-haul truck (along with other incredibly unique equipment we are picking up from other Dommes on the way back to Detroit).

Some Dommes have been stopping by each day to clean out their lockers and pick up things that Mistress Ariana has set aside for them, so even though there are bouts of melancholy there is also lots of storytelling and reminiscing, so the mood is generally upbeat and forward looking.

I do know from personal conversations that Mistress Ariana is going to miss all the amazing Dommes and subs who have visited over the years as well as the insane parties. I know Nemy is designing the new dungeon in Detroit to support a lot of the same things with the addition of pre-designed shooting facilities and special events to support the creation of C4S/OF/AVN Stars content as well as a professional mat to support wrestling sessions, a special sissy room and eventually a "wet room" for the craziest hardsports... But the best news is that Mistress Ariana does plan to visit on a regular basis once it is open.

Anyways, I know I rambled (as always) but thought people here would be interested in what is happening right now and some of the future plans with the legendary pieces of The Parthenon

I wish all of the ladies the best in whatever their next chapters may be. It has been many years since I had a studio in Columbus, Ohio. Many of my clients drove from Michigan. A fellow dom and I did traveling sessions in Detroit a few times a year. The market was fantastic as were the quality of clients. I remember le giving some of the Detroit based doms a hard time. But, things have likely changed over the years. As you well know, Michigan is a beautiful state, if you don't mind some cold weather. Do you know the time frame of when Namy will be opening her studio? I will put the word out to my friends who tour.

Unfortunately no... Ridiculous construction problems on the physical building based partially on lack of people because of Covid and having a fuck up running it are making it impossible to predict am accurate timeframe but summer is definitely the goal.

I will be keeping everyone updated on that for sure.

That is too bad. Michigan is probably among the states with the strictest covid restrictions. She, no doubt, has her reasons to build out in Michigan. I hope she meets her goal of this summer. My boyfriend is an amazing home builder. He can pretty much do anything. We'll be busy until late spring. But, please let Nemy go that we'll be happy to come out and donate a few days in late spring/early summer if our schedule and her needs line up.

Thanks for posting this!

Welcome back

Thank you... I will pass that along. The delays actually have nothing to do with Covid except for a month back in April. Instead they are related to the physical renovation of the building itself. I am sure she would welcome better help than I am able to provide in relation to the physical buildout of the interior spaces.

As for why Detroit, it is because that is where she lives for the kind of reasons that people choose to live where they do. But, without going into all the details, the underpinnings of this effort from every angle literally couldn't be better including the entire idea being hatched with Mistress Ariana over Buddy's legendary Detroit-style pizza last January.

It will be late spring into early summer before my boyfriend and I have time. But he's the guy for renovations. He's like MacGyver in the way that he can get anything done and well. Let's stay in touch. Hopefully, Namy is done long before then.