Black Cat (Washington, D.C., nightclub)

The Black Cat is a nightclub in Washington, D.C., located on 14th Street Northwest in the Shaw/U Street neighborhood. The club was founded at 1831 14th Street NW in 1993 by former Gray Matter drummer Dante Ferrando, along with a group of investors (including D.C. area native, Nirvana drummer, and future Foo Fighters leader Dave Grohl) and quickly established itself as a venue for independent music. While the Black Cat is most known for its support of indie rock, featured musical acts include metal, punk, and electronic, as well as DJ/dance nights, stand-up comedy, and film screenings. The Black Cat's "Mainstage" concert venue is on the second floor in a 7000 square-foot space with a capacity of 800. The first concert held at the Black Cat was by the Washington, D.C. band 9353 on September 11, 1993. Ferrando named the club after an establishment his great-grandfather operated in Greenwich Village in the 1920s. The club's original location had a capacity of 400 patrons and was envisioned by Ferrando as a supplement to the 9:30 Club and a way to fill the void left by the recently-shuttered independent music venue, d.c. space. “We’re not trying to compete with anyone,” stated musician and then-Black Cat concert booker Chris Thomson, at the time of the club's opening. “I think it just gives people other options.” In 2001, the venue moved three doors south, to 1811 14th Street NW. Th

Venue data from Wikidata (CC0). Summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).