There’s a handful of Web sites devoted to circuit news, party reviews, and calendars. A few good ones to bookmark are: www.circuitnoize.com, www.thecircuitdog.com, www.partylist.com, and www.justcircuit.com. Partylist.com will send you a little laminated event calendar for free if you e-mail them, and circuitnoize.com produces a quarterly print publication with DJ interviews, news on law and legislation affecting party promotion, and humorous anecdotes from party-goers (and we love those humorous anecdotes, do we not?). Most parties have their own Web sites where you can view event listings and descriptions, read DJ rosters and bios, and check out the various charities benefiting from the events. You can also order tickets for just about everything online – often for a lot less than you’d pay at the door.
Are circuit parties expensive?
The granddaddy of all one-nighters, the Black Party, commands a cool $100 a ticket, and most main events cost between $45 and $70 a head. Opening, closing, and after-hours events are usually somewhat less – between $20 and $35 – but still a lot more than you’d pay for an ordinary night out. Factor in a hotel if you’re staying out of town, transportation, food, and incidentals, and clearly the circuit is not for the poor and downtrodden – more for the dual-income-no-dependents demographic. Most parties offer “Host” or “Weekend” passes that include all events for less than you’d pay if you bought all your tickets a la carte. If you’re game to hit everything, this is clearly the way to go – but if you just want to experience a main event and maybe the after-hours, it makes sense to pay a little more for just those tickets than to pony up for a bunch of stuff you’re not going to. There’s also the option of volunteering your time in exchange for free admission to your city’s events – most volunteer shifts don’t last all night, so you’ll get in for free, help the cause, and get to party afterwards.
