Modernista Turns 6, Standing Tall as a "Great Brickening Survivor" With Gigs Aplenty Nov 10-12 and Nov 24-26

The dust has settled, and many of our favorites have fallen, but there's still plenty of incentive to stay positive. At least that's the case for fans of Modernista, one of the few hutong venues to withstand the onslaught of redevelopment that leveled much of the capital's alleyway restaurant and bar scene throughout 2017. The Baochao hutong bar, café, and music venue is still going strong and plans to celebrate its sixth anniversary with a string of gigs both this weekend (Nov 10-12) and the last weekend of the month (Nov 24-26). Below, co-founder and manager Nuria Cimini tell us more about the venue's tenacity, the milestones it has reached over the years, their plans for the future, and more.

How does it feel to celebrate six years of Modernista? Especially after all the closures and demolitions this year, is it extra special to have this anniversary celebration?
Yes, it is. For all that we’ve been through this past year, this celebration has a certain triumphant feeling. If you look at this month's poster, which is originally an ad from the 1939 New York World Fair, it kind of reflects that. We're aiming to build a brilliant future, even while going through the most turbulent times. It’s somehow again the spirit of modernity which is contained in our name and personal philosophy.

Tell us more about that: How that turmoil affect Modernista, and that spirit you refer to, specifically?
The changes in Baochao were hard to cope with, but finally, it turned out to not be so bad. We were unwillingly transformed into sort of a real speakeasy. We don’t have a door sign anymore, and the main space is hidden behind the facade of a quiet café now, one that you can only access through the second-floor door. But inside, we worked to keep the place flourishing with all kinds of events, and we have even more people coming over now than we had before.

It sounds like none of that would have been anticipated when you all first opened Modernista six years ago. What were your hopes and dreams for the place back then?
Well, we didn’t really have any specific goals back then. Modernista didn’t start strictly as a business, but more of a personal challenge to see what we could get done. At that time, there weren't many places around to go to, and we were all doing jobs we didn’t enjoy. So the goal was simply to build something on our own that would give us a space to test ideas and learn how to do things out of the frame set by employers in other jobs.

We started in quite a wild, naive, and informal way, with little money, no understanding of how to run a place like this in China and zero experience in the food and beverage industry. It was truly difficult at some moments, but we are very satisfied with what we’ve accomplished so far and what we’ve learned, from a personal perspective and also in terms of what it means to many people. We expanded twice in six years, only because the crowds wouldn’t fit in the space anymore. So we call that a success by itself.

What have been some of your favorite memories at Modernista over those years?
The first would be our shocking opening night back in 2011, when the police shut the place down half an hour after opening. Despite that, people wouldn’t stop coming and gathering outside.

Our first reopening also stands out in my mind. Everything was so unready that swing dancers were sweeping the floor for us before opening doors. We also had a very memorable, really authentic Roaring '20s party with showgirls and a casino, and the police suddenly showed up again to check passports. People believed at the beginning it was part of the show [laughs].

We've also had a desperate and fun Christmas show that, ridiculously, consisted only of on a double bass and a trombone; Brazilian parties that went so wild the musicians would speed down from the stage to help make caipirinhas right after the show; the time a police officer tried to make everyone go home after a noise complaint by going on the stage and grabbing a mike to shout at us, only to be cheered by the crowd ... It’s a long list, and we’ve got plenty of other stories like those!

That's hilarious. Are there other milestones that spring to mind, ones that don't involve the police quite as much?
[Laughs] Yes, of course! There are events that I personally feel most proud of, like our first night market. It was such a success that we thought we might need walkie-talkies to move around the space and handle everyone's orders, crowded as it was. Then there was the Greek Drink and Draw for our fourth anniversary night, when our friend Sarah drew a Parthenon up on stage and had up to 50 people dressed up like Greek gods for a real Tuesday Bacchanal.

Aside from that, our Moonglow Burlesque opening party for the new Modernista in 2015 was also very memorable, which we will commemorate by closing this anniversary month on Nov 25. Also every time I count how many shows bands like Mademoiselle have played for us, it reminds me of the special bond that exists between Modernista and these musicians who keep coming back to share their talent with us. Same goes for nights like last year’s New Year's Eve, for which I feel so proud of our bar, friends and service staff, because their dedication is amazing, and what they can accomplish with their efforts under such pressure every time.

What's next for Modernista? What do you and the team hope to accomplish in the near future?
That’s quite a tricky question. I would say we don’t know yet. The future is always uncertain and it often brings more than you expect.

Modernista has now reached a good balance, and it only gets better and better, as we keep perfecting things and more people get to know us. Also, we never stop planning new things, and we have plenty of ideas to put into practice when the time comes. As the city is also changing, we don’t know how that could affect us. But we are not afraid of it, because changes bring you the possibility of creating something new, even if it doesn't seem that way at first. We somehow always land on our feet, so we feel that we are ready to take in anything that happens next and make something good out of it.

Modernista's sixth anniversary kicks off this weekend, and a string of celebratory gigs will also be held from Nov 24-26. Here's a breakdown:

Nov 10: The Mac Daddies
Nov 11: Mademoiselle et Son Orchestre
Nov 12: A Special Anniversary Sunday Jazz Night with New Jazz Trio RoOom

Nov 24: Thanksgiving Party with Nancy & The Fantastic
Nov 25: Moonglow Burlesque's Vintage Boudoir Cabaret Night
Nov 26: A Special Sunday Jazz Night With Japanese Singer Seigo and Terry Hsieh

For more, follow the venue on WeChat at Modernista_BJ

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Email: kylemullin@truerun.com
Twitter: @MulKyle

Photos courtesy of Modernista, Global Times