NYPD and FDNY Shut Down Webster Hall’s Day Glo Party (REWRITE)

October 4th, 2010, New York City- On Saturday October 2^nd, the NYPD and FDNY chose to shut down a huge paint party at Webster Hall after having extreme difficulty entering the premises due to the masses of people outside, stemming from overbooking on Webster’s part and scalped tickets.

A paint party is where all participants dress in generic white clothing and throw paint at each other while raving to electro music, typically attracting the 18-25 year old crowd. As early as 9 pm, masses of New York City college students, as well as out-of-towners, crowded the three entrances of the sprawling East Village dance and performance venue, all hoping to get in as quickly as possible and let the paint wars and raving begin. It was extremely difficult to navigate ones way through the sea of white t-shirts and Soffe shorts, as a result of the disorganization of the three entrances.

One entrance was designated for advanced tickets, another for VIP bottle service reservations, and still another for promoter lists. Although this system could have been very organized, the number of people trying to enter was simply too much to handle, according to security guards and the director of VIP reservations, Kelly, who requested that her last name not be used. Individuals who had already purchased advanced tickets were haggling for bottle service to try to expedite their entrance, however, VIP guests were waiting just as long to enter the venue. After a few large VIP parties were finally seated and introduced to their waitresses, the FDNY made an attempt to enter the venue because of the extreme overflow of individuals outside. The FDNY and NYPD routinely check up on Webster Hall since it is such a large venue.

As Kelly stated, “If the fire department cannot enter the building easily, we get shut down.” Her forecasting was right on point.

After the FDNY finally got into the venue, they evaluated the situation inside and decided that Webster was way over capacity, considering their own entrance was just too difficult. At this point, VIP tables had not even received their first round of drinks yet. FDNY and NYPD quickly made the executive decision to evacuate the venue, going so far as to use mace on the upper balcony to get people out, as recalled by bottle waitress and bartender Tracey who was working the balcony all night. Tracey requested that her last name not be used for privacy reasons. The reason that the FDNY went so far as to use mace to evacuate the upper level is unclear, but since it is a fact that Webster was over capacity, it may be true that it was just too difficult to get partiers out without the use of such measures. Since individuals appeared to be under the influence of drugs and alcohol at this event, it is quite possible that party goers were just too out of control and the use of mace was necessary.

As the masses of people evacuated the building, there were countless complaints about monetary refunds and the huge struggle it took for individuals to reclaim their belongings from coat check. When a VIP guest inquired about a monetary refund, the receptionist simply told her that there was nothing she could do at the moment and that she must call back during the week. The reason for this response was that the venue had to be evacuated immediately and individuals could not be waiting around inside for refunds. Security was adamant about getting people out as quickly as possible, leading to two violent situations where a young man was pushed against the wall and another female thrown across the floor as a result of the chaos.

As headlining DJ David Berrie remarked on his Twitter page, “Wowwww Webster Hall shut down by cops that is by farr the most packed I've ever seen Webster.” To have Berrie make this statement is quite a big deal since Webster Hall DJ’s are often witness to the largest, most out of control crowds, as explained by Kelly, speaking of other parties at Webster such as “Girls & Boys” on Friday nights. “Girls & Boys” is host to huge electro artists such as Chromeo, Hot Chip and Boyz Noise, just to give one an idea of the capacity of this party.

No refunds have been given as of yet, but it is certain that Webster Hall will limit the amount of people they allow in the venue from this point on, in order to avoid the possibility of getting shut down permanently.

As a result of the venue being evacuated, there were a huge number of people on the street outside the premises and NYPD were forced to shut down 11th Street between Third and Fourth Avenue. This lead to many complaints from 11th street residents, causing discomfort among East Villagers due to the overflow of drunken individuals crowding the streets and making excessive noise.

Lula Brown