ABSTRACT
Frank, a graduate student at Syracuse University, had a strange anecdote about an event that took place in a bar in Manhattan, New York City (NYC; interview, March 3, 2006). In the summer of 2005, Frank had been hanging out in an Upper East Side bar, Mustangs, with a couple of his friends. The throbbing music inspired Frank and his friends to swing their bodies to the rhythm of the music, until they were stopped by a bouncer. To Frank and his bewildered group of friends, the bouncer pointed to a “No Dancing” sign hanging on the wall. When Frank and his friends protested the bouncer threw them out of the bar. This seemingly unusual incident over dancing is actually perfectly legitimate, and is one that has become routine within the nightlife of NYC. This is because businesses that allow even a few patrons to dance together are subject to being fined and padlocked by the Multi-Agency Response to Community Hotspots (MARCH), a.k.a. dance police, if they are found without cabaret licenses.
