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Red Palace, the burlesque house, bar, restaurant, and concert venue on H Street NE, is set to close at the end of the year.
Red Palace has been a work-in-progress for a while now: It reopened under its current name in 2010, after burlesque house Palace of Wonders merged with neighboring rock venue The Red & The Black. (Valerie Paschall documented part of the transition in her City Paper story about Al, Palace of Wonders’ former bar cat.) Since then, burlesque and live music have shared the same roof at Red Palace.
The venue opened its new kitchen about a year ago, and began serving brunch over the summer.
The venue’s online calendar lists only a few events through the end of the year. The club plans to host a final burlesque and variety New Year’s Eve bash Dec. 31.
From a press release sent this afternoon:
After almost seven years the Red Palace will sadly close it’s doors at the end of the year. The current ownership is changing, and with that change comes new ideas for the future.
Red Palace had it’s beginnings in The Red & The Black and The Palace of Wonders. The Red & The Black a quirky little live music venue. The Palace of Wonders a Vaudevillian entertainment bar replete with sideshow oddities. Loving neighbors from the beginning it seemed only natural when they were joined in 2010 to become the Red Palace.
We would like to thank the H street community, businesses and the many talented artists and entertainers we’ve had the pleasure of hosting. We especially want to thank our patrons and our fantastic staff for making it a great place to be, and truly one-of-a-kind.
We love H Street, and feel privileged to be a part of the community. Join us over the next several weeks for a show, a drink and a bite to eat as we say farewell. Don’t miss our “Ball Drop” New Year’s Eve. It will be a party to be remembered.
When reached yesterday, owner Joe Englert and general manager Steve Valm declined to comment. Club booker Steve Lambert has not returned multiple requests for comment since Sunday.