6 days ago
The Sydney party that men weren't allowed into
On Saturday night while the city was smashed by rain, many women relaxed at home, cooked up some dinner, caught up with friends or tucked their children into bed. But, in a different corner of Sydney, thousands gathered armed with sparkles and unicorn doof sticks.
Centennial Park's Hordern Pavilion was flooded with mothers and wives, bosses and CEOs, from all different walks of life. But they all had one thing in common; they were women and they came to party.
The Disco Club is Australia's biggest women's only disco and is run by Brisbane-born and raised best friends and podcasters, Lise Carlaw, 46, and Sarah Wills, 45, who describe the experience as 'everything you miss about clubbing and nothing you don't.'
With tickets sitting around the $100 mark, disco-goers get a complimentary welcome drink, three hours of uninterrupted partying, food trucks and access to multiple on-site bars.
In this economy, you'd be lucky to hit a club and spend under $200 for the drinks, entry, Ubers and late-night feeds – so, bargain!
Best friends Lise and Sarah, who also host the popular 'Lise and Sarah' podcast, first created the idea for their women's only space in 2022. The pair 'hired a room at a bowls club in Brisbane, borrowed a speaker, shared a microphone, and pressed play on music they love to 80 women.'
The mothers met in their 30s and after discovering their 'extraordinary chemistry and genuine friendship,' the rest was history.
As a 23-year-old I was definitely outside of the core demographic for Disco Club revellers, with most appearing to sit around the 40-year age. But that didn't bother me for one minute, and why would it?
Led by my mum (a child of the 70s), who was keen to bring her retired feral party girl out, and my slightly mortified 20-year-old sister – we entered the event hall where the sea of sequins stretched further than the eye could see.
Everywhere you look are women of all different ages dressed head-to-toe in sparkles – some who haven't been on the dancefloor for decades – laughing and partying with the same girlfriends they've had for 20 years.
The dancefloor was pumping by the 7pm start time, with hits by Britney, Whitney, Madonna and Dolly riling up the crowd.
When Lise and Sarah asked the crowd their ages, screams of women in their 40s and 50s filled the space, solidifying who was at the core of the club.
The pair then asked the crowd who will be the 'sweatiest feral rat girl of them all' and spoiler, it might have been me after clocking 17,000 steps on the dance floor.
The night that followed was three hours of intense singing and dancing to everyone's favourite 80s, 90s and 2000s classics, accompanied by lasers, confetti canons and onstage fireworks.
It was an electric space where women could chuck their handbags in the middle of the floor, leave their drink while they went to the bathroom and occupy all the space they wanted.
