Chelsea’s Sizzlin’ Summer

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT > AC NIGHTLIFE

A lively and diversified social scene is happening every Thursday through Sunday nights at the Chelsea hotel  this summer.

By Ray Schweibert 

Add Comment | Comments: 0 | Posted Jul. 18, 2012

In keeping with Atlantic  City’s multi-cultural heritage, the Chelsea hotel is blending a variety of international influences into an extensive entertainment slate throughout the summer.  

It starts every Thursday with the WWFF (Why Wait For Friday?) Latin Dance Party at C5 nightclub, where DJs spin hot Latin funk and a Latin mix from 10:30pm-4am. Every Friday at C5 features a revolving slate of the area’s top DJs spinning hip-hop, techno, house, R&B, reggae and disco from 10:30pm-4am. This Friday (July 20) it’s DJ Redline and the following Friday (July 27) DJ Jason E plays host at C5. The parties are free for hotel guests and a nominal cover charge applies for non-hotel guests.  

The One Love Reggae Groove Party has been a hit at the Chelsea’s saltwater Oasis Pool deck and Teplitzky’s outdoor lounge since it started the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. Pegged as Atlantic City’s only Saturday island reggae party, talented Caribbean, Calypso and steel-drum bands perform every Saturday from 5:30-9pm. This week (July 21) and next (July 28) it’s Cort Farris — one of the premier steel pan players on the East Coast — and in August the bands Sensamotion, Trinidelphia, Pan Fried and Siesta Key are scheduled to perform at the Oasis Pool. The party partially overlaps the Chelsea’s regular daily Happy hour (3-8pm), and adds a Caribbean flair to the standard slate of drinks and appetizers.  

“They’re set up right next to the salt-water pool, so you can be in the pool and hear them, you can be in [Teplitzky’s] having dinner, or you can be sitting at the bar outside,” says Megan McNulty, event coordinator at the Chelsea. “It’s become very popular among guests who are just checking in who want to grab a drink and figure out what they want to do next. You can just drop off your bags, sit down and have a drink, listen to some music, get a bite to eat and make your plans for the rest of the night.  

“We also get a lot of people coming back from the beach who see the band through our glass doors and stop in to check them out. It’s open to everybody.” 

The Chelsea’s regular Happy hour includes $3 domestics and $4 imported beers. For the One Love Party, the hotel supplements it with $3 Red Stripes [Jamaican beer] a $5 house wine, $5 mixed well drinks and various $5 Caribbean drinks. There’s a fire pit set up by the pool area to keep things comfortable when the summer winds come blowing in from across the sea during the evening hours. 

“It’s a nice laid-back, low-key feeling,” says McNulty. “It’s designed for cooling off after a long day in the sun and before nightlife begins.” 

That lively nightlife vibe can be found five floors up at C5 nightclub, as the “Plugged-In High Voltage” party takes place from 10:30pm-4am every Saturday night. Hosting the party this week (July 21) is DJ Domenic Romeo, and the following Saturday (July 28) it’s DJ Jonathan Silva.  

On Sundays at C5, Atlantic City’s longest-running European dance party takes place from 10:30pm-4am, hosted by DJs Vitalik and Ahmed Khan. The two started the Euro Dance Party in 2000 at the bygone Déjà Vu nightclub before reviving it at the Chelsea a couple of summers ago.  

“We try to cater to all nationalities through their music,” says Khan. “One minute you’ll be dancing to Ruki Vverh [Russian], the next to David Guetta [French], then to Sofia Marinova [Bulgarian] and finally to Jay-Z and Tarkan [Turkish]. It’s quite an experience.” 

“The crowd loves it,” says Vitalik. “Many of our customers have heard about our parties from friends who visited the United States the previous summer.”