The Pink Ruble may finally have arrived in St. Petersburg, if the hectic round of new gay venues opening throughout the city recently is anything to go by. Enthusiastic doyens of the Petersburg gay scene would have us believe that the northern capital may soon rival the actual capital - long Russia's gay Babylon - as the country's homosexual epicenter.

  DINKIs - Double Income, No Kids, a buzzword in Britain and North America during the nineties, are finally feeling their influence as St. Petersburg's entrepreneurs aim new, increasingly pricey establishments in their direction.

  Those not looking at things through rose-tinted Gucci glasses, however, remain skeptical. Indeed, they have a right to be, as unlike any self-respecting metropolis, St. Petersburg doesn't even have any gay bars - as opposed to clubs - and the concept of a gay "community" is still embryonic.

Despite being a magnet for gay people from all over the Northwest region and beyond, detractors point out that the "out" proportion of the city's gays is being spread too thinly across ever increasing venues. This situation is about to be further compounded by the closure of one of the city's most popular and notorious clubs.

  Skeptics further point out that a scramble for DINKI cash is premature in a gay culture that is made up more of single men, prostitutes and tourists than wealthy thirty-something couples.

  Like Russian nightlife in general, gay clubs are still dominated by the oldest profession, which makes a sad joke out of any notion of community.

  Even sophisticated and pleasant venues such as Mono (where Alla Pugachyova had her birthday party last year) will propose the services of a young lad to those with foreign accents, while a stroll through Jungle will reveal a gallery of underfed teenagers aggressively touting for trade.

  Since the none-too-lamentable decline of Mayak, the city's first gay club in the mid-'90s, change has been the only constant among gay venues. Amazingly, the dinosauresque Jungle - celebrating its fifth birthday on Saturday - still struggles along, operating in a cold, damp ex-Palace of Culture on the Petrograd Side, while the bright young things now sip cocktails at Club 69, Greshniki and a host of "gay-friendly" clubs such as Monroe and Metro.

  Club 69 - for all its faults undeniably the best gay club in town - was a sensation when it opened over three years ago. Sleek, fashionable but largely mobster- and prostitute-free, it represented a sophistication in gay nightlife that even Moscow was unable to rival. By organizing and sponsoring events, it quickly became the center of the city's gay scene rather than just a nightclub and this position it still holds despite swiftly rising cover and drink prices.

  It was therefore a great blow to the optimistic school when it became an open secret that Club 69 will be closing its doors in January next year. New competition, rumors have it, means that the club can no longer afford to pay its hoards of tireless go-go boys, transvestites in fright-wigs and costumed bar staff, and when entry can cost 250 rubles, this is saying something.

  Greshniki, 69's only serious rival, is case in point of a club seeing the financial advantages that the gay public can offer. A failing straight club with dwindling clientele, under new management it last year made the sage decision to provide playing fields for the other team. Its cheap beer, central location and relaxed atmosphere have made it a big hit. Despite its chronic lack of toilets, superannuated strippers and lame floor shows, Greshniki survives due to a so-far-loyal public. It has not been a smooth journey however, and whether Greshniki remains gay long term or swaps allegiances yet again if profit margins drop remains to be seen.

  Optimists point out a number of new ventures: A new club-restaurant, Kletka dlya Ptashek (The Birdcage), which opened last month on Kazanskaya Ul., claims unsurprisingly to be the first restaurant in St. Petersburg to serve Chinese, Vietnamese and Russian food in one place. More significantly it is St. Petersburg's first official gay restaurant, open for lunch as well as all night. However, anyone having made the effort to see the new establishment will have been sadly met by an empty dance floor, glum staff and the excitement of a mid-80s Intourist hotel bar.

  Similar to Greshniki's conversion, the former Smolninsky Baths have been renovated and now operate as the salubrious "Narcissus" Sauna - a copy of those that exist all over the world, where it is perhaps safe to say that bathing takes second place to other sweaty activities.

  There is now even a gay travel agency (Magellan), and for those who cannot stand to have any contact with heterosexuality, a gay pager provider, Compas-Telekom. Even the Moscow club moguls have their eye on this developing market. Ilya Abaturov, owner of Moscow clubs Central Station and Three Monkeys was recently visiting to look into the possibility of a new club venture up north.

  But is this rush for the pink ruble realistic? The likely answer to this question is no.

  Whether or not the closing of Club 69 is a PR stunt on the part of the canny management - who regularly attract some of Russia's most famous pop stars to their stage - only time will tell. While still busy on the weekends, it is no secret that the management has been despairing about the empty dance floor Monday through Thursday.

  If Club 69 really is in trouble, then St. Petersburg's gay scene will be set back years. No matter how many theme restaurants, gay-friendly clubs or saunas open, the lack of a central, openly gay and enduringly popular club at the heart of the city's gay nightlife will leave a vacuum that will be hard to fill, no matter how much gold the business community believes lies at the end of the gay rainbow.

© by Tom Masters
©"St. Petersburg Times"