One of Reykjavík’s most popular hangouts for LGBT+ people, Kiki queer bar, on Laugavegur 22, has closed temporarily due to the spread of COVID-19 in Iceland. Manager Árni Grétar Jóhannsson says safety is the key word to all of this.
COVID-19 is still spreading in Iceland according to recent reports. The public gatherings ban took effect last Monday, March 16. Did Kiki close its doors then? Why?
“We are always closed on Mondays and Tuesdays, so that gave us a couple of days to thoroughly go over things and come to this conclusion,” says Árni Grétar Jóhannsson, manager of KIKI bar. “Safety is the key word to all of this. Our motto is that all customers feel they are safe and secure at all times. We run a tightly packed schedule throughout the week and the nature of everything we do is in such a way that it would be very hard for us to follow the governments guidelines in a way we would feel satisfied.
“Safety is the key word to all of this. Our motto is that all customers feel they are safe and secure at all times. We run a tightly packed schedule throughout the week and the nature of everything we do is in such a way that it would be very hard for us to follow the governments guidelines in a way we would feel satisfied.”
We have three drag-shows per week, a Kikioki-night plus all the Dj’s and dancing. Every single component comes with people getting very close together; on and off the stage, dancing on the dancefloor, through audience participation, singing into mics, lining up at the bar etc. Not to mention the fact that people tend to get a bit more carefree when they get lost in the moment of fun, perhaps after few drinks. If we would cancel all the drag-shows, the singing and the dancing, even only for the time being, we felt we were removing the heart and soul of Kiki. And even if we would take all kinds of measures, we could not be sure that we were keeping everyone safe.
We fully understand and support the actions taken to stop the spread of the virus, but we also know the nature of our company, so we find closing is the responsible thing to do.
So we decided that it would be best to use this time to pause the party for a bit and use that time to make Kiki a bit more shiny. So in our downtime we plan to clean, paint, mend what is broken and over all make Kiki an even better place to party when all this is over.”
Do you hope other venues will follow your example?
“If they feel that they can not guarantee everyone’s safety, both guests and members of staff, they should consider that, of course. But that being said, we do realize that there are not that many places in Reykjavík like Kiki and most of them have an easier task ahead to follow the given guidelines. Reykjavík is lucky to have its bars run by awesome, responsible owners and staff and there is no doubt in my mind that every single one of them has looked thoroughly into what they can do in this situations and taken all possible actions needed. So even if we decide to pause the party for a bit, people should not be afraid to go out and have a couple of drinks and enjoy life.”
Will you be able to withstand financially an extended closing?
“It will of course be a challenge but with everyone pulling together, we are certain we can pull through. And of course we count on our amazing regulars to come and party like it’s 1999 when we are in the clear and have the green light from the government.”
Any idea when you’ll reopen?
“We are certain that with all the efforts put in to action right now by the government and followed through by the public, we will be rid of this virus sooner than later. Rest assured we will host the biggest “End-of-quarantine”-party when all is clear and everyone is invited!”
“It will of course be a challenge but with everyone pulling together, we are certain we can pull through. And of course we count on our amazing regulars to come and party like it’s 1999 when we are in the clear and have the green light from the government.”
What will you guys do in the meantime?
“We plan to do this together so the staff will be coming in in smaller groups to help with the cleaning, painting and renovations. That way they can keep hopefully most of their hours and, what is also very important, keep the awesome team spirit alive. I recommend following us on social media and who knows, you might see your favourite bartender covered in paint or one of our house-queens down on all four, scrubbing the floors. Now if we will get very thirsty for some Kiki-action we have talked about even going live online with some acts, some singing and even throwing some Kiki-playlists out there every now and then. Just stay tuned because we will stay busy.
What’s your advice for you patrons now?
“Take care of yourself, of each other, be kind and keep washing your hands! We all want to come out of this sooner than later and with some self-love, we can do it! – Like RuPaul said: “If you can’t love yourself, how the hell are you gonna love somebody else”.
