Cleveland’s Twist Social Club celebrates 27 years

Twist Social Club, one of Cleveland’s most popular LGBTQ+ night spots, celebrated its 27th year on July 17, a birthday that many LGBTQ+ bars across the country don’t come close to reaching.

Gay bar listings declined by 36.6% between 2007 and 2019 alone, according to research by Greggor Mattson, a sociologist and professor at Oberlin College as well as the author of Who Needs Gay Bars?

“Nightlife businesses are often short-lived, and LGBTQ+ ones especially so, which makes Twist’s longevity a real success story,” Mattson said. “Gay bars that succeed are ones that are deeply embedded in their communities, offering safety and personal freedom as much as dancing and drinking.”

The 2020 pandemic forced many already-vulnerable LGBTQ+ bars to shut down, but many Cleveland establishments stood tall through it all, including The Leather Stallion (a legendary establishment currently standing as Cleveland’s oldest gay bar), The Hawk, No Class, Cocktails Cleveland and Vibe.

Cleveland’s gay bars fought to survive the pandemic. Will patrons return?

Studio West opened a few steps away from Twist at the tail end of the pandemic in late 2022, but closed its doors in 2025. Old Brooklyn’s Shade Nightclub closed in 2024.

Cody Cammarn, general manager of Twist Social Club and neighboring Landmark Smokehouse in Cleveland’s Edgewater neighborhood, states the club’s secret to success best: “The adaptation, as we move through the years, has been mostly around just keeping that community focus”.

Twist (the Social Club was added later) opened in 1999 under John Katsaros, an LGBTQ+ activist and winner of the LGBT Community Heritage Award in 2009. After his passing in 2014, his nephew, Constantine Katsaros, and best friend Jack Messer chose to quit their full-time jobs and dedicate their time and energy to Twist, which at the time was struggling with debt and a lack of needed repairs.

Since then, the bar has received many renovations and even a name change from “Twist” to “Twist Social Club” to reflect the establishment’s welcoming environment. But Twist Social Club hasn’t just kept its doors open; it’s thrived, earning Cleveland Scene’s “Best LGBTQ+ Bar and Nightclub” for the past 9 years and “Best Dance Club” for the past 3 years.

Be safe, feel seen, create family

For Cody, Twist Social Club isn’t just a business, but a place he’s called home long before he became general manager.

“As a member of the LGBT community, I really didn’t have a lot of friends or family that really I could connect with, and I mean coming to Twist was a place where I could show up, be seen, be comfortable, and just be myself. I met my husband here. We’ve been together for over a decade. Twist has just been a hugely impactful portion of my life. It’s just been a place where I felt safe, where I knew that I could, like I said, be myself, with people that were like-minded. I could have fun, I could dance and I didn’t have to feel judged or worried about that.”

Cody is determined to give Cleveland the same opportunity to experience the acceptance he’s received. ”This was my safe space, and now I get to be the steward of said safe space for other people.”

The importance of gay bars providing a safe space cannot be overstated, especially in the current climate, said Mattson.

“At a time where LGBTQ+ people, especially trans people, are under attack in the public sphere, gay businesses are little islands of safety where we can experience—and thus imagine—our freedom,” he said.

Bunzwalla Choup, or DJ Bunz, has DJ’ed at Twist for a decade, becoming a pillar of the LGBTQ+ community in his own right. For DJ Bunz, being made to feel welcome from day one is why he’s made Twist Social his home.

“When I started working here, something that I gotta continue to share with everybody, no matter who you are, what you are, where you come from, it’s always a nice feeling to see somebody feel welcomed at Twist, you know?” he said.

That consistency pairs nicely with the art of adapting, not just year-to-year but day-to-day, said Bunz. “Being able to be flexible, and to shift gears, to be able to fit the themes and the parties and the different pop-culture moments, has been very challenging, but also extremely fun.”

Not only does Twist Social Club host lively parties, but it also makes community outreach part of its mission. Every month, the club uses its revenue and influence to donate, fundraise, and get the word out about charities and nonprofits in the area. The reasoning?

Cody says, “It’s just really about giving back to the same community that comes to us.”🔥