This Friday, the Mirano reopens with the CST in VIP: Nanard, THE historic bartender of the famous nightclub, tells us about his memories

Like the other clubs, the Mirano reopens this Friday, October 1. With a new logo and, on the VIP list: the Covid Safe Ticket. "It's the security service that will control the entrance. It won't be that different," thinks manager Nicolas Bordier. "It did not generate any costs: we will scan via the smartphone app." No fear of incident in case of refusal? "People know, they will be understanding."

Inside, the 700 or 800 clubbers will breathe thanks to "advanced technology in its ability to renew the air very quickly". The hydroalcoholic gel will flow as much as champagne. The staff will be masked, but not in homage to the turbulent 80s at the former Tennoodois cinema. The accessory, remember, is no longer mandatory for customers under CST. "We will work like that at least until October 15", specifies Nicolas Bordier. In the music department, the Mirano opens up to "melodious electronic music" via a partnership with Hangar. “The reopening is a relief: we have been working on it for 2 years”.

For the occasion, we met Nanard, historical bartender of the most legendary nightclub in the capital. Interview.

In 1980, the Mirano opened its doors in Brussels. The Chaussée de Louvain club became the beacon of Brussels nightlife for several decades. A documentary retraces its golden age, between DIY and VIP show with unbridled hedonism. As the nightlife resumes on October 1, meet Nanard, a historic bartender but also a manager and… strong. A word of advice: don't talk to him about "box"...

How did you end up behind the bar in the early hours of Mirano?

"I was not predestined for a career in the nightlife. It was a student job. I frequented Paul (Sterck, future director of the Mirano) in "private parties". , at the turn of the 70s and 80s. I had met in a bar the boss of Gémeaux, a discotheque on the decline boulevard du Souverain. I suggested that Paul take over. He paid the rent late and took possession of the place."

Are you a job there?

"I went to school with the flyers. On weekends, I'm behind the bar. I'm 16 or 17. It's a job. But I'm a fan of music. So working in a nightclub is important for me."

And the place, renamed 'Canotier', takes off.

"It takes. Randomly. We didn't have a plan. Aldo (Gigli, future creative director of Mirano, editor's note) comes back from the States and decorates the place. Marco (Rolland, future creative director of Mirano, editor's note), works in the bar. And it is this experience that will allow the Mirano. We also have frequentation by artists, the new generation of actors. Creatives from advertising and communication agencies too."

Are you on the cutting edge?

"We had this laser, a lab thing. Nobody used it. It was so hot that we lit our cigarette on it. To cool it, we had to spray it with water. It was so energy-intensive that we only plugged it in for 2 or 3 hours a night. It had an incredible impact."

Do you have competitors?

"There was another place, the Circus. They were revolutionizing the grandpa box. I remember the swings on the ceiling on which models were sitting. It was like a hippie circus. We went to their house, they came to our house : we were not competitors."

You open the Mirano: why?

"Le Canotier is getting too cramped. We work weekends at Le Canotier and weekdays at Mirano. We hide to dismantle seats from the old cinema and throw them in the container so as not to attract attention. We wanted to keep the surprise. In the cellars of Le Canotier, seats and tables are made for the Mirano. Everything is done between friends."

And with family?

"My brother Étienne, my wife Coco, my brother-in-law: we work together. Our daughter Belinda was born 2 months after the opening of the Mirano. The band paraded at the hospital: 40 people. And Corinne returns to the bar directly after. We got married at the Mirano: 45 years that we have been together."

Opening in 1980: is it going well?

"It took off straight away! We experimented with everything. We worked on the sets during the week and we partied on the weekends. The clients dressed according to the theme. big party every fortnight, we shoot clips, put on fashion shows. Some customers have moved to the neighborhood to be closer to the Mirano: can you imagine?

Your job is also the sets, which are sometimes huge.

"We did everything with two quids and a ball. One day, Stéphane (Darno De Swaef, dancer and choreographer of the Mirano, editor's note) asked me for a waterfall. Flowing water! I thought of the sandbox shell of my daughter. I put mirrors in the bottom, water in it and we projected it on the cinema screen."

For the costumes?

"We collected downgraded clothes from theaters. It was terrible. Romans, Renaissance, 1950s. We only did 'one shots'."

And the music ?

"At the time, it was disco and new wave. Me, I dressed as much as a hippie with flared legs than a crested punk. I had blue hair. Jumping on a disco or in a pogo, it's is always jumping, huh. Music is fundamental to me. Besides, I don't like the word 'club'. I say 'discotheque'."

Where does your inspiration come from?

"What we do does not exist in Brussels. And the Bains in Paris are not yet open. The main inspiration is Studio54 in New York. As bartenders, we were told that we had to handsome guys, 'macho men', we were pushed to do some swell in the gym. But we were 20 years old, we smoked to death…"

And women ?

"My wife is one of the most beautiful women in Brussels. Men gathered at her bar. I didn't care: I knew she was coming home with me. As long as she sold his champagne…"

Are there stars? Invite you ?

"Paul never paid anyone! But we knew all the press officers. So they passed by with their clients. Some slept at my house. I found myself having a drink with Rod Stewart somewhere in a private enclosure in Brussels We saw Grace Jones, Marvin Gaye… Me, I was the public entertainer for them. I took care of the dressing rooms, I took care that they were not bothered in the room and that they were not photographed not drunk. They were at home."

And you, do we recognize you in the street?

"Obviously! Especially since I was in video clips. Well, when we had little problems with fights, we didn't yet have order service with the buttons of pants in the ear. So sometimes, I stuck to it."

Because of your build?

What were we drinking at Mirano in the 80s?

"Whisky, vodka, rum, champagne. A little bit of beer. Bottled. Because at the pump, it's bistro. It's corny."

You end up quitting.

"With an old American car, I designed an advertising car covered with capsules for a major brand of sparkling water. It was 1986: I left the Mirano. I am a creative person. With my address book, I design fashion shows, catwalks and displays for luxury perfumes. My concepts are copied in Paris."

And today ?

"I no longer need to work to live. So I customize all my everyday objects. I create. My sofa is an old hospital bed. And then I customize choppers, always Harleys."

Your opinion on the world of the night in 2021?

"Sad. It's business, derivative products. I have 10,000 records. I mix old things for my 16-year-old grandson during his patronage parties. What happiness! Young people dancing on vinyl records strumming funk is more interesting than a computer playing tchack boom."

If you had experienced the Covid at Mirano?

"I would have been vaccinated directly! I would have even paid for it!"

Did it remind you of another epidemic…?

"It scared me very much, this AIDS epidemic. But hey, at the time, it was "for queers and drug addicts", the bad guys. Today, it's for everyone."