Le Marais is the gay bar of Clermont-Ferrand, on rue Fontgiève a few streets north-west of the old centre. It has been open since 2008 and calls itself the before that finishes late, which is a fair description: people arrive for a drink ahead of the clubs and a good number of them never get that far.
There is a dancefloor and a terrace. Nothing is on a fixed playlist and the bar says so outright, so asking the booth for a track is normal rather than cheeky. Around the DJ sets it runs karaoke and cabaret nights with drag and strip performances, and the room shifts between neighbourhood bar and small show venue depending on what is on.
The crowd is mixed and largely local. It is the only gay bar in the city, so it is also where the scene collects.
