The Saint Visually Resurrected on Its 40th Anniversary

The elevated dance floor is empty. A thick cloud of silence permeates. The production team — DJ, lighting operator, technical director, performer, floor managers, front of house, bartenders, bar backs, coat check runners, maintenance crews, and a platoon of professionals working at the top of their game — try to clear their heads in the countdown to the doors opening. So much rides on the unknown. Guests imagine it happens in real time, unaware of the fiscal life-or-death decisions leading up to this moment. Will the club be a hit or a disaster?

40 years ago tonight, The Saint opened in the heart of New York City’s seedy East Village. No one could have dreamed that a group of creatives and investors would funnel so much capital into a venture catering solely to society’s perverted outcasts. But for the members of this tribe, they knew deep inside that they were destined for greatness. Just the very nature of their otherness made them exceptional.

And so it came to pass. It was the very best of times, though some sensed something biblical was afoot. For the survivors who caught a glimpse of the pinnacle, they would live out their days trying to land on solid ground — haunted and blessed with memories to carry forever.

Take a tour of The Saint in the quiet hours before Opening Night in this virtual reconstruction of the club’s interior — created entirely from architectural blueprints and archival photos. It’s the closest we can get to dancing under the great dome again.

Images from the rendering process are below.