“There was the uptown and the downtown, the gays, the straights, socialites, Brazilian dancers, muscle men... We had it all!” Talking to Susanne Bartsch is like scrolling through Instagram photos of the best party you’ll never attend – you’re just asking for FOMO. The original ringmaster of after-dark counter culture, Bartsch is practically a New York institution: since moving to the city in 1981, she’s opened innovative fashion stores, raised $2.5 million for AIDS advocacy and hosted too many wild disco parties to count. Running a series of legendary nights in the 80s and 90s, first at Savage, and later at the Copacabana, Bartsch’s infectious energy and madcap personal style was a magnet for New York’s new underground: upstarts like Keith Haring and Marc Jacobs mingled with legends like Leigh Bowery and Laurie Anderson, while drag culture was made visible in an art and fashion context for the first time ...