- It was over the last five years that the coast of Santa Catarina—a state located in the south of Brazil—became a kind of entertainment center dedicated to electronic music. Granted, local newspapers and travel magazines sound a bit exaggerated when they insist on calling it a "new Ibiza," but at least now they have some factual basis: alongside Brazilian clubs like Green Valley and Warung, plus a Pacha location that's been running for four years, the last days of 2012 saw the region gain the Americas' first branch of Space.
Space B.Camboriú opened on December 29th, right at the beginning of the 2013 summer season. It sits on a hillside about five kilometers from the city of Balneario Camboriu, near the highway that leads to Itajai and Florianópolis. Getting there was a bit confusing on the opening night: police who were supposed to organize traffic blocked some sections of the highway, which, along with the heavy rainfall, made for huge queues leading up to the club—a situation the venue should urgently address.
Judging by its size alone, Space B.Camboriú seems ready to break barriers within the local scene. The entrance is through an immense threshold that also gives access to a large hall. This space has white walls in Mediterranean style, a bar and a Japanese restaurant, and centralizes access to all three of the club's dance floors. The largest, called Arena, can reportedly fit as many as 5,000 people on its own. Surrounded by enormous VIP areas, the Arena has plenty of bars with easy access. Nic Fanciulli and Carl Cox were billed here, but because it was the opening night, most people were more focused on the venue itself than the DJs.
The smaller room is called Euphoria, and it's still immense, with space for about 3,000 people. Josh Wink and Tiefschwarz were the main attractions, with Wink delivering an enthusiastic performance that many considered the evening's best. Finally, there's the Terraza, a smaller space on the second floor that opens in the middle of the night.
Just one party is not enough to form a definitive opinion about a club, but it's safe to say that Space B.Camboriú has set its sights very high: it will take huge amounts of attendees every weekend to make the venue work. If this kind of full-blown superclub, which is unprecedented in Brazil, will be effective or not is a question that only time will answer.