The Circus was the first club...

The Circus was the first club I ever visited on Baltimore's "Block." That was about 17 years ago and it hasn't changed a molecule since then as far as I can tell. It's located at the farthest southeastern corner of the block, catty-cornered from the police station.

You enter the club and go left or right through these sort of curtain strips. Most of the dancers who aren't otherwise occupied are sitting near the entrance and quickly help you avoid any shyness you may have toward approaching them by approaching you well before you have any chance get to a seat. Some people may not like such forwardness, but I do.

The physical club is fairly large, with a rectangular bar in the center of which, separated from the bar on all sides by maybe 4', is a rectangular stage for the dancers. The customers sit around the outside of the rectangular bar on fairly tall and unstable stools -- I found out the hard way about their instability once. Tipping the dancers while they're on stage requires a bit of a stretch by both the dancer and the customer; they are pleased, however, to accept a tip after their on-stage shift as they walk around, and indeed will request one of you even if it's interrupting something that you may consider to be more urgent.