"Owner Bill Spieler kept DC9’s outdoor spaces going for the first few months of the pandemic, then closed during the winter. The rooftop deck and street-level patio have reopened, per the city’s guidelines, and are back serving burgers, snacks and drinks.
But the club’s concert floor remains dormant. Wood, construction materials, paint and tools all occupy the space designed to hold a crowd of up to 230. The green room, where artists hang out pre- and post-show, now stores liquor for the rooftop bar. The bathrooms — also turned into storage — retain the posters for the 2020 concert season that never was. The only part of the club still being used, sort of, for music is a corner of the stage set up for streaming events.
“Our venue has become a multifunctional space for everything but concerts themselves,” Spieler told me. It was easy to hear the frustration that comes with trying to move the earth to survive in a time without live music, the club’s whole reason for being."
From 'Frozen in Silence', my cover feature for The Washington Post