History
The history of Privilege began in the early 1970s when it started out as a restaurant, then expanded to include a bar and a community swimming pool. It was then known as Club San Rafael.[4] In 1979, the venue was sold to the Real Sociedad footballer José Antonio Santamaría, together with the creative team of Brasilio de Oliviera (founder of La Troya Asesina, one of the White Island’s longest running nights[5]) and Gorri. The venue then changed its name to KU, after the name of a god from Hawaiian mythology (see Kū). The appeal of the club was such that it commissioned a medium-length film showcasing the many wonders of Ibizan landscapes and nightlife in the mid-eighties.[6]
Throughout the 1980s,[7] KU Club earned a reputation initially as Europe’s premier polysexual but predominately gay nightspot and was compared to an open-air version of the famous Studio 54 in New York. It staged spectacular parties in the main room, which was organized around a swimming pool and a statue of Ku.The place was also where the video to “Barcelona” by Freddie Mercury and Montserrat Caballé was filmed on 30 May 1987.[8] It was the witness to early live performances by groups like Spandau Ballet and Kid Creole and the Coconuts.[9] The club featured in a Channel 4 documentary called “A Short Film about chilling”, which labelled KU as “the mirror of Ibiza”.[10] The open-air parties came to an end when legislation forced many of the greater clubs in Ibiza to cover their dancefloors in the early 1990s. Nevertheless, the sheer size of the venue gave rise to the claim of it being the size of an aircraft hangar with a 25-meter high roof.
The club continued with the KU Club name until 1995 before becoming known as Privilege, after a change of ownership to Jose Maria Etxaniz.[11] In 1994 it hosted Manumission, one of the island’s most famous events. In 1998 La Vaca Asesina moved to Amnesia and was renamed La Troya Asesina. After a dispute between the club owner and Manumission’s organizers in 2005 the event ended in 2006. In 2006 La Troya Asesina moved to Space.
Venue
According to official statistics published in the 2003 edition of Guinness World Records Privilege is by far the world’s largest nightclub covering an area of 69,968 sq ft (6,500 m2) and holding 10,000 clubbers,[12] Designated areas of the club include the Coco Loco bar area, and the La Vaca dance area (now known as the Vista Club).[13]
