The Dungeon is the first floor of the building, known for more mainstream music. The patio, which is a patron-favorite, is a small courtyard where people can listen to goth music, smoke and get fresh air. The top floor of The castle is known for EDM music.
Photo by Julia Birdsall | The Crow’s Nest
By Alisha Durosier and Julia Birdsall
Hearing Depeche Mode’s “Black Celebration” in a crowded room was something pre-graphics arts sophomore Kea Shindel never thought she would experience.
She was raised on goth and industrial music and partakes in the style.
“It was crazy hearing that with a room full of people that were all liking the same thing,” Schindle said. “Which I’ve never experienced before.”
It’s an experience that many students from the University of South Florida St. Petersburg can recall — walking into The Castle for the first time and feeling like they belong.
Located in Tampa’s Ybor, The Castle is a popular club among alternative communities, and in recent years, it has operated as a hotspot for students who are under-21 in Tampa Bay.
Especially for students at the St. Petersburg campus, it’s largely due to the fact that there are not a lot of options for students who are under-21.
“The only thing that I know about [clubs in St. Petersburg] is that pretty much everywhere is 21 plus, which is why I don’t really try to club in this area,” said sophomore biology major Jelal Turpin.
For Jessica Greenberg, a junior criminology and psychology major, The Castle is a great option for students under 21.
“You don’t have to drink to have fun,” Greenberg told The Crow’s Nest. “I think that’s really important for college students to have that space where they don’t feel pressured to engage in that. But they know they can still have fun.”
According to Greenberg, this is what separates The Castle from the other 18-plus clubs in Ybor, such as Tangra, Showbar and The Ritz.
“I went one time to Tangra, and I will never go back,” Turpin said. “The Castle is my one true love.”
The Crow’s Nest decided to take students’ word for it.
Photo by Julia Birdsall | The Crow’s Nest
On Feb. 13 four staffers and three contributors stepped into The Castle — the first club experience for some.
The Crow’s Nest entered to see flashing low lights, clubbers dressed in a range of alternative fashion, a corner for consensual spankings and three areas to choose from.
The Dungeon is the first floor of the building, known for more mainstream music. The patio, which is a patron-favorite, is a small courtyard where people can listen to goth music, smoke and get fresh air. The top floor of The Castle is known for EDM music.
The Crow’s Nest traveled through the floors and spoke to Castle patrons about their experiences.
USF alum, Abby Montidoro, who The Crow’s Nest ran into on the top floor, appreciates The Castle’s openness.
This night, she brought a friend, Sierra Robinson — also a USF alum — who got to experience The Castle for the first time.
“Definitely not like a club I’ve been to before,” Robinson said. “The way the theme and the type of people you see here are just more unique.”
Robinson was referring to the crowd that frequents The Castle. They are known for being part of a wide range of alternative subgroups that are typically very accepting of those with unique styles and personalities.
Breña Carter, who travels an hour every weekend to visit The Castle, told The Crow’s Nest that she comes specifically because of the friendly atmosphere.
“My favorite part of coming to The Castle is that this is the only place in basically any of the Tampa Bay area that the alt scene will come together,” she said. “It’s so easy to make friends. I love…the open-mindedness.”
Jacob Suggs, who had only been in The Castle for thirty minutes at the time of the interview, already felt welcomed.
“It’s a beautiful thing in such an ugly state like the red state of Florida,” they said. “You know, that’s epic.”
Schindle agreed, noting that there is a shortage of goth clubs in the U.S.
“I think this is the only one on the East Coast,” she said. “It’s very unique to have something so close, even though it feels far.”
All interviewees echoed the same sentiment. The Castle has become a place where people feel safe from the judgment of others, as well as the dangers that Ybor is sometimes known for.
In the past four years, Ybor has experienced varying incidents, from shootings to vehicular manslaughter.
However, Turpin and other interviewees have noticed that, as The Castle has gained popularity, it has also gained patrons who are not so accepting of the alternative atmosphere and crowd.
“It definitely makes it less of a safe space, especially when there are the kind of people that do go because it’s the freak show to them,” Turpin said.
He feels that having an alternative club in St. Petersburg might be safer and more open because of the accepting and LGBTQ+ friendly nature of the city.
Having spaces where people can feel comfortable and interact with like-minded people is important for students’ social lives, said Turpin.
Photo courtesy of Skye Smith
“The internet is a great place to be like, ‘Oh, here’s a cool alternative person. Let me try to be mutuals with them or whatever,’” he said. “When you’re at The castle, it’s like, ‘This is a person that I can look in the eyes and have a conversation with.’”
Robinson also felt that having more clubs like The Castle in St. Petersburg would grant USF St. Petersburg students more opportunities to go out, socialize and form important connections.
Before Robinson turned 21, she and her friends did not go out as often as they wanted to because of the commute and lack of affordable transportation. After turning 21 and beginning to go out in St. Petersburg, she found it much easier to walk to and from her destination.
However, others find that the commute is worth it, as The Castle offers something they can’t find anywhere else.
“I feel like with The Castle, the environment there is very much like, ‘Be yourself,’” health sciences junior Clemence Sawadogo told The Crow’s Nest.“People show up in the craziest get-ups there. Honestly, it’s like I don’t feel as much pressure to… conform in a certain way.
Sawadogo even highlights the difference in preparing to leave for The Castle in comparison to Ybor’s other 18-plus club, noting that there is pressure to look conventionally “hot” that is not present when going to The Castle.
Because of this, the Castle can serve as a great way for students to find community, acceptance and a place to enjoy themselves outside of their campus.
“The Castle has definitely given me so many friends… some lifelong friends that I wouldn’t have had otherwise,” Greenberg said, recalling her favorite memories.
“A dance circle formed on this dance floor, and I just remember having a lot of fun and looking over at my friends and being like, ‘Yeah, this is my place.’”
