Nieuws: Gloria Estefan bedacht de tophit Conga bij Utrechtse discotheek Cartouch!

Of all the clubs and discos that Utrecht has known since the 1970s, such as Don Quichot, Fellini, Cyrano, Le Toucan, and Scala, Cartouch on Mariaplaats was the most innovative musically. It was the city's first real 'discotheque', and from the (media) success of the Utrecht brothers Poppes, an even more famous club emerged in Amsterdam, the Escape.

There were several dancings in Utrecht, such as Hordijk at Mariaplaats 50, but Cartouch was the first to call itself a 'discotheque', a word that had previously been used for music libraries. The new name was due to the rise of disco music and the accompanying dance moves and reflecting disco balls. 

The craze started in the US with artists like Gloria Gaynor and George McCrae and reached its peak in 1977 with the movie hit Saturday Night Fever. Following that music film, Cartouch held the final of a nationwide dance competition in 1978 with many John Travolta look-alikes.

Since its opening in 1972, Cartouch had brick walls and a long wooden bar. After a visit to the legendary club Studio 54 in New York, the brothers decided to change course ten years later. The 'brown' seventies interior was replaced with mirrors, neon lights, tube constructions, and a shiny white bar, serving fluorescent green cocktails. A wide stainless-steel facade reminiscent of a science fiction film was added to the entrance. And the Cartouch logo received an Eighties restyling.