Under 21 in Boston, stuff to do after 9PM? Night life please!

February 16, 2008 5:14 PM

Under 21 in Boston, stuff to do after 9PM? Night life please!

I'm in college, under 21 and live in the fenway area but willing to travel a reasonable distance for decent entertainment.
What I really want to know is...
WHY DOES BOSTON HAVE SUCH A BEDTIME?!
The T closes at 12:30, and most businesses close at 11
What can I do after 9 on the weekends with my over 21 friends that isnt lame or childish?

posted by Texasjake987 to society & culture (11 comments total)

A bit more information beyond "not lame and childish" might be helpful. What kind of crowd are you looking for? Are you interested in live music? Sports? Literature? Do you drink coffee? Do you dance? (With girls or boys? Or both?) Is driving an option for anyone in your group, aside from cabs? With a little bit more info, it might be easier to answer.
posted by mykescipark at 5:29 PM on February 16, 2008

Go to shows at Club Passim in Cambridge.
posted by danb at 5:34 PM on February 16, 2008

Ride bikes. Seriously, night riding is a blast especially in groups.
posted by fleeba at 6:10 PM on February 16, 2008

Keep your eyes peeled for "all ages shows." I used to live out in the boonies and we would drive down to Boston for a little excitement, trust me, you don't know what you've got there. Keep hunting. What are you into? Also, if you're over 18 you can generally get into bars and cafes, especially if you're not going to try to buy booze. Hell, I went to bars in Boston when I was under 18, so don't tell me it can't be done.
posted by SassHat at 6:56 PM on February 16, 2008

Wow, this is a tough one. I went to college in Boston 10 years ago. We went out to dinner, went to Landsdowne on Thursday nights as freshmen (lame), and mostly just went to college parties. You must have college parties? It's hard though. When I lived there at least, all ages shows were hard to come by.
posted by sweetkid at 7:09 PM on February 16, 2008

There's plenty of 18+ shows around, if you're into live music: Places like the Middle East, TT the Bear's, Great Scott, etc. are great for interesting but affordable stuff in a whole variety of genres. Yeah, you'll have to walk around with with an X on each hand, but I went to a hell of a lot of shows in the Boston area before I hit 21. I know much less about the club scene - and I suspect you're more apt to run afoul of 21+ nights there - but again, check it out.

Are you interested in indie/artsy/foreign/weird movies? The Coolidge, the Brattle, the Kendall, & the Harvard Film Archive (and, sporadically, the MFA) all have incredible selections, and you don't need to worry about being under 21.

Check out what the local universities have to offer. No, seriously - if you're into sci-fi movies, for example, check out MIT's Sci-Fi Marathon during January for some rather irreverant fun. Sure, plenty of university-sponsored activities are lame, but some aren't: pay attention, check websites, etc. Similarly, dorms, student groups, frats, etc. often advertise for parties. Depending, again, on what you're interested in, try stopping by some of them.

Get used to walking, biking, or taking a cab home if you're doing stuff that'll last past midnight - or convincing friends with cars to come with you. Honestly, the walks aren't too bad, though at that hour of night it's generally not a bad idea to be walking with other people. But hey, in pursuit of entertainment, I've walked back to the Kendall Square area from all kinds of places - Davis Sqare to Coolidge Corner - and lived to tell the tale.

If you could expand on what you consider "non-lame night life" to be, that'd help us suggest more specific events/opportunities/groups. The definition of "non-lame" depends quite a lot on your interests, and if you're looking for sports bars and frat parties, my advice isn't going to help that much.

And hey, I'm missing the Boston bedtime now: in Munich - where I'm currently living - most stores shut down at 8pm, and don't open at all on Sundays. Running a little late to pick up groceries or booze for a party? You're screwed... The remnants of Boston's blue laws are certainly a pain to deal with, but once you spend some time getting to know the city, you can work around them.
posted by ubersturm at 7:18 PM on February 16, 2008

Make friends with promoters. These are the people who put the 3"x5" adverts under the windshield wipers of all the Mercedes and Ferrari's near BU. If you get on a list, you can usually get walked in by the promoter, no ID check required.

The photographer I used to work for had a table at most of the fancy places, and he would regularly walk-in a cadre of sub-21 year-old's. This doesn't work so well if you're a dude.

Alternatively, you could try slipping the ID checker a $50. Back in my day it was a $20, but inflation, and all that... Note: you need to be Enrique F. Suave to pull this off, and these days it might be neigh-impossible.

Or just look for "all ages" shows, if you don't care about the alcohol. The T shuts down at 12:30, but most clubs stay open an hour later. Yeah, I never understood it, either.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 10:01 PM on February 16, 2008

Are you close to Enfield? How about some tennis?

That is to say, how about a book?
posted by oxford blue at 6:05 AM on February 17, 2008

Check the Under 21 in Boston blog, slanted towards music events.
posted by nonane at 7:50 AM on February 17, 2008

If you're looking to club, you're SOL as new local law says that no club is to be under 21 (gotta make sure the kids make it home safe or something).

There's plenty to do but "not lame" is rather tenuous of a qualification.

Also, the T closes at 1, but you don't really need it to get around the city. Walking/biking works just fine and is a lot cleaner.
posted by Gular at 5:34 PM on February 17, 2008

To be clear, Gular specifically means "going clubbing", as it were. A quick glance at both the Middle East website (well, OK, technically that's Cambridge) and that of the Great Scott (Allston, and thus technically Boston) suggests that live musical performances are gonna remain 18+ for the forseeable future. Thank god.

While I'm at it, WMBR has decent Rock/Experimental concert listings (see the menu at the left; choose the appropriate Concert Report). WZBC used to have an awesome, comprehensive one, but someone else took over in the last year or two and now they mostly have weekly listings. Eh.

Oh: MassArt is (in my experience) the most apt of the local universities to have interesting art/music events. Go to the next Iron Pour! And the Weekly Dig tends to highlight more interesting and quirky events than the Phoenix, even if they do have a corporate glossy cover these days.
posted by ubersturm at 6:14 PM on February 17, 2008