Nightclub Ordered to Halt Nude Dancing : Northridge: Owners of Extasy vow to continue the activities until official notification of the court’s directive is received.

At the request of the city of Los Angeles, a Superior Court judge Thursday ordered nude dancing halted at the Extasy club in Northridge, but the entertainers danced on.

Owners of the club said they were aware of the order but had not received official notice from authorities as the night wore on and would not halt the dancing until required to.

“We’re going to continue operating until we’ve worked out the legal problems,” Extasy spokesman Steve Gamer said. “We have been served no notices. We’ll stay open until we are served.”

Los Angeles police vice officers said they planned to notify the club of the judge’s order, but no officers had appeared as of 9 p.m.

The club on Corbin Avenue at Nordhoff Street has become the target of protests from neighborhood groups since it opened last week, leading to a City Council effort to eliminate the club on the grounds that nude dancing violates its zoning permit.

Superior Court Judge Robert O’Brien ordered the club to stop offering nude or striptease dancing until a Feb. 19 hearing in Van Nuys Municipal Court on its disputed zoning status.

“We’re delighted with the judge’s action,” said Ali Sar, an aide to Councilman Hal Bernson, who represents the area and coordinated council opposition.

The order does not require the club to shut its doors, only to stop offering nude dancing, said Ted Goldstein, a spokesman for the city attorney’s office, which sought the order Thursday at the direction of the council.

“They can continue to conduct legal business. They simply cannot provide nude entertainment or striptease entertainment at that location,” Goldstein said.

Confusion reigned at the club for several hours after 5 p.m., when employees heard of the judge’s order from reporters.

The club canceled an amateur nude dancing contest and for about an hour would not allow new customers to enter, although nude dancing continued for those already inside. About 6:30 p.m., the club reopened--with the dancers still nude.

About 8 p.m., Gamer said the dancers would not remove their string bikini bottoms for the rest of the night.

“We don’t want to make anyone mad,” he said.

“At some point, we’ll go by and talk to them and explain the judge’s order,” vice Sgt. Brad Kubela said. “But we’re not going to close the establishment or make arrests tonight.”

If the club owners violate the order, they could be held in contempt of court, which is punishable by a $1,000 fine and a year in County Jail, Goldstein said.

But the owners, who have determinedly carried out the opening in the face of neighborhood and city opposition and have vowed to fight all efforts to close the club, hope to continue to offer some type of performances there.

“We have 3,000 signatures from supporters,” Gamer said. “We’re not ready to give up.”

“They do have a cafe and shows permit that is legal,” Goldstein said. “If they want to conduct cabaret or piano lounge entertainment or opera, that would appear to be legal.”

When told of Goldstein’s comments, Gamer replied: “I’d like to thank the city attorney for giving us the option of presenting a nude opera. We’ll certainly look into that.”

The club, on the site of the former Breakers Seafood Restaurant, has been the focus of a dispute since July, when Extasy’s owners applied for a permit to open a juice bar with nude dancers. The conditional use permit that allowed the Breakers to open explicitly banned nude dancing, city inspectors said.

Building inspectors cited the Extasy’s owners when the club opened, saying it was operating in violation of its zoning permit.

The owners maintain that only “stripping as part of a dance performance is banned.” Extasy dancers do not strip during the dances, the owners said, but instead remove their clothes offstage between musical numbers and are therefore legally not strippers.