As The Haçienda's legacy continues to resonate decades after the Manchester club closed, DJ Paulette is reflecting on the people, music and communities that helped shape its history.

The Manchester DJ, author and LGBTQIA+ community leader has been discussing the club's influence ahead of a special Haçienda event at Amnesia Ibiza on Saturday, September 19.

The event will bring the Haçienda Classical Orchestra together with artists including David Morales, Inner City, Todd Terry, Graeme Park, Mike Pickering and DJ Paulette, with Alison Limerick appearing as a special guest.

Writing women back into the story

In the latest part of her interview, Paulette discusses the importance of documenting dance music history and ensuring that women's contributions are included in the record.

She points to the number of books and written accounts that have emerged around The Haçienda while noting that relatively few have been written by women.

Paulette has written her own memoir, using it to document her experiences and perspective within the Manchester club scene.

Her comments form part of a wider conversation about how dance music history is preserved, interpreted and passed between generations.

Her own Haçienda story

Paulette's relationship with The Haçienda stretches back to the club's original era.

She was closely associated with the venue's Flesh night, the LGBTQIA+ club night where she developed her DJ career.

In the interview series, she recalls the importance of those experiences and the wider Manchester scene that surrounded the club.

Her connection with The Haçienda is therefore not simply historical. She was part of the community and musical culture that developed around the venue.

From Manchester to Ibiza

The connection between The Haçienda and Ibiza has a long history of its own.

Paulette recalls playing at Amnesia during the 1990s, including performances in the club's former courtyard.

She remembers sharing the space with DJs including Phat Phil Cooper, Andy Carroll and Norman Jay, while other artists played the main room.

That earlier relationship makes her appearance at the September 19 event particularly relevant.

Haçienda 51 at Amnesia

Amnesia will host Haçienda 51 on Saturday, September 19 as part of its 50th-anniversary celebrations.

The centrepiece will be Haçienda Classiçal, the orchestral project that reinterprets house and dance music through live orchestral arrangements.

The performance will take place on Amnesia's Terrace, beginning at 22:30.

The confirmed lineup includes:

• Haçienda Classical Orchestra

• David Morales

• Inner City, live

• Todd Terry

• Graeme Park

• Mike Pickering

• DJ Paulette

• Alison Limerick, special guest PA

Graeme Park's role

Graeme Park is another direct link between the original Manchester club and the Ibiza event.

Amnesia identifies Park as a key figure in The Haçienda's history. He began his residency there in 1988 and remained behind the decks for nine years.

For Haçienda 51, he joins the orchestra as DJ and musical supervisor.

His involvement gives the project a direct connection to the original venue rather than presenting the Haçienda name solely as a retrospective brand.

An orchestra on the dancefloor

Haçienda Classiçal takes music originally associated with club culture and presents it through a large-scale live orchestra.

The project was created to reinterpret house classics through orchestral arrangements while retaining their connection to the dancefloor.

Amnesia says the project is now in its ninth year and has performed at venues including the Royal Albert Hall, Castlefield Bowl and The Warehouse Project, as well as festivals and other major venues.

For the September 19 event, that format will be brought to Amnesia's Terrace.

Alison Limerick joins the lineup

The night will also feature Alison Limerick, whose voice is associated with the house classic "Where Love Lives."

She will perform as a special guest alongside the DJs, live acts and orchestra.

Her appearance adds another connection to the house music history represented by the event.

More than nostalgia

Amnesia presents Haçienda 51 as a meeting between different generations of club culture.

The event brings together people directly connected with The Haçienda's original era alongside a live orchestra and the contemporary Ibiza club environment.

That makes the night more than a conventional retrospective. It is an attempt to reinterpret music and ideas associated with the Manchester club for a different venue and generation.

Preserving club culture

Paulette's comments about documenting The Haçienda also highlight an important issue for dance music history.

Much of club culture was originally experienced through nights out, DJ sets, flyers, record collections and communities rather than formal archives.

As those generations move on, memoirs and personal accounts become another way of preserving stories that might otherwise disappear.

Paulette's decision to write her own account reflects that approach, particularly from the perspective of a woman who was part of the scene.

A Manchester story with an Ibiza chapter

The September 19 event brings together two places with significant roles in the development of club culture.

The Haçienda became closely associated with Manchester's late-1980s and early-1990s music scene, while Amnesia became one of Ibiza's defining clubs.

Their connection on the Terrace will be expressed through the Haçienda Classiçal orchestra, veteran DJs, live performances and artists who were part of the original Manchester story.

For DJ Paulette, it is also a return to a club where she performed during its earlier years.

Haçienda 51: confirmed details

• Event: FAÇ51 - The Haçienda

• Date: Saturday, September 19, 2026

• Venue: Amnesia Ibiza

• Opening time: 22:30

• Location: Ibiza

• Music: House and classic house

• Haçienda Classiçal Orchestra: Live

• David Morales

• Inner City: Live

• Todd Terry

• Graeme Park

• Mike Pickering

• DJ Paulette

• Alison Limerick: Special guest PA

• Tickets: From €70 according to Amnesia's current listing

The story continues

The Haçienda may belong to another era of club culture, but its influence continues to appear through the artists, writers and communities connected to it.

DJ Paulette's reflections add another perspective to that history, particularly her emphasis on documenting women's contributions and preserving personal memories of the scene.

On September 19, that history will move from the page back onto a dancefloor as Haçienda Classiçal brings the music of Manchester to Amnesia Ibiza.