Drag shows and hipster parties: Jerusalem has an underground nightlife

File Photo: An Israeli performer, who goes by the stage name Dima X R, performs during a late night show where various artists were hosted at Besarabia, a bar in Jerusalem January 11, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Jerusalem, ancient sacred city and heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, takes on a wholly different tone around midnight.

Long after visitors have made their daytime pilgrimages to Muslim, Jewish and Christian places of worship, a handful of trend-setting clubs, bars and impromptu art galleries come alive.

FILE PHOTO: Israelis chat during an impromptu rave held underneath a bridge as sleet begins to fall late at night in Jerusalem January 16, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

The drag shows, hipster parties and hardcore punk bands in west Jerusalem seem a world apart from nearby Jewish ultra-Orthodox areas or the Palestinian neighborhoods in the city's eastern sector.

Compared with the many venues in Israel's more affluent, free-wheeling commercial hub Tel Aviv, Jerusalem's party scene is tiny.

But fans say their city - where religious, ethnic and political divisions run deep - has spawned a cutting-edge subculture.

FILE PHOTO: Israeli musical producers known as Yogi and Balu plays music during an late night event where various artists were hosted at Besarabia, a bar in Jerusalem January 10, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

"Jerusalem is a pretty extreme place, politically and religiously," said Yaakov Baharav, 35, a member of the city's Taltalistim art collective, which stages parties and art events in abandoned spaces around the city.

Israel claims all of Jerusalem, including the eastern part captured in the 1967 Middle East war, as its capital. Palestinians want East Jerusalem to be the capital of a state they seek to establish in the occupied West Bank and Gaza.

Young liberals in the city sometimes feel they are on a mission to provide a haven of sanity - or craziness - open to people of all faiths, genders and nationalities, who just want to have fun and break loose from Jerusalem's harsh realities.

FILE PHOTO: A man plays with a dog as a party takes place in a nearby basement, known as Strauss, that is occasionally used as a venue for underground parties in Jerusalem January 25, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

Many of the city's 900,000 residents are poor and jobless, particularly Palestinians and Israeli ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities.

Not only is Jerusalem central to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, there is also friction between ultra-Orthodox residents and a dwindling Jewish secular community that often feels stifled by religious strictures.

The Taltalistim collective's most recent project was to take over a deserted cinema complex in Jerusalem's industrial area, turning it into a colorful venue for musicians and artists to put on shows and party into the early hours.

FILE PHOTO: An Israeli man looks on as he sits at a bar called "Beit" in Jerusalem August 27, 2017. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

"We try to provide people with the chance to enjoy total freedom," said Baharav, as a naked man and woman wrapped in cling film slithered along the floor to ambient sounds played by a DJ in a performance art show at the complex.

"Freedom is not something you can take for granted in Jerusalem," he said.

FILE PHOTO: People listen to music in a basement, known as Strauss, that is occasionally used as a venue for underground parties in Jerusalem January 25, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

(Additional reporting and writing by Maayan Lubell; Editing by Jeffrey Heller and Frances Kerry)

FILE PHOTO: People sit at the entrance to a basement, known as Strauss, that is occasionally used as a venue for underground parties in Jerusalem January 25, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

FILE PHOTO: People listen to music before a performance begins in a basement, known as Strauss, that is occasionally used as a venue for underground parties in Jerusalem January 25, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

FILE PHOTO: Members of Israeli duo, "Rimojeki", perform during a late night show where various artists were hosted at Besarabia, a bar in Jerusalem January 11, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

FILE PHOTO: A man speaks to the crowd before a performance begins during a late night show where various artists were hosted at Besarabia bar, in Jerusalem January 11, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

FILE PHOTO: Israeli rapper, known as Algo Won, looks on during a party at the Mazkeka, a non-profit center that promotes contemporary artists in interdisciplinary fields of art in Jerusalem July 11, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

FILE PHOTO: Israelis chat as they play music during an impromptu rave held underneath a bridge as sleet begins to fall late at night in Jerusalem January 16, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

FILE PHOTO: A woman watches a performance at "The Factory", an abandoned building used by artists cooperative, "Empty House", as a public art venue in Jerusalem February 21, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

FILE PHOTO: Men chat during a night out during a party held by art collective, "Taltalistim" in Jerusalem June 7, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

FILE PHOTO: Members of Israeli duo, "Rimojeki", perform at "The Factory", an abandoned building used by artists cooperative, "Empty House", as a public art venue in Jerusalem February 22, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

FILE PHOTO: Israelis enjoy the cold weather during an impromptu rave held underneath a bridge as sleet falls late at night in Jerusalem January 16, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

FILE PHOTO: People watch Spanish artist Richard Mangosta perform at a basement, known as Strauss, that is occasionally used as a venue for underground parties in Jerusalem January 25, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

FILE PHOTO: A woman watches a screening in a deserted cinema hall fitted with old car seats at a venue showcasing various artworks and art performances pieces as part of a recent project by Jerusalem's art collective, "Taltalistim" in an industrial area in Jerusalem August 21, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

FILE PHOTO: An artist tattoos a man as others wander about at a venue showcasing various artworks and art performances pieces as part of a recent project by Jerusalem's art collective, "Taltalistim" in an industrial area in Jerusalem August 12, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

FILE PHOTO: People party at the Mazkeka, a non-profit center that promotes contemporary artists in interdisciplinary fields of art in Jerusalem July 12, 2019. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun