No Venice isn't going to be Ibiza.
What I recall from the Venice evenings, is similar to what happens at most towns that are a day trip destination. The tourist populate decreases, the work stops, and the locals come out to enjoy their town. People are out with their kids, sitting in the Piazzas talking, and just generally enjoying life before they head off to dinner at 8 or 9. The streets are quieter, the light at the end of the day warms the colour of the buildings, and everything seems to just...breathe. It's a great time of the day in any city though I think in the smaller centres it's even more amplified.
I guess I connect with the Theroux "romanticism" of Venice and other places and I've never focused on the nightlife in any city. One of my favourite places is to sit in or wander through the Jardin de Luxenbourg in the evening until they lock the gates. Most tourists are off to their hotels and the place is left to Parisians: families play by the toy boats, the sporty French are running laps or playing tennis, the older men are finishing up their last games of Pétanque, and people sit in the awesome green chairs reading or people watching. Can't wait to be back there in a few short days.
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