I never done anything close to electronics
This is definitely not a project to start with. First one blinks a led. Then a few leds. Then a lot of leds. Then one rgb led, then a few rgb leds, then a lot of rgb leds. Meanwhile one learns blink without delay and debouncing, and led sequences, and state-based programming and so on.
Also, a club is a public place, so safety regulations must be taken into account. Say you light up the entire stairs for half an hour and something gets so hot it could start a fire... Pretty scary...
A good consultant is what you need, IMVHO.