For those who may not know, this past Saturday evening I attended my first Regency Ball. I've been studying English Country Dance--the stuff they do in Pride and Prejudice, for example--for a couple of years now. The dance group of which I am a part, the Binghamton English Country Dancers, did not have a ball last year, so this year was my first opportunity to dance a series of dances that were in the Regency style (though there were dances from the 17th through the 21st century) in full Regency garb, with 60+ other people similarly attired!
It was a blast. It was elegant and beautiful and most important of all, fun! We were the host dance group, and dancers from Canada, upstate New York and other areas on the Eastern Seaboard joined us. The stunning Victorian Phelps Mansion in Binghamton, NY, was our venue, and their glorious ballroom complete with glittering chandelier was the center of all the action.
There were a couple of moments that will never leave me: the end of 'Sapphire Sea' when the musicians slowed to signal the end of the dance and the entire room collectively and impulsively said, 'ooooohhhhhhhhhh,' to express our disappointment. Such a brilliant evening!
On a personal level, the event brought back a feeling I have not had since I left NYC and Philadelphia and moved here to Northeast Pennsylvania. Dancing again has brought me great joy. (And for those who may not know, I danced ballet from age three through my early 30s, had my own studio in Philadelphia and danced professionally in Boston, Rhode Island, NYC and Philly. I stopped dancing when I moved here because quite frankly there were no classes around at the level I needed.) To move to music is a great gift and one that I am extremely grateful is once again a part of my life.
But last Saturday and in the days leading up to it I quite unexpectedly experienced the recurrence of another feeling, or emotion: the camaraderie of a bunch of women all getting ready for a big event. Yes, sure, in ballet especially there can be cattiness and infighting. But more often there is cooperation and a giving attitude: your pointe shoe ribbon is loose? here, I've got a needle and thread to stitch it firm. You forgot your eyeliner? here, borrow mine.
Two friends and fellow dancers from the Binghamton group asked me if I would lend them dresses for the Ball. They both seemed to think their requests were impositions, when the exact opposite was true: it was a privilege to have been asked. Both chose gowns and wore them to the Ball, and I must say, they looked beautiful. The fun part for me was discussing which gown might look best, helping decide when they tried on a couple to see what they looked like, and kitting them out with coordinating gloves and whatnot so they could have everything they needed. It was great, and I was so pleased to help out.
The good will and camaraderie continued on the evening of the ball when another friend asked me to bring a gown 'just in case' the one she was sewing (almost until the last minute) was not completed or did not fit properly. Then when I arrived at the venue, she asked me to help hook her into the gown when it was finished--that ended up being more pinning her in than hooking her in, but never mind! And finally, because she hadn't had a chance to hem it, she asked me to help with that as well.
As we were hooking, pinning and hemming and just before that while she was sewing and I was affixing my coronet while another woman graciously was snapping me into my gown, other dancers, from our group and elsewhere, floated in and began changing for the Ball. A happy chatter ensued, even though we did not all know each other. I'd brought hair spray and so did a couple of others, in case anyone had forgotten. Someone else had safety pins. Another had extra hair pins. I heard snatches of conversation about hem length, shoe styles and whether one should wear a shawl or not, with advice being freely given and happily received.
It reminded me of backstage, when I was dancing professionally, or even when I was teaching, and at the end of the year, we put on our 'Recital.' It felt wonderful, and it made me smile, and the energy in the suite that the Phelps Mansion allotted us to change was high and happy.
As my friend and I went down the beautiful grand staircase at the Phelps Mansion and prepared to enter the Ballroom--having deemed each other perfect and ready-- I even felt a little flutter as I used to before a performance. This was NOT a performance, but it was rather a grand occasion.The flutter quickly evaporated when I saw the rest of the dancers from my group, all looking so very smart, and was gone for good once the musicians began to play, and we started the Grand Promenade.
I will confess that more than once during the evening I got a bit misty eyed when it hit me that I was actually a part of this splendid event that echoed so faithfully the portrayals we see in films of dancing from the Regency period. That all the practice and study was really paying off! I also had to blink quite rapidly when I saw my friends, in my gowns, whirling away and having a wonderful time. What a joy!
So I will leave you with the assurance that I will be part of the Binghamton English Country Dancers' Ball next year. Another dancer and I have already been thinking about a couple of tweaks to the event, although I think last Saturday night was darn near perfect.
And I will quote the saying that the BECD has adopted as its motto. From Vicki Baum: 'there are shortcuts to happiness, and dancing is one of them.'
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