Event turns back the calendar

Published 10:32 pm Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Lady Bumbleton and her dance tutor, Dance Master Charles Steplively, invite you to learn and dance with them at the Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts this week.

The event offers something for everyone — the chance to be part of a theater event, or to sit back and observe; to spend the evening dancing, or to spend it eating, or to spend it socializing; to dress in evening dress from the 1800s, or from the 1900s, or from the modern era.

“What more charming way to spend an evening?” asked Jeremy Gershman, who will fill the role of Steplively during the dance. “It’s not just coming to a dance, and it’s not just coming to a theater event. It’s being part of that event.”

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Lady Bumbleton’s Holiday Ball is scheduled for Saturday at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $25.

Additionally, on Thursday, a workshop for first-time English country dancers will be held at the center from 7 to 9 p.m. for a cost of $15. More experienced dancers can attend a walkthrough the day of the event from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m., which is free with dance admission.

Organizers expect the event to be popular, because there is a lot of interest in the center’s history series and in the Regency period of British history. The event is set in 1805.

“This era is very popular in this area,” said Jody Mazur, of the center. “There’s a lot of interest in this time.”

The English country dancing of the Regency period largely involves two long lines of dancers — one for the ladies and one for the gentlemen. A unique set of terminology goes along with the dances.

“We’re trying to give the flavor of the period,” Gershman said. “It’s a wonderful immersion experience — everything from the food to the music to talking with people who are representing the period.”

Gershman said the dances are intentionally chosen to be the simplest and most accessible among the English country dance genre, but the experienced dancers at the ball will do one or two advanced dances for display.

“We want people to get as much out of the evening as they can,” he said. “It’s a very warm evening, because you have the experience of sharing the dancing with everyone who’s there.”

People who hope to participate in the dancing and have never done it before will benefit from the workshop, which is specifically for beginners, Gershman said. Basic dance figures and terminology will be taught at the workshop. The day-of walkthrough is tailored to whoever shows up.

The evening’s food and music will fit with the Regency theme of the dance, Gershman said. The food will be “something a gentry would serve.” The music will be the traditional tunes that are associated with English country dance.

Because no alcohol will be served, the evening will be a wonderful family event, Mazur added. Students will be admitted for half-price, and no dance partner is needed for any attendee.

And people who don’t happen to have a Regency-era gown hanging in their closet don’t need to fret, she added — evening dress of any time period is encouraged.

“People don’t have to come in period costumes, but it adds to the fun,” Gershman said.

Still, those who hope to dress in period dress can find a YouTube video explaining “how to get a proper Regency look from a thrift store” by searching that phrase.

For more information on the ball, call 923-0003.