A suit and tie may be standard professional attire but I prefer bloomers and a hoopskirt. Jason and I have been vintage dancing for a couple of years now. Our group of historical steppers gets employed to teach and perform at events pretty regularly. Of course, Jason and I slip antique styles on for our own affairs too. Here are just a few of our costumed occasions from recent months.
Last spring, our troupe was hired to demonstrate and instruct at the Once upon a Fantasy Masquerade Ball. It was a formal affair with a large number of attendees. The audience was rather enthralled by our antiquated maneuvers. According to feedback, we were the best part of the evening.
In July, we put on obsolete apparel to teach fancy steps at the Colonial Heritage Festival, which is an elaborate recreation of America’s early past and part of Provo’s Freedom Festival. Their ball was held on a grassy knoll and was just a few fiddles away from being completely authentic.
Although Jason and I often don cravats and corsets for gigs, we also like to mix costumes with pleasure. We attended Steampunk Night at the Museum at the Hutchings Museum of Natural and Cultural History last fall in full regalia. For this event, the museum remained open late, served refreshments, added interactive exhibits, brought in friendly animals and organized educational games.
Since we obviously have a passion for steam-powered fantasy, we likewise went to the Salt City Steamfest, Utah’s steampunk convention, all geared up. We found ourselves twirling around that gathering too but just as jovial participants not patient tutors.
It seems like our vintage dancing group is being called to prance more and more. During the last month, we’ve performed at weddings, parties and senior citizen centers. Who knows, being behind the times may actually be fashion forward.