The Gaskell Ball

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Dancers at The Gaskell Ball

The Gaskell Ball is a bimonthly Victorian-styled ball held by Ye Gaskell Occasional Dance Society in Oakland, California, popular among re-creationists and vintage dance enthusiasts. The Ball came to be over 25 years ago, as an offshoot of a dance portion of the Great Dickens Christmas Fair held in San Francisco.^[1]

The event is held at Oakland's Scottish Rite Temple on the shore of Lake Merritt. Current admission stands at $20 for the evening, which includes a basic lesson for early attendees and some small potluck refreshments. Dances are taught during a brief course before the ball begins, and include vintage waltz, schottische, polka, mazurka, and several English country dances. Occasionally, groups will form on the sidelines to dance alternate arrangements to the English Country songs; previous examples include Irish four-hand reels, the Scottish country dance "Petronella", the Virginia reel, and various Contra dances. Full Victorian dress is not required; the dress code is formalwear, of either the nineteenth or twentieth centuries. A minimum of semi-formal attire is requested by the ball staff. Although seldom exercised, the staff reserves the right to refuse entrance to those who are inappropriately attired. There are occasional performances by local dance troupes during the intermission, however there is no official dance group affiliated with the ball.

The Gaskell Ball is a favorite among dancers from the Stanford social dance circles, and is widely credited for popularizing John Hertz's Congress of Vienna and Richard Powers' Bohemian National Polka choreographies. Costumers from around California and notably from the Greater Bay Area Costumer's Guild are known to flock to the event, particularly for the annual Halloween Ball.