Newport Vintage Dance Week

Welcome!

The Commonwealth Vintage Dancers are delighted to welcome you to the 17th annual Newport Vintage Dance Week. Our instructors have an exciting week of dancing planned. We will explore the area further on Wednesday, when we take the Bristol Stroll. Bristol is so rich in several centuries of history and architecture, we thought it wasn't enough to visit one historic site. Instead, we are taking the afternoon to allow time for strolling the quaint village, visiting Linden Place and dancing in the ballroom in their barn. We also look forward to returning to some of our favorite venues, including Astors’ Beechwood, Glen Manor and the Rotunda Ballroom & Carousel at Easton's Beach. Whether you are here for the first or 17th time, we hope you have a wonderful week of dancing and take home some very special memories.

Happy Dancing!
Hannah Roberts Artuso
Conference Coordinator and Co-Director of CVD

WHICH CLASSES SHOULD I ATTEND?

Those experiencing vintage dance for the first time, including people with other types of dance experience, are encouraged to take the “beginner” classes, as are those with only a little vintage dance experience. This will help you learn or review the basic vintage dance steps. Dancers familiar with basic vintage dance steps may want to try the more advanced classes. Dancers of any level may attend either specialty class.

MORNING MEETING

Attendance at the daily morning meeting is strongly recommended as it is the forum for important announcements relating to the dance week, especially schedule and location updates. Due to time constraints and the short duration of the our meeting, please submit (legibly) written announcements to Hannah before the meeting.

WARM-UPS

Warm-ups will begin at 8:50 each morning in the upper gymnasium. For safety’s sake, to help avoid injury, we urge everyone to take the responsibility to be properly warmed up.

QUADRILLE CLASS

Once again there will be a Quadrille Class after the morning meeting. The Caledonian Quadrilles will be danced without calls at the Friday night Ball. It is advisable that all dancers attend these classes to make the Quadrille run smoothly at Friday’s ball. Instructions for The Caledonian Quadrilles will be printed (almost legibly!) on that evening's dance card, but learning them ahead of time will make things much easier.

Gertrude. “My dear Jessie, what on earth is that Bicycle Suit for?”
Jessie. “Why, to wear of course.”
Gertrude. “But you haven’t got a bicycle!”
Jessie. “No; but I’ve got a sewing machine!”

Punch, 12 January, 1895

SECURITY

We remind you to be security conscious. Please lock your rooms, as the dormitories themselves are not locked. REMEMBER YOUR KEYS!!! Portsmouth Abbey does not have a 24 hour security office. If you do lock yourself out of your room please see the member of CVD who has been designated the “house parent” for your dorm. She or he will have a master key for that building.

SMOKING AND ALCOHOL POLICY

Smoking is not permitted in or near any of the buildings, including dormitory rooms. Please remember that alcohol may not be brought into the dining hall.

PARKING

Please park your car in the hockey rink lot. The parking lots near the dorms are for school staff only; the visitor parking spots are for the admissions office visitors, not dance week participants. Some concern has been expressed about people not following this directive in the past — if you must have your car in the lower campus, please contact Hannah first.

AFTERNOON OUTINGS

Please remember that many of our dancers have arrived by aeroplane and are without carriages. If you are planning an off- campus outing and have an extra seat, please consider putting an announcement on the bulletin board in the gym, or get in touch with our rides coordinator (see below). Some suggested outings: Green Animals Topiary Gardens, Corn Maze, Cliff-Walk, Games Day at The Astors’ or Beach outing.

RIDES

Occasionally help is needed for those without vehicles get to our off-site events. If you need a ride, or can offer one, for either an outing or to one of the off-campus events, please inform the ride coordinator, (name will be announced Monday evening) or see Victoria Wagner and she will direct you to the appropriate person.

For Further information on the Dance Week
or vintage dance please contact:
The Commonwealth Vintage Dancers at:
CVD, c/o Katy Bishop, P. O. Box 9, Nahant , MA 01908
(781) 662-8344 or e-mail

VOLUNTEERS

Any questions about Volunteer assignments should be directed to Victoria Wagner. Please check the bulletin board daily for updates on volunteer assignments. The co-ordinators for the events are also available to answer questions and make further arrangements.

THE GAZETTE

Two more issues of the Gazette will be published during the Week (Wednesday and Friday) with advice, news and information about the week’s events.

Headdresses For Balls

“Headdresses for balls”, says that impeachable authority the Moniteur, “are nearly always round, but much fuller behind and at the sides than in the front. They are generally a mixture of velvet, gold and silver ribbon, pearls, and even diamonds.
        We have seen at Mme. Bonier Cherre’s some exquisite resilles of pearls with gold buckles, long plaits of velvet intermixed with chainettes, crescents, and gold stars, which are scattered about the hair in a thousand different manners; coronets of tinted foliage with pendants of flame-color velvet, gold tassels, and green stones; others of red verbena with branches of white heath. A câche peigne of black ribbon surrounded by torsades; gold cordelière with tassels and pendants also of gold; wreaths of foliage with colored buckles. A flane-color foliage with a cordon of gold beads tied on the right side and falling in two limp rows behind; lilac periwinkles surrounded by a gold torsade tied on the right and ending in two handsome tassels. A green velvet torsade, fastened at intervals by gold agrafes with a long bow very low on the right- hand side, and branches of aquatic flowers, white and lilac, on the left side; roses of different colors with green acorns; small fancy flowers laid on the forehead and covered by tinted foliage, the whole encircled by a torsade tied on the right in large bows with long ends; white narcissuses with bunches of gold grapes; others in flame color, with green grapes; lastly a quantity of birds of the most brilliant hues and most delicate forms.

        - Godey’s Lady’s Book, August 1859
(Note: Torsade: A twisted cord; also, a molded or worked ornament of similar form.)

AFTERNOON TEA
Tuesday, Manor House Gazebo

Come have a snack, play croquet, or relax and chat with other Dance Week participants. Casual dress, modern or vintage, is welcomed.

LOBSTER DINNER
Tuesday, Abbey Dining Room

Review Your Lobster Quadrille figures for the New England Lobster Feast which will be served at dinner-time this year in the Dining Hall. Alternate fare will be available for non-crustacean eaters.

SWAP AND SELL BAZAAR
Tuesday, Auditorium

The Vintage Swap and Sell will be held Tuesday evening in the Auditorium. Everyone is welcome to bring items to sell or trade. You might find what you have always wanted to complete that vintage outfit, or something you never knew you needed, to add to the pile of stuff in your room. Really, you need it. Please See Patri Pugliese or Katy Bishop if you need table space.

...& INFORMAL DANCING

Immediately after the Swap and Sell the auditorium will be available for informal dancing to recorded music. Feel free to wear casual modern or period dress.

VINTAGE DRESS SERIES BOOKS   Katy Bishop is pleased to offer her books on period fashions again this year. To simplify orders (and minimize the lugging of heavy boxes of books), she will be taking orders throughout the week to be delivered at the end of the week (or at a mutually convenient time). Order forms will be available several times during the week. 2004 Costume Calendars are also available, the theme this year is: The Wedding Dress.

AFTERNOON TEAS

The afternoon teas are an opportunity for dancers to relax, meet and chat with others, and perhaps play a game of croquet. There is no set era for any of the teas, so Vintage dress of any period is acceptable at any of them as well as modern dress. The afternoon tea themes have been changed somewhat this year.

Tuesday’s Afternoon Tea is informal, modern clothing is acceptable, as well as period summer day wear. You might come straight from class, and relax with a cup of tea while recuperating from a day of classes, compare notes with other dancers, or even take a cup of tea and retreat to your room for a siesta.

We are excited about our Wednesday outing to the town of Bristol for the Bristol Stroll with a tour of Linden Place and dancing in the Party Barn.

The Thursday Bathing Beauty Tea is a time when dancers should feel free to wear modern clothing, or perhaps a nautically inspired period outfit, or even don period swim-wear if they wish and partake in a bathe (or just look like they will have a bathe) at the Abbey’s beach.

You may wish to save your most elegant or elaborate period outfit for the Formal Tea at the Summer Garden on Friday. This event will be the most formal tea of the week (hence its name). Summer day wear of any period is welcome. Hats, parasols, and fans are especially useful for keeping cool while enjoying tea on the lawn.

In case of rain, teas will be moved to the Winter Garden — the site of registration.

ASK MRS. ASTORBILT

Dear Mrs. Astorbilt

I know we are not supposed to park at the dormitories, but surely there is little harm in doing so when my friends and I have returned late at night from a ball. I always move the car early the next morning.

Beep Beep

Dear Mr. Beep

Mrs. Astorbilt finds your question entirely incomprehensible, and so has referred it to her carriage master. While the details of your conveyance remain a mystery to us, he has pointed out some very real problems that are potential consequences of your seemingly harmless transgression. While the major arrangements at your vacation home are arranged by contract, many small issues are settled by counting on the good will of the master of the establishment. If he has to listen to a steady stream of complaints (even over the seemingly minor matter of where you leave your carriage), these complaints become a significant part of ongoing discussions and interfere with his inclination to oblige us in the many minor ways that we count on to insure the smooth running of activities here. The issue is not one of the amount of inconvenience that resulted from the improper placement of your vehicle - it is a matter of whether any of the staff noticed at all and saw fit to lodge a complaint, howsoever minor. Thus, your minor transgression undermines the relationship of good will on which we all depend. All of us would like to park close to our domiciles, but most of us refrain because we are aware of the damage it would do to our relationship to those overseeing this hostelry.

Mrs. Astorbilt

Dear Mrs. Astorbilt

This is my first time at Newport. I used the guidelines from the Newport "Greetings" letter to pick out from my closet the best clothes I had and I borrowed a few nice outfits from friends. Now that I'm here and see some of the beautiful and elaborate gowns some others have brought, I am feeling very intimidated. Will I look out of place in my plain, non-historical, dresses?

Not Yet a Butterfly

Dear Butterfly To be

Many of the ladies you will see at Newport have been acquiring one or two nice dresses a year for many years, and now own a different lovely outfit for each tea and ball on the schedule. Others are content with a very few serviceable outfits that fit in with a variety of activities.

Mrs. Astorbilt is sure that everyone remembers their first Newport, when they had fewer clothing choices and much less packing to do! If you want to take the opportunity this week to do a little "window shopping" for the future, you will find that most everyone loves to talk about their clothes, and a simple question will elicit floods of information. On the other hand, polite folk will not offer advice on proper dress unless asked.

Enjoy yourself, work on your dancing, and find some congenial companions. While Mrs. Astorbilt feels that wearing historically styled clothing adds a nice touch to the events of the week, she hopes that no one gets so wrapped up in clothing worries that they forget to have fun.

Mrs. Astorbilt