Sanjana Kumbhani
Contributing Writer
Last Friday, Let’s Dance Society, the College’s social dancing group, held their third annual Speakeasy. The term ‘speakeasy’ refers to secret sections of an establishment where illegal alcohol was sold during the Prohibition era. Let’s Dance Society decided to hold their modern day interpretation in the Underground since it emanates a similar hidden, unlabeled atmosphere.
The event was casual but lively. While many of the women were dressed in flapper dresses with feather headbands, and men were in suits; others were not as fancily dressed. However, that did not take away from their enthusiasm for the dances.
There were some couples showing off their talented East Coast Swing and Blues moves on the dance floor, and there were other groups that were perfecting their Charleston moves closer to the tables.
“I went to a couple of such events over the summer and really enjoyed them,” commented Let’s Dance newcomer Leah Brudno ’17. “I’ve learned a bit of Cha-Cha and Salsa but I love how casual and free the dancing here is. You don’t even need to know your partner to have a good time; there’s just so much you can do with this kind of dancing.”
Colin Omilanowski ’16 is of a similar opinion. Dressed in a beige suit and bow tie, Omilanowski pointed out, “I really like this dancing because it’s a great social opportunity to get students together on campus. It doesn’t matter where you are and anyone and everyone can enjoy it.”
Everyone present seemed to be enjoying the music and most were improvising and inventing new dance moves every few minutes, which only added to the energetic atmosphere.
“I love these styles of dances largely because of the social aspect,” said Melissa Hackett ’16, co-president of Let’s Dance Society. “Swing and blues dancing are social dancing, so there are no rigid dance structures like what you would see in ballroom dance settings, which are very competition-centric. We chat as we dance and have a good time. You don’t need to be particularly skilled to have a good time, either. Newbies and experienced dancers alike can enjoy them.”
“I was happy with how the event turned out,” she continued. “We usually hire a live band, but unfortunately that didn’t work out this year. We were scared that it wouldn’t be as successful this year because of that, but while the turnout was smaller, we still had a good time!”