YOUR LITTLE DANCE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 19503, 6 December 1926, Page 7

YOUR LITTLE DANCE.

Tall, dull-gold mirrors reflected dancing .figures and tho amber-masked candle bulbs glowing softly in their wall sconces. As wo did a fiat Charleston amid the gay, laughing throng I congratulated my pretty young hostess on her dance, says Patrick Chalmers, in an English exchange'. It rsally was an amazingly successful, •perfectly appointed datice. The music was just right lor such a small room—soft, leisurely. The best and newest piece's were in the repertoire. Fox-trots, waltzes, tangos., one-steps, wore in just proportion. The lemonade was iced—so seldom thaione finds " soft drinks", at a dance anything but tepid. On tho stairs and in the sitting-out rooms were a superabundance of cushions. A bevy of non-dancing mamas and chaperons had been gently, but resolutely piloted into a bridge room. Flowers had greeted us in the hall—a buttonhole for tho men, a shoulder or waist spray for tho women; enchanting gesture of welcome. And in tho hall, too, as people began to depart, a table with drinks and 'soup kept hot over a silver spirit lamp had appeared; a goodnight cup. Dances like this, perfect in detail and charming in atmosphere, running on without a hitch and giving the guests tho N pleasurable sense of secret wants anticipated and provided for, aro rare. So much thought, care, experience, work, must go to their making. The wise hostess tests tho floor, sees that it is neither too slippery nor too sticky. She searches for draughts in the ballroom and sitting-out, places and stops them or screens them off. Quiet music, played in perfect time, is essential, lit is also hard to get, which is why many experienced dancing women prefer gramophone or piano ? card even firmly refuse the kindly offer of the amateur ukulele team. Sophisticated dance-givers •do not let the band take', charge. They hear it boforo they , engage it,, If tho drummer is too enthusiastfc they' curb him, knowing that a loud! drum can ruin a small dance. They try tho time and get it slowed or quickened to suit their taste. They discuss what pieces :i.ro to bo played and make up tho danco programme personally. Amateur cabaret turns only add to tlio fun when they are-really good, snappy, well rehearsed. Carnival toyu need careful choosing. Woollen pelt balls, large dolls on sticks, streamers, aro jolly enough at a big danco, but a nuisance at a small one. They aro tho liqueurs, not tho cocktails, of a danco and should be distributed late in the night.