A dance weekend with renowned historical dance scholar, interpreter, and teacher Susan de Guardiola, with events for BACDS and the Bay Area English Regency Society. These will be historic dances but not stuffy in the slightest. February 7: Susan leads accessible historic dance that'll be fun for English country dancers and others at the regular BACDS Palo Alto first Friday English dance at St. Mark's, 600 Colorado Avenue, 7:30-10:00 No preregistration, regular door prices.

February 8: BAERS puts on a Day of Dance at St. Mark's with Susan de Guardiola - two daytime workshops and a more-authentic than usual Regency ball. (Workshops casual, ball is costume admired but not required). Preregistration strongly recommended to avoid disappointment, because space at St. Mark's is limited and attendance is capped at 50. Workshops are $15 each, ball is $30, or $50 for all day.

Schedule:

• 1:30-3:00pm - Workshop 1 - "Freaky French Dances - and one American!"

  Regency dances like you have never seen before! In this workshop we will cross both the English Channel and the Atlantic Ocean to see how the French were getting frisky with their dancing late at night at Parisian balls in the 1810s and how some Americans said "hold my beer" and decided a two-dance mashup would be a good idea. We'll bounce (gently) and gallop and turn people every which way and do a snowball strip-the-willow and laugh a lot!
  

• 3:30-5:00 - Workshop 2 = "Regency Ball Prep: Dance Tricks and Techniques"
  Practice some of the dances for the ball tonight plus learn period techniques for a more authentic Regency experience. . . . and some tricks to make them work in the modern ballroom. This workshop is not required to attend the ball, but those who attend will get to be part of the fun of upping our Regency game this evening as well as have a chance to learn some of the dances at a slower pace. No previous experience needed - everyone can play!
  
  
• 6:30-10:00pm - A more-authentic Regency ball
  Susan will lead a ball with fun, bouncy material reconstructed seriously from Regency sources, and give more of the flavor of an actual Regency ball than most English Country Dance events. With the Divertimento Dance Orchestra under the direction of James Langdell

To register, go to the baers.org website, scroll down to the calendar entry, and register with the Paypal button.

February 9: Susan calls accessible, fun historical dance - different selection from Friday - at the regular BACDS San Jose English dance, First Unitarian Church of San Jose, 160 N 3d Street, 2:30 - 5:00 pm, with house band The Phoenix (William Allen, Robin Lockner, Mary Tabor).