Dance club, College Library have a ball

Passionate dance and decadent dress dominated the scene on
Saturday night.

It wasn’t the MTV after-party, but rather the 8th annual
Jane Austen Ball hosted in the Powell Library Rotunda.

The ball’s theme exalted the culture of the English
Regency period, approximately 1790 to 1820.

“The waltz had just been introduced at this time, and was
considered very scandalous by the more conservative members of the
British aristocracy,” said event co-organizer Cynthia Harper.
“Men and women had never danced face-to-face before. Parents
were not happy to see their children waltzing.”

Harper and her husband, James Zimmer, co-organized the event,
which was sponsored by Eleanor Mitchell, head librarian of the
College Library.

Many who attended the ball were also members of the UCLA
Ballroom Dance Club and International Folk Dance Club, which meets
every Monday night to practice.

First-year art history student Claire Matienzo joined the club
during her freshman orientation session last summer.

“It’s been one of the most enriching experiences
I’ve had at UCLA,” Matienzo said. “It teaches you
about culture you can’t learn at dances where everyone is
just grinding.”

Fellow club member and first-year computer science student Xue
Man Liu commented on the zeal of her instructors: “Dancing is
the passion of their life. Cynthia always tells us, “˜If you
find a man who can dance, never let him go.'”

Attendance at the Jane Austen Ball was diverse, comprised of
undergraduate and graduate students, staff, faculty and members of
the community. Admission to the event was free, but reservations
were required.

Attire at the ball varied as well, ranging from jeans and polos
to britches and coattails. Many of the women wore gowns reminiscent
of the Regency period, which was characterized by simplicity and
elegance.

The music was also drawn mostly from the Regency period, as most
songs belonged to the composers Beethoven, Mozart and Haydn.

“There’s something special about the historical
feeling people get from dancing in the Rotunda as this music echoes
off the Roman columns and Moorish archways,” said librarian
Catherine Brown.

The event marked the third year that the library has sponsored
the Jane Austen Ball.

“It’s always been my dream to have the ball in this
historic room,” Zimmer said.

In addition to donating their time as dance instructors at UCLA,
Harper and Zimmer teach dance at several community centers in Los
Angeles, and frequently travel to dance festivals in Southern
California.

On July 16, members of the Ballroom Dance Club will join the
couple in performing and teaching the waltz and tango at the Santa
Barbara French Festival.

The club meets tonight at 7 p.m. in Ackerman Union.