Book-muslin Frocks and Primrose Coloured Sashes

The dancing master's annual public ball drew many spectators, not only the family and friends of the young pupils, but also local dignitaries and even members of the royal family. Following the carefully choreographed ensemble dances of the students, dressed alike according to the teacher's taste, the company enjoyed an adult ball. This was a chance to judge the progress of the girls and boys and therefore advertising the achievements of the teacher, shrewdly set alongside the fashionable dances of the day. Advertisements for the balls exist, and a few accounts of such occasions survive, such as that of Susan Sibbald, née Mein, when at school in Bath in 1798. A public ball was not the only strategy used by dancing masters and mistresses to foster a good reputation. This paper will explore other means used by teachers to maintain a good clientele and income, with examples from teachers of the late Georgian and Regency periods. 

About the author

Anne Daye lectured in 16th-21st-century Dance History for HE Dance institutions until retirement, most recently at TrinityLaban Conservatoire of Music and Dance. She is a freelance researcher and teacher, her understanding informed by the reconstruction of dances from the original source. Her doctoral thesis of 2008, 'The Jacobean antimasque within the masque context: a dance perspective' presented new thinking on the masque extending understanding beyond the texts. Post-doctoral research and publication includes further investigation of dancing at the Elizabethan and Stuart courts, and social dancing in England up to 1900. She is currently completing a collection of dances for Jane Austen with further investigation of the teaching of dance at that time. Anne is Director of Education and Research for the Historical Dance Society, working hard to encourage informed participation in the field and encouraging new teachers and researchers.