Catalina Swanky: Avalon Ball - NBC Bay Area
Worth the Trip
Our daily look at deals and getaways

Catalina Swanky: Avalon Ball

Find your swing-hem gown or dance-ready suit and hop a boat to the fabled island.



    Better Sleep = Better Grades
    Art Deco Society of Los Angeles
    Find your swing-hem gown or dance-ready suit and hop a boat to the fabled island on Saturday, May 20.

    "BY GUM"... is among the handiest of exclamations, in part because it means business. When you "by gum" something, you are not messing around, no siree, you are stating what's what. And if you've been to Catalina Island, and strolled the quaint streets of Avalon, and spied the glorious Casino Building in all of its '20s-era elegance, you probably, we're just predicting here, let out a pretty loud "by gum!," for all to hear. And your "by gum" meant this: One day, very soon, you'd dance in that very building, much like gussied-up revelers used to dance there, on the regular, back in the 1920s and '30s. 

    OF COURSE, THE CASINO BUILDING... still sees parties aplenty nowadays, and there is that spectacular Art Deco-ized cinema within its round-y walls, too, but finding a vintage event, one that recalls the Casino's early heyday, is a bit trickier. This isn't tricky at all, though: The Art Deco Society of Los Angeles throws a swell soiree each year called the Avalon Ball, and attendees really do go for the pin curls and bow ties and spats and glittery lamé gowns, all to evoke a bygone time. That soiree is ready to swell again, on...

    SATURDAY, MAY 20: Dean Mora & the Avalon Ball Dance Orchestra will croon while revelers swoon over the big band vibes, while, just beyond the dance floor, the beautiful harbor falls under the spell of nighttime. The ballroom is a true time travel machine, with its "arching, fifty-foot ceiling" and period details, so prepare to spend as much time agoging as you do dancing. And will you "by gum!" a couple of times, just because you're so thrilled to have finally fulfilled your promise to yourself, to dance at the Casino Building ballroom? Well, by gum, how could you not?