Times Past Vintage Dancers 

Times Past Vintage Dancers organized in September, 2002 to 
take part in the Ohio and Franklin County Bicentennial celebrations.
We are a group of folk dancers and musicians who share a love ofthe dances and music of the many cultures of the world. This love haslead us to also appreciate the ballroom dances of America and Europe. 
While some of our grandparents undoubtedly did the ethnic dances oftheir villages, others were just as surely dancing the ballroom dances inin their parlors, at grange halls, church socials and fancy dress balls. Our mission is toshare the joy and excitement of the dances and music of our combined histories. Ourdances music and costumes are authentic representations of the period portrayed. 

The earliest dances we perform are from the Regency Era, 1793-1825. Replicating the 
civility, gentility, and liveliness of the dances of the era, we include dances that would havebeen done in the most lavish ballrooms, elegant country homes,or boisterous townassembly rooms. These include English, Scottish, and American country (or contre dances),
using longwise sets, the French quadrilles with square formations, the Fandango, and thefirst of the emerging couple waltzes. We include dances mentioned in Thomas Hardy’sUnder the Greenwood Tree and portrayed in recent movie productions of Jane Austennovels. Dancing in period costumes, we are able to provide a brief style show withdiscussion of the fashions of the day. Our program is accompanied by short readings fromfavorite authors of the period as well as by brief social commentaries on dancing andmanners. 

For our Mid-Nineteenth Century program, we endeavor to portray 
a private ball that could have happened in Boston, Philadelphia,
Columbus or any town in the 1860s in the United States. We recreatethe atmosphere of these balls by demonstrating the exciting varietyof dances done at this time, including the waltz, redowa, mazurka,
schottische, galop, country dances, and quadrilles including theLancers. We have formed a small chamber ensemble, of appropriate 
instrumentation, which plays tunes written and performed during this1860s. Between dances and musical numbers, we include short historicreadings, concerning the dances and etiquette of the ballroom. 


Our Ragtime program is designed to capture the light hearted feelingsof the second decade of the 20th century, 1910-1920. We include 
the most popular dances of the times: waltz, two-step, CakeWalk, Castle Walk and animal dances, Maxixe, tango, and fox trot.
We again include short contemporary readings concerning the dancesand social habits of the era. 



Program Notes:

* Each program can be performed separately or together with intermissions. 
* Programs may vary from 20 to 45 minutes, not including an intermission. 
* Our dances, music, and costumes are authentic representations of the period portrayed.
We can include a brief style show with discussion of the fashions of the day. 
* We may have as many as ten couples dancing at any one time, depending on theavailability of the dancers. 
* Remuneration depends on the length of the program, number of dancers and thedistance traveled to the performance site. 
* Our ideal performance space is a wooden floor with a minimum 22 foot square size. 
* We dance to recorded music. The pieces are authentic tunes that would have been usedduring the period and have been recorded in the proper style and instrumentation for thetimes. We have our own CD player, but find that plugging into the house system with amicrophone for readings is desirable, especially if the room or space is large. 
* There are eight musicians if the ensemble plays. We dance to recorded music, but theensemble can play between dances. Audience dance participation is encouraged duringthe ensemble’s playing. 
Performance Venues: 

Historical sites, church dinners, organizational promotions and dinners, women’s clubs,
retirement residences and establishments, reenactor’s events, and festivals. 

Contact Person: If you wish to engage us for your event or have questions, contactTina Gehres, tgehres@aol.com or 614-879-9989. 

Past Performances include: 

Franklin County Bicentennial Celebration ---April, May and October 2003.
Williams County Historical Society Summer Affair ---June 2003 and July 2004.
Columbus International Festival ---October 2003.
Dublin Historical Society Christmas Program ---December 2003.
Dublin Retirement Village Programs --- February 2004 and March 2006.
Lancaster Festival --- July 2004.
Antique Buick Car Club Christmas Program --- December 2004.
Ohio Historical Society Christmas Program ---December 2004.
COSI Opening of the Titanic Exhibit ---March 2005.
Ted Lewis Festival --- May 2005, June 2007.
Christ United Methodist Church Mother-Daughter Banquet ---May 2005.
Hilltop Kiwanis Anniversary Celebration Dinner ---July 2005.
Heritage House Center --- October 2005, September 2006. 
Ohio Historical Society Victorian Weekends ---Spring 2005, 2006, 2007
Adena Mansion and Garden Summer Affair --- May 2006.