The [Palais Royale](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palais_Royale) was a dance hall built in the early 20th century, once a major destination for Toronto dancers, but shuttered since the sixties. Well, it’s been bought, renovated, and apparently the new owners are back to throwing public dances there. The first of these was last weekend.

First things first: The floor there is *spectacular*. Even if not truly sprung, it’s extremely comfortable, and very, very smooth. Sooner or later I’ll buy proper suede shoes, but even given my sub-par equipment, the Palais’ balance between slip and grip is impeccable. I think I really cut loose on my Charleston for the first time; it’s awesome to be able to really twist and shuffle the feet, yet still have enough traction to be confident you won’t suddenly lose it and fall over.

The band was [Shift Shift](http://www.swingshiftbigband.com/), and it seemed that quite a number of people had showed up just to hear the music over a few drinks. I’d previously enjoyed dancing to a number of live acts, including the marvelous [Chris Plock](http://www.christopherplock.com/) at [Alleycatz](http://alleycatz.sites.toronto.com/), but this was a first for a *big* band, and it was certainly a bit surreal.

I particularly enjoyed that the music was more than *just* jazz and blues. In between the showtune covers (“Ding Dong the Witch Is Dead” was a riot) and Duke Ellingtons there were also two waltzes, a rumba, a latin piece, and a tango. It was great to sit back and watch the folks who could do these other styles. Well, except for the waltz, which everyone can do just enough to keep it together, which meant the floor was packed shoulder-to-shoulder on those ones. :)

I quickly gave up on any pictures when I realised just how little light there was in there. The snap on the left (of me with the lovely [Renia P.](http://www.truthbelts.com/POP/ren.html)) is just an accidental appearance in one of [Arthur Lulu's](http://flickr.com/photos/43809827@N00/tags/palais/). It’s not a great pic for several reasons, but I do believe it’s the first time I’ve been photographed on the floor, so there it is.

Anyhow, it’s frustrating that the Palais doesn’t have a [real website](http://www.palaisroyale.ca/), so it’s not clear what the schedule is for the next event of this kind. I heard rumours of a September date, but whatever the case is, I highly recommend it to both dancers and non-dancers alike. The music and ambiance alone is worth the $20 admission. When I left a little before 2am, there were two limousines parked outside, but the Queen streetcar was still running, and that was my means of transport.

For the curious, I’ve put up a list of [my current playlist toppers](/about/music/), divided loosely by dancing and listening tunes.

Mike

← Earlier Later → Posted at 9:44 pm to Dancing, Music, Social.