Omaha daily bee., December 12, 1915, EDITORIAL MAGAZINE, Image 29

About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922

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The Omaha Sunday Bee Magazine Page
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a
Fashionable
"Dansants a Glace" and Not Enough Skating
Rinks or Instructors to Meet the Demand
ICE skating, or rather dancing on
skates, is the newest fashionable
amusement There Is every indica
tion that the new craze, which already
is country-wide In extent, will be taken
up by people of .all ages, and in all
walks of life, with the same enthusiasm
that has converted men, women and
children into fox-trotters and tan go-experts
during the past three or tour sea
sons. Skating on ice Is considerably more
difficult for adults to learn than dancing.
Dancing on the Ice Is a feat which only
expert skaters dare to tackle. Never
theless, the difficulties, of the new fad
aeem to have had little ' effect on its
popularity, and the rinks throughout the
country are now crowded morning, noon
and night with debutantes and society
matrons who are determined to become '
expert skaters and Ice-dancers in the
shortest possible time. '
The dances which expert skaters are
able to execute on the ice include the
old-fashioned waits, the ten-step, another
form of waltz.-, the fox-trot and various
modifications of the other dances which
have become popular In recent seasons.
While these Ice-dances look extremely
difficult to perform, (he accomplishment
follows easily enough after the funda
mental figures of figure-skating have
been acquired, A good figure-skater can
learn new. figures with as much facility
as a dancer learts'new steps. The main
thing that is necessary Is to become
adept at ordinary figure-skating. Danc
ing on ice will then follow easily enough,
although, of course, it will require a good
deal of practise.
The foundation of all figure-skating la
the ability to use the four edges of the
skates the inside left, the outside left,
the inside right and the outside right
and to be able to skate .backward on
either of these edges Just as readily as
forward. Dally practise on these funda
mentals is essential to progress in Ice
dancing. ,
The fact that the new amusement has
already taken a firm hold Is evidenced
In many ways. Four of New York's
most fashionable hotels have already
planned Ice-rinks tor the use of their
patrons. The Blltmore Is the first to
open Its rink to the public The Wal
dorf Is said to be Investing in the
neighborhood of a million dollars in a
rink on the roof of its new annex. The
Hottl Astor and the McAIpIn are now
arranging similar faculties. Some of the
restaurants and cabarets which have
hitherto made their dancing -floors their
principal attraction are preparing to sub
stitute Ice for hard-wood so that those
who have danced may hereafter skate
Instead.
Most significant of all, perhaps, is the
thorough manner in which New York,
Boston and Chicago society has taken
the lead In adopting the new fad. In
New York, a club was formed several
weeks ago by enthusiasts and its mem
bership Includes most of the debutantes
of the season, the girls who are to come
out next year and some young married
people. Among subscribers to the club
are Mrs. John Jacob Astor, Mr. and Mrs.
Cornelius Vanderbllt, Mr. and Mrs. Ed
win Qould, Mr. and Mrs. Irving Brokaw
and a host of others whose names are
very well known In the most exclusive
social circles.
This club has engaged the St Nicholas
Skating Rink for Monday afternoons for
the entire season, which lasts until the
end of April. Professional skaters and
instructors have been engaged to In
struct the members In the intricacies ot
lce-danclng.
In Boston, expert skaters have been
engaged by the Boston Skating Club, an
exclusive organization, to teach society
the new fad. Mr. and Mrs. A. Windsor
Wills. Miss Eleanora Sears and Miss
Edith Rotch are, perhaps, the most promi
nent of Back Bay fashionables who are ,
leading the movement in New England.
In' Chicago, the Sherman House some
time ago anticipated the present crate
and Installed a skating-rink in the Col
lege Inn. In the basement In place of the -dancing
floor. It was foreseen that dane
Ing was losing Its hold and that lce-skat-Int
was rolnr to take its place. The
change has met with great success.
Thst th reneral public is goln to
follow of-ltv's hsd and make skating
the principal diversion this Winter Is In
dleated plalnlv bv the unusually large
number of pponle who have already
taken up the snort at the rinks.
At St Nicholas Rink, for Instance, rec
cord crowds have been In attendance at
very session since the opening of the
season on November 1. This rink ac
commodates 800 peonle on the Ice at a
time and there are three sessions a day.
Men and women of all ages are clamor
ing for lnsructlon or for a chance to
practise and perfect themselves in the
new skating-danceri '
The same situation prevails at the
other rinks tnronehout the country.
There are two large rinks on the Coast,
one at Seattle and the other at Portland.
Both are doing a record business, and
similar enthusiasm Is evident in Detroit,
Cleveland, Plttshureh. and Chicago.
The new amusement will not score Ks
greatest 'triumph, perhans, until frees
iiijr weather arrives, when the limited
capacity of the Indoor rinks will a
47iited fey the ununited facilities
Society Now
ot the park lakes, streams
and out-door rinks. Then,
of course, there will be
sufficient outlet for all the
pent-up enthusiasm which the
erase is bound to arouse In
the meantime.
Evidently that is what the
manufacturers of sporting
goods and apparel are relying
upon mainly, for although the
Indoor skating season Is now
a month or two old, the large
skate factories are still run
ning on a twenty-four hour
schedule In three shifts in an
effort to cope with the tre
mendous demand for skates
which they are confident will
materialize within , the next
two or three months.
Up-to-date skating has brought with It
Its own special styles of wearing ap
parel. All the costume makers and
manufacturers of wearing apparel have
vied with each other in getting out at
tractive skating designs and the big re
tall stores have given considerable space
In their advertising to the beautiful
creations which have been, made avail
able for followers ot the new craze. -This
' factor, in itsolf, It is believed, will insure
the popularity of ice-dancing. Indeed, It
has been suggested that women may be
tempted to take up skating In order to
wear the new garments rather than to
.purchase the new garments for the sake
of skating.
In line with this phase of the situation,
a series of weekly fashion shows de
voted to garments specially designed for
skating has been arranged at the St.
Nicholas Rink. Already several ot the
well known women's specialty houses
have exhibited their models at these dis
plays, and the remarkably effective cos
tumes which ekatlng has developed are
certainly not calculated to deter women
from falling into Hue.
- The social opportunities which the
new craze affords are considerable. Al
ready two elaborate Ice-Teas or "dan
sants a glace" have been given by Mr.
and Mrs. Irving Brokaw, in which the
skating stsge ot the Hippodrome was
engaged.
On these occasions, the guests ot the
Brokaws to the number of about 100
participated in the general lce-danclng
and were then entertained by Mr.
Brokaw, probably the most accomplished
amateur figure-skater in the world.
1-awrence Waterbury, ot polo fame, and
Raymond Townsend, ot New Haven, who
gave a special exhibition of fancy-skating,
their partners being the famous Hippo
drome professionals Charlotte, Katy
Schmidt and Ellen Dallerup. A large
contingent ot Boston society folk were
present, bringing with them Mr .and
Mrs. Muller, the German xirofessional
skaters, who have been engaged by the
Boston Skating Club to teach Back Bay
folk the new accomplishment The New
York guests included Mrs. O.
H. P. Belmont Mr. and Mrs.
Oliver Harrlman, Mr. and
Mrs. Elbert H. Gary, Mr. and
Mrs. Arthur Scott. Burden,
Mr. and Mrs. W. K. Vander
bllt, Mrs. BarserAYallach,
Miss Leila Burden
,f),i:j V
: " '
Busy with
Mr. Irying
Mrs, Cass Ledyard and Mr.
Mr. Foxhall P. Keene, and a host ot
others equally prominent In social circles.
Just how the new craze started no
one is able definitely to explain. Per
haps the largest single factor in arous
ing Interest in skating, however, has
been the wonderful exhibition given by
Charlotte and her associates at the
Hippodrome. The Ballet on Ice was
brought from the Admlralpalaet. at Ber
lin, by Mr. Dillingham and hae been uni
versally admired. The Shuberts have
helped to foster Interest in the new
diversion by converting the "Castles In
the Air" cabaret, on top of the Korty
fourth Street Theatre, into an Ice PeJace,
where every evening a skating troupe dis
plays its skill on real ice.
Particularly significant Is the fact that
some of the most accomplished of the
Copyright 113, by the Etar Company
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"Ice Teas"
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Brokaw
J. H. Alexander
professional dancers who have hitherto
teen featured at the Broadway cabarets,
sensing the drift ot things, have taken
up dancing on ice and are not only giv
ing exhibitions but instruction.
Eileen Molyneux and Clifton Webb, of
the Town Topics Company, for Instance,
who made such a hit as professional
dancers, have shown equal skill at fox
trotttng on skates la the rinks. Norvel
Baptie. and Isabel Butler, at the Castles
in the Air, have similarly forsaken the
old-style hardwood dancing for the more
graceful and more difficult feat' of lce
danclng. i Preparations to accommodate the thou
sands ot skate-mad enthusiasts who will
be clamoring for a chance to display
their skill, or lack ot It at soon as the
first treesing weather sets In. have been
Qrsat Britain Rights Reserved.
and
is
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Itr-
Si I
.
Kathleen Pope and George Kerner
made at the various public tennis courts
in different parts Of New York City and
the vicinity. A two-foot embankment
has been erected all around these courts
and as soon as the temperature drops
sufficiently to justify a hope ot freezing
weather, these grounds will be flooded.
The problem ot providing sufficient In
door rinks to accommodate the enthus
iasts when the weather Is not sufficiently
cold to freeze the lakes and out-door
rinks is not a very difficult one. The
ease with which the Hotel Blltmore in
stalled Us rink, using the regular refrig
erating plant for the purpose, will point
the way lor other institutions. Jt Is not
unlikely, too, that the imitation Ice used
by certain vaudeville performers for their
skating stunts and which consists of a
certain composition which is laid down
In blocks, may be utilised by roller
skating rink proprietors to convert their
nouses Into ice-rinks. This imitation ice
Is said to be almost as good as real Ice
for figure-skating and dancing purposes,
although it retards speed to some extent
-Don't worry about lack of facilities
for ice-skating," declared Mr. Brokaw,
when thls' rhase of the present craze
was suggested to him.
"The sport has aroused such a trem
endous storm ot enthusiasm that It is
not unlikely that too many -rinks will
spring up over night Everybody seems
suddenly to have gone Ice-mad.
"For years I have tried to arouse en
thusiasm in this most graceful of sports
and now that the boom has come I'm al
most afraid the thing may be overdone.
There are so many people who are tak
ing up skating now who will never
really amount to anything. They are
going at it in the wrong way.
"You aee them at the rinks going
around and around like so many mice on
a treadmill Instead ot endeavoring to
Miss
Katherine
Dahlgrren and Mr
R. S. Emmet.
1
(C) Cndtrwood a Tjadtrwood.
Mrs. Alice Roosevelt Long-worth At
Robert Goelet's Skating Party
perfect themselves In the only feature of
Ice-skating that is really worth while-figure-skating.
"Of course, I realize that we must learn
to crawl before we can walk, but when
I see skaters . who have been able to
skate for years and are still content to
roll . around in the ceaseless grind of
rlnk-ekatlng Instead ot trying to accom
plish something in the way of figure
skating, it makes me a little discouraged.
"Plain skating Is a very important
preliminary to figure-skating. Unless
the fundamentals of . good skating are ac
quired right from the start, graceful
figure-skating is forever out of the ques
tion. It Is almost Impossible to correct
the bad habits which faulty skating
brings with it So many skaters never
get beyond the preliminaries. That is
unfortunate. Perhaps the renewed in
terest In this most graceful and health
ful of all sports may bring about a gen
eral Improvement In this respect."
Mr. Brokaw has made skating his
hobby for years. He Is the author of
the only authoritative work on the art
ot skating, and he has always been
active In every movement to further the
Interest of the sport He is an active
member of the new society skating club
at the St. Nicholas Rink, and he gives
frequent amateur eihthAas.
: . . - .'it ., i t t -I