Quadrille

By Deane Barker • •

This is a formal, group dance from the early 20th century performed by four couples. It was popular in Europe and in the Gilded Age of the late 1800s and early 1900s in the United States.

Here’s a video.

There’s a very regimented series of moves, with a great deal of “partner passing” and theatrics. In places, it appears to be the classic ballroom dance you would see in Cinderella or similar stories.

Why I Looked It Up

I was reading Vanderbilt: The Rise and Fall of an American Dynasty which discussed The Gilded Age quite a bit. The quadrille was a necessary skill to be accepted among the upper class.

Links from this – Vanderbilt: The Rise and Fall of an American Dynasty April 24, 2022
Enormously entertaining history of the Vanderbilt family by CNN’s Anderson Cooper, who was a Vanderbilt on his mother’s side. Cornelius “Commodore” Vanderbilt was a self-made man. He started ferrying people on a small boat around New York Harbor and ended up becoming the richest man the world had...