On the 8th of March 2014, at the Greenbank Hotel in Falmouth, the Tremough English Society got out their glad rags and put on a Great Gatsby themed ball. It was truly a night to remember, and perhaps also a night to forget for those who were slightly over zealous with the cocktail drinking.
Set in the 1920s, an era of luxurious and exuberant living, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby was a perfect choice for the English Society’s biggest event of the year, and the bigger the better as Jordan Baker famously says , big parties are “so intimate, at small parties there isn’t any privacy”. The ball was organised by Chris Veall (President), Kayleigh Hardy (Vice President), Yani Clovers (Social Secretary), Lauren Tanner (Treasurer), Katie Yates (Secretary)and Sarah Bainbridge (Second Year Rep). All the committee members put so much time and effort into the event to make it the fantastic night that it was and hopefully the months of preparing, organising and advertising were worth it.
(Image: Issy Mendoza)
The Greenbank Hotel provided a great location, with fantastic views of Falmouth harbour and bay, very reminiscent of the setting of The Great Gatsby. There was a distinct lack of a flashing green light at the other end of the bay, but all in all it was lovely hotel for the occasion.
The entertainment for the evening was provided by Jazz Harbour, the campus jazz band, who really stirred up the crowd with some great traditional live jazz music that got everyone into that 20s mood. This was continued afterwards by the DJ James Ward, with modern remixes of classic tunes that got everyone in the mood for a bit of the Charleston. Many attempted this iconic dance, and some pulled off rather well.
(Image: Issy Mendoza)
The drinks started flowing at a very early stage in the night, with a rather cheeky 2 for £10 deal on Gatsby-themed cocktails. Not only were they absolutely lovely, but they also had a healthy amount of alcohol in them. Included in these were the Mint Julep, Gin Rickey and the ridiculously tasty and popular Peach Bellini – so popular that it ran out!
With outfits ranging from the very sparkly, to the exceedingly tasselled, everyone who attended went all out, including the men who all looked wonderfully dapper. The 1920s was such a glamorous era in fashion and it was so much fun to dress extravagantly and see everyone else doing the same.
(Image: Issy Mendoza)
The Great Gatsby Ball was a huge success for the current English Society committee, who ensured that everyone had a magical night and in the midst of ever looming deadlines, the motto of the night was “a little party never killed nobody”.