New Year's Eve!

Something I love about St. Louis is that there is such a diverse cultural and arts scene. It may not be as big as some cities, but if you look, you can find some really interesting things to see and do. One of my best pals is a tarot reader and she is involved with the Beggar's Carnivale, which is a group of performers and artists who do vaudeville and burlesque. They hold several events a year, and this New Year's Eve was their second annual Ball. I found out that they needed volunteers for crew, and voila! I was committed to work the box office that evening. Being a volunteer means I got to enjoy the show for free, in between working.

photo by Insomniac Studios

The Carnivale was held at the beautiful, historic Casa Loma Ballroom. This venue is over 80 years old, and features big band and swing dancing, live music, lectures, and other events. Although I've lived in St. Louis most of my life, I'd never been there. It's a beautiful old building.

Since my pal was a vendor, doing tarot readings, we needed to get there early to set up. We arrived about 7 and found the people in charge. They showed us her spot, which was a cool mini Gypsy tent set up. It didn't take long to get everything organized. I wasn't scheduled to work the box office until 10:30, so we watched the last minute rehearsals and got a chance to check out the vendors before the doors opened at 8:30.

The show started with plenty of great music from the band The Royal We. The opening act featured the entire cast, with fire dancers and acrobats and the burlesque troupe.

Everything was awesome, there were mimes and dancers, and little funny skits in between burlesque performances. There were even male burlesque dancers!

Far too soon, however, it was time for me to head down to the box office. Things had slowed down quite a bit by that time and I had plenty of time to chat with the other girl who was there. We took turns going out and watching the show. Always fun to make a new friend, too!

Soon it was time for the countdown. At midnight everyone cheered and hugged and kissed to welcome in 2013. My husband called me (he had to work) just as I was reaching for the phone to call him. This was the first New Year's Eve we'd spent apart since being married. After the champagne toast, I found my friends and spent a few minutes with them before heading back to the box office.

There was a small buffet for everyone after the toast. I skipped the sandwiches and wraps, but I loaded up on fresh carrots, celery, and broccoli, and also had some of the most amazing meatballs I'd ever had. I even went back for seconds on those! They were coated in BBQ sauce and so juicy!

 

Me in the box office, and with pals Jenn and B-rad.

Once the box office closed, I was free to head back out. There was an awesome dance party going on with great music playing like "Billie Jean" and "Lady Marmalade". Everyone had light sticks and it was just a good vibe all around. I was pretty wiped out by this time, as were my pals. All of us had things to do so we headed out around one, although the party went on til 3am.

Everyone was dressed so wonderfully! There were people in everything from tuxedos, gorgeous costumes (everything from flappers to fairies), to jeans. I wore a silk blouse and a pair of new black yoga pants, my good sweater, and some pearl earrings. I wore two pairs of socks and kicked my shoes off as soon as we got settled in.

Some of the highlights of the evening were the amazing trapeze acts, the beautiful burlesque dances, the stilt walkers, and the amazing fire dancers. There was so much positive energy flowing all night, so much creativity and friendliness. I was asked to come back and volunteer at the next event, and I can't wait!

I got home a little after one, but was so hyped up I couldn't settle down and didn't get to sleep until after 2:30am. I had to be up early the next morning for the Commitment Day 5K, so that was a little rough, however, I had such a fantastic time at Beggar's Carnivale and I'm really happy I went. I had thought about calling it off since I had been in a bit of a funk earlier in the day.

What did you do on New Year's Eve?