Last February, a group of people rented out the Brooklyn Lyceum and had a dance. It was a great idea and I wish someone would do that again. Anyone interested?

Last night Smartmom and Hepcat partied like it was 1986 and what a
night it was. They could have been in Area, the Tunnel or the
Palladium, but it was the Brooklyn Lyceum, the classical style public
bath that’s been transformed into a theater and performance space on
Fourth Avenue.

But really, they were years away from those
fabled night spots of the mid to late 1980’s and their younger selves.
In the here and now, the room was filled with middle-aged Park Slopers
who looked pretty darn good in their Saturday night best dancing to an
incredible mix of funk, rap, hip hop, and soul. Tom Tom Club really got
the room moving as did Madonna and other old favorites. But there were
newer sounds by artists they’d never heard of too, and they sounded
just as good.

Yet, it wasn’t a nostalgic night for pretending
to be young or revisiting the past. No, it was a bunch of people acting
their age — boldly and happily expressing themselves in free form
dance; shaking their hips to the rhythms of the night. There were
couples, singles, friends, and strangers joyfully dancing together.
People were sweating, stripping off layers of clothing; just content to
be out on a cold February night away from children and the daily
details.

When the clock struck midnight, there was a
Cinderella moment in the room. Many had to get home to babysitters and
sleeping children. Smartmom and Hepcat said their good byes and got
their coats from the coat check. Walking up President Street toward
Fifth Avenue and home, they could still hear the propulsive bass
leaking out of the Lyceum’s windows. The music was beckoning them to
the dance floor for one more dance before they turned into pumpkins
again.