Part theatre performance, part get up and dance, The Inaugural Annual Dance Affair is an all-ages dance event that immerses everyone in an evening of old time and new time dance floor magic, taking over Hawthorn Arts Centre on 20 and 21 July.

Bringing together diverse community groups, the event promises to be the ultimate night at the dance hall. Participants include the fabulous and elegant dance group Vietnamese Senior Citizens, an amazing collection of women who all arrived in Australia in the late seventies as refugees during the Vietnam War. Their leading lady is Yen Bui, an inspiring and incredibly funny woman who unites her dancers in a traditional routine. 

Also on the line-up is the electric nine-man band Sex on Toast, bringing their hip-swinging synth-funk to Hawthorn, and charming MC Ian Pidd (Everybody NOW!).

From the two-step to the tango, to a cheeky cha cha, and a waltz to funky free-styling grooves, The Inaugural Annual Dance Affair go-goes its way through a celebration of decades of dance.

The stories of local legends featured in the award-winning commemorative book Boroondara Remembers: Stories of World War I will be shared in honour of the former Hawthorn Town Hall’s historical ties to both world wars and other conflicts and peacekeeping operations.