While the entertainment industry’s elite turned out for the Grammy awards Sunday night, Solvang had its own taste of the highlife the preceding evening. The YMCA’s Father Daughter Princess Ball took place Saturday night at the Veterans Hall in Solvang.
The theme of the fourth annual dance was “Hollywood glitz and glamour.” Girls arrayed in gowns were accompanied by their formally-dressed fathers down a red carpet and into the dance hall. Stars and film reels adorned the chandeliers while life-size Oscar cutouts greeted attendees at the door.
“Every year, we like to change it up. This year we wanted to have something different. We wanted to make it more inviting for the preteen age level. We are trying to diversify from the traditional princess,” said Michelle Bradley the YMCA community program director. If attracting more people to the dance was the goal, then the YMCA succeeded: 488 people attended the event — almost 200 more than last year.
One of those on hand was Greg King, who brought his daughter Sydney for the evening. He said the pair had “danced the whole time” and Sydney wanted to go back for more. King said Sydney was enjoying the dance because many of her friends were there. “The small-town atmosphere is really felt here” said King, to which Sydney added ‘Yep, yep, yep!’
The event is aimed at bringing families together and giving fathers a chance to spend time with their daughters. The YMCA also holds mother and son adventure days, and a picnic day for the whole family.