The Cotillion Classes
Step1
Find a location with plenty of room to dance and teach dining etiquette. The first several classes will involve learning the correct form and etiquette. Plenty of room needs to be available for students to move around. They are new at this and will need extra space. The location also must have a dining area. The dancing and dining can be interchanged each week if you have limited space available.
Step2
Determine which activity you will do each meeting time. Are you teaching dance tonight or dining etiquette? Plan your meetings, so you can decorate accordingly.
Step3
Set the table. If tonight is dining etiquette, set the table for a three or four course meal. Arrange the tables and chairs so all the students can see the teacher easily. A semi circle or staggered table look makes viewing the correct table etiquette easier.
Step4
Place a centerpiece in the middle of the table as if this were the real thing. The students need to know how to maneuver around real life objects on the table. Choose a low centerpiece such as floating candles or a small wider flower arrangement. This will allow the students to still see the instructor.
Step5
Decorate the dance floor and entry way with flowers for the dance classes. We are going for the most realistic look of the actual event. Add some taller plants to the entry way. Use house plants from home so you can reuse them each week. A silk ficus tree or other similar taller trees work well. The floral arrangements are also good to hide sound equipment.
Step6
Prepare the parents' waiting area. The parents will be encouraged to take part in the cotillion and continue the etiquette lessons at home. Prepare a comfortable place for them to wait for their cue. You will need chairs and a coffee table type setup. The table needs to be stocked with cold beverages, finger foods, and a small desert.
Step7
Keep the streamers and such to a minimum. The final night of the cotillion will be a formal occasion involving the parents, but the classes leading up to the evening should be more like a ballroom dance studio than a kid's birthday party.
The Grand Finale
Step1
Choose a formal location. The final evening is a ball-like evening with a four course meal. Parents are invited and the students show off what they have learned. Choose an equally memorable location such as a wedding reception location.
Step2
Dress the tables in fine linens. The location may supply the linens or you may need to rent the linens. Choose clean white linens so the attention is on what is on the table not under the plates.
Step3
Decorate the center of the table with a similar centerpiece that the students used in etiquette training. The students might be nervous so keep the table looking similar so their focus is on how to use all those forks sitting in front of them.
Step4
Hide the sound equipment with live ferns and floral arrangements. The silk may have been OK to practice with, but this is the evening the students are paying for. Hide all the unseemly stuff.
Step5
Decorate the entrance with a welcoming feel. The cotillion is not as formal as a debutante ball, but there are introductions at many cotillions, so the focus will be on the entrance. Make the entrance have "curb appeal." Add floral arrangements leading the way into the event. Guide the guests to their proper spot with the flowers and trees.
