Dance hall

The palais de danse was a term applied to purpose-built dance halls in Britain and Commonwealth countries, which became popular after the First World War.

The rapidly changing economy of the early twentieth century shifted the views many young adults had about the separation between work and leisure, increasing dance hall popularity from the 1900s into the 1920s.

[1][2][3] With increased financial freedom, as compared to prior decades, young immigrant and working-class women were able to access dance halls, generally placed within urban areas, that did not require chaperones.

Dance halls allowed young working-class women the opportunity to step outside of their extremely stressful home and work environments while not costing too much, or anything in some cases.

[1][2][3] In 1917, with the approval of the vice investigation panel the Fosdick Commission, a committee was organized in Louisville, Kentucky to develop rules and regulations for public dance halls.

"[6] Starting in the early 1930s, The Savoy, a dance hall in Harlem (a black neighborhood in New York City) was the first truly integrated building in the United States — for both the dancers and the musicians.