Flappers and The Great Gatsby set converged at the Ocean House in Watch Hill Rhode Island in celebration of the Black & White Ball: United 1926!
In 1926, The UNITED theatre in downtown Westerly opened its doors. And 100 years later, this community icon continues to deliver sustainable programmes to “ensure that the arts remain a vibrant part of life in Westerly for generations to come.” Proceeds from the Black & White ball support the 26 Fund.
Black & White: United 1926 Inspired
The VIP reception for sponsors and patrons started at 6:00pm, with doors open for guests at 7:00 pm. Many guests executed the brief with the 1926 inspired theme, with coordinated black and white Assemble.
The Ocean House rolled out the proverbial “red carpet,” as guests delighted in a culinary experience, a speakeasy, a memorable “photo booth” and dancing to Michael Arenella & His Dreamland Orchestra.
Cigarette girls dressed in flapper getup greeted guests. Glasses of wine served from trays and hors d’oeuvres, including mini lobster rolls made the rounds, as guests mingled in the lobby and laughed with great merriment in the interactive “photo booth.”
Seafood Delights and Lobster Risotto
The Social Diary prefers to open up the evening with a deep dive into desserts. However, on this occasion, desserts were not available until 7:30pm. So, we made a delightful detour into the next best thing: Seafood. Whenever you are living it up in a coastal community such as Rhode Island, seafood is abundant and locally sourced. This is especially true about the offerings this evening.
This is true with oysters, clams and jumbo shrimp. However, the Lobster risotto was our fan favourite. The texture and taste was so good that we actually had seconds and thirds of this delightful dish.
Chinatown
We next ventured into “Chinatown,” with their beautiful lanterns and decor. The Chinese take out boxes struck the right cord, with noodles in one and fried rice in the other. Egg rolls anyone?
Black & White Ball: United 1926
With dessert in full swing, as was the band, we ventured downstairs for some sweet treats. Everyone should have tiramisu in a chilled glass! Too bad the croquembouche tower was for “display only” because it looked good enough to eat!
The mini Macarons reminded us of the JBF Gala for Good event at The Pierre in 2025. As always, you just can’t have one Macaron, so naturally we filled our plate!
The food selection didn’t end there. Food continued with salads portioned in dishes, and a surf and turf carving station downstairs. So filled with dessert, we could not have eaten another bite. So, instead, we decided to dance it all off.
We have been to several Black & White Balls, and this will be our third story for The Social Diary. Whilst this year was more intimate and fun, it didn’t feel “filled” with the volume of guests as in previous years. Perhaps the pending Blizzard kept some away. After all, as of this writing, the Blizzard of 2026 broke the previous record! The Social Diary hopes everyone was safe and warm whilst they waited out this storm of the “century.”