Mme. Eva Rubenstein & Alan Feyer | 
Mr. & Mrs. Carl Landegger | 
Cesare L. Santeremo, K.S.J. with
Mme. Licia Albenese and
Marcelo Dos Santos | 
Mme. Agnieszka Magdziak,
Consul General of Poland and
Witold Sulimirski | 
John Wegorzewski and
Countess Dagmar de Brantes | 
Her Serene Highness Grace,
Princess of Monaco, flanked by
Chev. Cesare L. Santeramo, KSJ
(left) and Chev. Robert J. Campbell,
MD, KSJ, at the 1982 Bal Polonaise
in New York honoring
Nela Rubenstein | POLISH ASSISTANCE
Bal Polonaise a Tradition
In White Tie and Tails By Edward T. Callaghan  T’S not often these days that we receive an invitation specifying white tie, tails & decorations for the gentlemen and ball gowns for the ladies. In days past heavily embossed, hand delivered invitations for extravagant galas such the April in Paris Ball, Tiffany Feather Ball, Le Bal Blanc and Bal Polonaise were eagerly anticipated at the top of the social season.
Most of these grand affairs have gone the way of bustles and trains but we are glad to see the Bal Polonaise holds the standard high of courtly elegance with decorations, opulent jewels and of course the Grand Polonaise (the dance of kings, queens and nobility originating in 1573), half a century since its founding. Thanks to the efforts of Teresa Sulimirski, the dynamic president of Polish Assistance, the relief agency, the 47th Annual Bal Polonaise was as steeped in tradition and high in glamour as in the days when Her Serene Highness Grace, Princess of Monaco led the assorted royals in The Grand Polonaise. The honorary committee – many of whom have been supporters of the fete since its early days – included Count and Countess N. Bobrinskoy, Countess Dagmar de Brantes, Prof. and Mrs. Zbigniew Brzezinski, Robert J. Campbell III, K.S.J., Dr. and Mrs. Joseph Haggar, Mrs. Marta Eggerth Kiepura, Nina Mlodzinska de Rovira and Dr. and Mrs. Michael Sendzimir. As always the gentlemen escorted the ladies, couple by couple, on to the dance floor of the Plaza’s Grand Ballroom to begin the evening with this stately and graceful dance led by chairwoman Janina Boral and her husband Dr. Andrew Boral. Orchestra leader Alex Donner, proved, once again, as adept with 16th century music as he is with society swing. Mme. Boral and co-chairs Ela Sulimirski Landegger and Cesare L. Santeramo K.S.J. gathered together a glittering crowd of Polish aristocracy to pay tribute to Eva Rubenstein, the evening’s guest of honor, daughter of the late Aniela Mlynarska and famed concert pianist Arthur Rubenstein, long supporters of the ball. They also honored Bohdan de Rosset with the organization’s White Eagle Award for his major contribution to Polish Assistance since 1956. Mme. Luna Kaufman and two divas assolutas Mme. Licia Albenese and Mme. Anna Moffo, Dr. Mircea and Jawiga Padale, Dr. Joseph and Marriola Gorska Haggar, Carl and Rene Landegger, John Wegorzewski with Countess Dagmar de Brantes and Richard and Misha Laskowski and the Honorable Mrs. Agnieszka Magdziak, Consul General of Poland were among the glittering crowd who applauded the honorees and cheered loudly the fancy footwork of the colorfully clad Polish American Folk Dance Company. When the final cords had been played, the guests received gift bags courtesy of Andrew and Janina Boral, Adamba Imports and Estee Lauder in keeping with their longtime support for the gala. |
