THANK YOU to everyone who joined us for a magical night filled with dancing, drinking, and royalty at the Prairie Sage Ballroom on January 7th, 2023. Every dollar fundraised from the night's event is helping further our mission to end commercial sexual exploitation.
Schedule
5:00 - 6:00 PM
Cocktails & Socializing
6:00 - 7:00 PM
Waltz Lesson by Maya’s Ballroom Dance
7:00 - 9:00 PM
The Twelfth Night Ball with live music
8:30 PM
Coronation of the Twelfth Night Ball Royal Court
Special thanks to our photographer, Jessie Wang from Explore The Unique Event: Videography & Photography, for the beautiful photos shown here!
If you are interested in her services, please contact Jessi by phone at 602 524 9119 or email at littlechch@gmail.com.
It was wonderful to see everyone who came out for the event and we're already looking forward to the 2024 ball. We can't thank our wonderful event sponsors enough, and encourage you to visit their websites and follow them on social!
Special Thanks To Our Amazing Sponsors
KING & QUEEN OF THE WALTZ
PRINCE & PRINCESS OF THE WALTZ
DUKE & DUTCHESS OF THE WALTZ
EARL & COUNTESS OF THE WALTZ
FRIENDS OF THE WALTZ
Interested in sponsorship for the 12th Night Ball? Learn more here.
A Quick History
The “12th Night" is a reference to the twelfth night after Christmas. It was originally a Catholic holiday, and became well known as a night of revelry, parties, and dancing. The history of the festival included everything being topsy turvy, where servants dressed as lords, and commoners as kings. This festive party kicks off the start of Carnival season all around the world, including in New Orleans and, traditionally, in Vienna.
In Vienna, Fasching or Carnival (which now begins November 11th) is also famously known as Viennese Ball Season. Ball Season is a legendary in Vienna, with over 450 balls occurring annually. Though the 12th Night doesn’t officially kick off Viennese Ball Season anymore, the peak of Ball Season is still during the weeks before Lent, including the 12th Night Feast.
Vienna is the birthplace of the Waltz. Upon its introduction, the upper classes were scandalized by the whirling and touching of the dancers. It was in Vienna where the scandalous dance first truly became popular in the 1700s and thus spread from Austria across Europe. Vienna holds fast to this tradition of the Waltz by incorporating the traditional dance into their balls and operas throughout the season and all year long.
Expect a night of dancing and joyous revelry and we partake in 12th Night traditions from all around the world!
Some of the traditions include delicacies like spiced wassail punch, named after the English tradition of wassailing or caroling. Others will include traditional waltzes, a coronation of the King & Queen of the Ball, and elegant and festive costumes. If you’re lucky, you might even receive a gift from Befana the witch.
2023 marks our fourth annual Twelfth Night Ball and this year, the gala is going to be bigger and better than ever before. Not only can you buy tickets to the event—you can also support The Avery Center even further by helping us fundraise through Facebook or Instagram! Our fundraiser lets you raise funds for the cost of your ticket + beyond. All funds raised will increase awareness for a wonderful cause to support research and resources for sex trafficking victims.
If you raise over $50 with your fundraiser, your ticket to The Avery Center’s glamorous 12th Night Ball is complimentary and includes one entry into the King’s Cake! The King’s Cake determines who will become King and Queen of the 12th Night Ball.
The fundraiser will culminate in the 12th Night Viennese Ball, where we connect our donors with the Avery Center researchers and volunteers they supported. During the Ball, everyone will have time to socialize, take a dance lesson, and then the ball itself will commence. At the ball, not only will there be waltzing to live music and authentic wassailing punch, but there will be a king’s cake raffle to crown the King and Queen of the Ball.
Contact info@theaverycenter.org if you have any questions regarding the Twelfth Night Ball or The Avery Center.
Create a fundraiser for The Avery Center
How it Works
For a discounted ticket and to help spread awareness about the Avery Center, consider making a social media fundraiser!
Every fundraiser not only helps The Avery Center’s numerous programs to assist survivors of sex trafficking, but it also helps spread awareness about The Avery Center’s important work.
If you raise over $50 with your fundraiser, your ticket to The Avery Center’s glamorous 12th Night Ball is complimentary and includes one entry into the King’s Cake! The King’s Cake determines who will become King and Queen of the 12th Night Ball. If you raise funds less than the cost of a ticket, you can pay the remaining amount at the event.
Limit: One ticket per profile.
If you choose to fundraise on Facebook, simply follow these steps to get started:
— STEP 1 —
Make sure you’re signed into your Facebook account (and not someone else’s!)
— STEP 2 —
Click this link to get started.
Click “select nonprofit”, and search for “The Avery Center Org” to select The Avery Center as the nonprofit you’re fundraising for.
— STEP 3 —
Edit the details for your fundraiser!
How much money do you want to raise?
How much money do you want to raise is entirely up to you. If you fundraise a minimum of $50, your ticket to the ball is complimentary!
When should your fundraiser end?
You can chose to end the fundraiser whenever you want!
Why are you raising money?
Facebook will autofill this field, but you can edit it to say whatever you want about why this cause and this event is important to you! Get creative!
— STEP 4 —
Select a cover photo.
— STEP 5 —
Click “Create” and your fundraiser is ready to go!
If you choose to fundraise on Instagram, simply follow these steps to get started:
— STEP 1 —
Begin to Create a New Post (The photo you select will be used as the cover photo for your fundraiser)
— STEP 2 —
Click “Add Fundraiser”
— STEP 3 —
Search for “The Avery Center”
— STEP 4 —
Set Goal Amount
How much money do you want to raise is entirely up to you. If you fundraise a minimum of $50, your ticket to the ball is complimentary!
— STEP 5 —
Click “Done”
Please note that Instagram fundraisers automatically run for 30 days.
Sights to See at the Ball
The King’s Cake Raffle
King’s Cake traditionally contained a bean and a pea, and whomever was lucky enough to get one of them in a slice of cake became either the King or Queen of the night’s revelry.
In honor of this tradition, we will have a King’s Cake Raffle at the Twelfth Night Ball. The two winners of the raffle will be crowned the King and Queen of the ball!
You can purchase raffle tickets for $20 each at the event, and you may enter at many times as you like. The more you enter, the better your odds! The winners will receive their own glittering crowns as well as prizes.
The Gifts of Befana
At the Ball you may also notice our fortune-telling witch, Befana. Befana’s name is a play on the Italian word Epifania. Legend says that she was invited to go with the Three Kings as they followed the star of Bethlehem with their gifts, but she declined. Immediately, she regretted it and tried to follow them with her own gifts, but she was too late. Now, she roams the countryside bestowing gifts to others, of either candy or coal depending on whether they’ve been naughty or nice.
At the Ball, she’ll happily deliver a message for your intended, including either a piece of candy or a lump of coal to go with the note! If you wish, she may also tell your fortune.
Looking forward to next year? Follow us to stay updated on event date and venue!