Jay Gatsby and Daisy Buchanan would have felt right at home at the Hotel Kurrajong’s Great Gatsby Gala. A crackling fire in the hotel foyer dialled up the temperature on a wintry Canberra evening and a 20-piece swing band got everyone ‘In The Mood’.
As guests arrived wearing feather boas, drop-waist dresses, Panama hats and pinstripe suits, you could have sworn it was the Roaring ‘20s and the setting for an F. Scott Fitzgerald novel.
The Hotel Kurrajong opened in 1926 and has been an integral part of Canberra history ever since the National Capital was in its infancy. Oozing with historic charm, it is the setting for one of the city’s most stylish soirées of the year.
The annual Great Gatsby Gala invites guests to step out in style and raise a martini glass as local swing band, Spectrum, ups the tempo with toe-tapping jazz before leaning in to some more recent numbers for the final bracket.
Members of Canberra Swing Katz take to the dance floor to show everyone how it’s done before inviting guests to dance the Charleston. It’s high-energy, rollicking good fun and although the music spans the decades, the ambience is firmly in the ‘20s with all its glitz and glamour.
The setting for this event couldn’t be more perfect. Re-opened in 2015 after a sensitive restoration by TFE Hotels and NRMA, the Hotel Kurrajong offers a one-of-a-kind experience. With nostalgic interiors, warm hospitality and a taste of the Capital’s early history, the hotel combines contemporary style and luxury with art deco elegance.
Echoes of the past are never far away, from the black and white photos adorning the walls, to the comfortable leather chairs, immaculately tended gardens, and the bar where Australia’s 16th Prime Minister, Ben Chifley, enjoyed a tipple or two.
And then there’s the grand ballroom, scene of many a dazzling Canberra event and the location for the Great Gatsby Gala. With an elderflower cocktail and canapés served on arrival – including sticky pork belly bites, beetroot and feta arancini, kataifi prawns, and whisky-cured salmon with caviar – the stage was set for a delicious two-course meal.
Mains of Confit duck with cherry jus, and Wine-braised lamb shoulder were served alternatively, followed by a generous dessert of apple and pear tarte tatin with rum and raisin icecream. Yum! Free-flowing drinks included bubbles, table wines, soft drinks and beer.
For lovers of jazz, the roaring ‘20s, and art deco, the Kurrajong’s Great Gatsby Gala is a swinging night. And when the last champagne glass is emptied, you can retire, as we did, to one of the hotel’s luxury rooms just as Jay and Daisy might have done.
Hotel Kurrajong Canberra is at 8 National Circuit, Barton. Tel: +61 (0)2 6234 4444; www.hotelkurrajong.com.au
If you enjoyed this post, you might also like our story, Stepping Back In Time At The Hotel Kurrajong, written at the time of the hotel’s grand re-opening in 2015. It tells you a little more about the hotel’s history and design, and the role it played in Canberra’s early history.
Christine and Maurie were guests of the Hotel Kurrajong for the Great Gatsby Gala and an overnight stay.
