Love it or hate it, the must-attend event this spring season is the Bridgerton Ball experience. If you’ve been put off by the overwhelming number of period dramas and have avoided the show altogether, this event is still absolutely worth it. Why? Because after years of being stuck at home, it finally gives us all a chance to take part in an elegant version of playing “dress up.” To convince the naysayers, simply put, this is the perfect girls’ night out event and reminded me of an adult prom where we all have enough disposable income to shell out a pretty penny ($50) to live out our royal fantasies for ninety minutes.

What better way to cap off that fantasy than to be named Diamond of the Season by the Queen herself? After enough poking around and eavesdropping to make Lady Whistledown proud, I’ve discovered how to guarantee you catch the Queen’s eye and end the night under a spotlight, waving at an adoring crowd.

Binge-watch Bridgerton

You don’t have to watch all of it but at least the first episode of seasons one and two. There, you will familiarize yourself with the pomp and circumstance that surrounds the entire purpose of the night, winning the Queen’s approval. There you can see how big of a role a proper grand entrance makes.

Pick a Statement Gown

Now that you know what you’re striving for, pick a costume for the evening. Absolutely everyone dressed the part when I visited: Women and all of the four men I saw. All except one guy who showed up in jeans, a flannel shirt, and a baseball cap. He was obviously accompanying his girlfriend who looked absolutely regal in her floor-length gown, and he looked absolutely ridiculous. You paid for the experience, now play the part! The bigger the gown, the more likely you are to win the Queen’s approval. I’m talking about full hoop skirts and gorgeous jewel tones. I know empire waists and pastel were themes in the show, but going with that is a safe choice and the Queen wants to be impressed with something new and exciting. She is looking for a new Diamond of the Season after all. While I don’t think it needs to be said but to be explicitly clear, I’m talking to every human when I say wear the damn gown! Male, female, non-binary, etc. Able to secure a tiara, throw that on too! It was actually the most common accessory I consistently saw all throughout the night. Again this goes for every gender. It made me wish I had kept my tiara from my Quince just for that very night. As for your hair, it should match the theme of your gown, big and voluminous either up or down.

Make An Entrance

When I say grand, I mean dramatic flair, royal attitude, and a jaw-dropping gown. At the event, commoners of the “ton” are kept behind velvet ropes until her royal attendants allow you to pass one at a time or in a group. Go alone, it shows your confidence and gives you more one on one time for the queen to assess your presence. Her royal highness will be sitting on her raised throne judging you while delivering a piercing stare. While this is intimidating as fuck, approach her as you would a favorite rich aunt, with warmth and a huge smile because you are so damn happy to be seeing the queen! Remember to glide toward her with impeccable posture and to better display your massive gown. Don’t rush and don’t skimp on your curtsy. A nice deep dip should do and you’ll be set if you already do curtsy lunges at the gym. Don’t hunch, keep your shoulders back and make eye contact with the queen on your way down and up. Your face should still be pleasant, not frozen with a plastic smile. Then if you can add a gown flip or a twirl paired with a melodic laugh you are set. You are being judged by the queen as well as the mysterious voice of Lady Whistledown who is commenting and yes even criticizing on every memorable guest, good or bad from hidden speakers overhead. If anything remotely positive comes from the voice from above, then you are in the running for that coveted Diamond title.

After you’ve made your entrance and are waiting for others, you get to enjoy the Instagram paradise that is the event. There is the wisteria tunnel at the entrance, then the displays of costumes from the show, and you have an indoor gazebo that looks like it’s made up of bubbles. Outside you have a fake lawn, seating for outdoor tea, and more flower arches to pose under. If you feel like spending money, there is the Bridgerton gift shop and several bars throughout the area. You also can have your portrait digitally taken which actually comes out looking like a painting. Remember that the second you walk in, the clock is ticking and you have a limited amount of time to experience everything. Once the queen leaves her throne and heads to the ballroom, royal attendants usher the crowd to follow and you cannot go back. The other parts of the experience get closed off.

Luckily there’s another bar in the ballroom so you’re set when it comes to libations. When I went, I guess there were about 250 people there all crammed together. We had to keep the center stage clear for a very intimate and romantic acrobatic performance between two exceptional dancers. Their costumes suggested they were Daphne and the Duke and the sexual tension between the two was palpable. The audience was shrieking and gasping and generally getting all hot and bothered over the entire thing. What was interesting was that the two barely even touched except for the graze of a hand here or there. It reminded me why people have been drawn to the show in the first place, the anticipation of a deep lustful desire and a forbidden love. The climax of the performance is when they finally embrace and I swear to you everyone swooned and even had some swinging from chandeliers.

The rest of the night consisted of learning a watered-down yet still lively version of period dance. Our side of the room had trouble following directions and busted into a Soul Train line. The actors did their best to reign us in and couldn’t stop laughing. The entire time we had a five-piece orchestra playing the iconic songs from the Bridgerton soundtrack. The musicians got their time in the spotlight as the violinist took centerstage with an astounding solo which was greeted by many rounds of applause.

Shine Bright Like a Diamond

This is around the time the Diamond is crowned and they really drum up that suspense as the actors scurry around the room to find him or her or them. The lucky gem is brought onto a center stage with a radiant spotlight and as they wave to their adoring audience, a shower of glitter falls around them. When you are picked, remember to use the reaction you practiced for when you finally win at the Academy Awards. We all have it. The face you make when you hope with all your might you get it but when you do you have to feign shock as you humbly follow the queen to your rightful place. As glitter showers down around you, make sure that when you wave at everyone you do so from your wrist, not your hand, make eye contact with someone for three seconds then rotate slightly to move on to the next part of the room. Most importantly of all, make sure to thank the Queen for her generosity (even though we all already know you’re the baddest bitch in the room).

This is where the DJ breaks the period fantasy and starts playing Bruno Mars and everyone dances the night away for at least twenty more minutes before everyone is kicked out and the actors close shop for the night. There are several times per day you can attend but I think the best time is late on Friday evening because then you can go bar hopping in your gown after and tell all the commoners how marvelous you are and why there is so much glitter in your hoopskirt.

If nothing else, go for the fun of finally seeing diverse representation spurred by the show. I’ve never seen so many black and Latina women in Elizabethan period dresses, hoop skirts, and tiaras. I think maybe they all realized just like I did that they’ve always wanted to join the dress-up party but never felt like they were allowed to enjoy a time when the white voice was the dominant narrative.

At the Bridgerton Experience, everywhere I looked, there were people of color. The queen was black, Daphne was also black while the duke was white in this case. The solo violinist was female and the rest of the orchestra was black, Latino, and Asian. I have never seen a Latino orchestra member in person. What this event does is suspend history and essentially erase the racial divides. The casting all across this experience wasn’t surprising, instead, it felt familiar. As if this is how it should have been all along throughout history, all of us together just enjoying a good dance party in dazzling floor-length ball gowns.