Under a Western influence: Wealthy ladies soon adapted to the Western ways of leisure and beauty treatments. Photo provided to Shanghai Star

Under a Western influence: Brides in Shanghai, left, eschewed the traditional red veil, instead wearing white. Photo provided to Shanghai Star

Westernized life

Dreaming of a lost city

Memories of another era

Shanghai has long been a place highly influenced by Western styles and manners.

A bow tie, dark suit, white wedding dress, red roses, a pair of white gloves — all these items became essential at the weddings of the wealthy. The traditional Chinese wedding was easily cast away. The bride no longer had to show her demure nature by covering her face with a red cloth. Instead, she held the groom’s arm and the photographers took pictures of the couple surrounded by relatives and friends.

Wealthy ladies soon adapted to the Western ways of leisure and beauty treatments. The appearance of beauty parlors offered a place for women from prestigious families, film stars and social butterflies to spend a relaxing afternoon with friends. The women had to get hair and nails done to compliment their outfits before going to formal dinners.

Dance culture filtered into normal life, with the arrival of parties and merriment — a time for singsong girls and dancers. The Paramount Hall, a famous entertainment venue in Shanghai during 1930s and 40s was built with colored lights pulsing up the fa?ade of a grand Art Deco building in 1932. In its heyday, it was one of the world's legendary dance halls, a place where Chinese tycoons and foreign adventures wearing suits mingled with pretty girls dressed in qipaos in an atmosphere of giddy modernity. Today, it is still a wonderful place to spend an afternoon.

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