Tekko | Formal Ball

In 2025, Tekko welcomes you to its sixth annual formal ball, hosted by Trickssi (she/her) and the Tekko Formal Dance Team! This year’s event will feature all-day lessons on Friday prior to the 3 hour Formal event as well as lessons and workshops on Saturday, including the INformal Dance. See below for our full schedule. Most lessons now focus on one style per time slot.

Before you put on your dancin’ shoes, please read the rules, dress code, and etiquette information at Tekko | Formal Ball . Direct dress code questions to formal@teamtekko.us and accommodation coordination to ops@pittjcs.org (cc formal@teamtekko.us ). The ball will be held on Friday, 7/18/25 from 8 - 11 pm in the 4th floor Formal Ball Room.

PLEASE NOTE: This year, masks are still MANDATORY in the Formal Ball Room. You must wear a face mask at all times while in the room. The mask must fit snugly from over your nose to below your chin (for most styles). No bandannas, gaiters, or exhalation valves. If you are wearing a helmet, partial mask, or fursuit head, you must wear an additional medical face mask underneath. A small number of masks will be provided at the door. N-95 or equivalent masks are highly recommended. There will be no exceptions to this rule; it is in place to protect our immune compromised staff members.

Formal Dance Time: Friday, 8 - 11pm

Event Room Location: 408-410

Rules

You must adhere to Tekko’s code of conduct at all times.
You must wear a face mask at all times in the Formal Ball Room. The mask must fit snugly from over your nose to below your chin. No bandannas, gaiters, or exhalation valves. If you are wearing a helmet, partial mask, or fursuit head, you must wear an additional medical face mask underneath. A small number of masks will be provided at the door. N-95 or equivalent masks are highly recommended. There will be no exceptions to this rule.
Follow the dress code listed below. Those who do not follow the dress code risk missing out on the event. If you have questions about your outfit, please contact staff at formal@teamtekko.us . If your outfit does not fit the guidelines, you are more than welcome to attend the INformal Dance (16+) on Saturday!
Adhere to hygiene and sleep guidelines from the convention. Shower, deodorant, and overall cleanliness are important when asking people to dance!
Drink lots of water! There will be water bottles provided by the convention. Feel free to bring your own water bottle.
Take breaks if you need them. Walking around all day plus hours of nonstop dancing will probably make you sore, so be sure to take care of yourself!
The dance floor is for dancers only. Please move off the floor quickly and carefully for any non-dance activity.
No lifts, large group circles, or moves that endanger others (such as breakdancing or flailing arms without looking).
- No lifts. Even if you have been trained to perform lifts, this can still be a danger to others! Someone watching may get too close without your knowledge, or try to perform a lift untrained. This can result in injuries to yourself or those around you.
- No deep dips. An improper dip that requires more than bending one’s knees a few inches can lead to serious injuries.
- No breakdancing.
- No intentionally bumping or cutting off other dancers.
- NOTE: We discourage dips, lifts, breakdancing, etc for a second reason: we want an even playing field. There are often a lot of beginners on the dance floor and it can be intimidating when others use these kinds of moves. We want to encourage all levels of dancers to attend the event and have fun. We ask that you help us create an encouraging environment by keeping these moves for another dance floor.
Sexual harassment and harassment of any kind aren't welcome at any Formal Dance events. This includes but is not limited to:
- Not allowing someone to dance with other partners.
- Forcing your partner to remain in frame (not allowing your partner to leave the dance).
- Inappropriate frame holding (i.e., with a hand too low on the back, hip, or buttocks, or on the chest; or holding a partner too closely and invading the space of their neck, face, or other parts of the head). Even if consensual, this activity is not appropriate for an all-ages friendly event. If you are being harassed, please talk to ballroom staff wearing red scrunchies on their wrists or contact the harassment hotline either via email at hro@pittjcs.org or phone at 866-767-9708 ext. 1
We’re here to dance and have fun, not intimidate or harass others. We ask each participant to treat others with respect and dignity throughout the evening so that we can continue to hold this fabulous event!

Social Dance Etiquette

You’re not required to dance the style displayed on the screen, or even to dance at all! The screen will simply provide guidance as to what social partner dance(s) you might want to dance to each song. Some songs might have two or more dance styles that can apply.
All ages and skill levels are welcome if you'd like to try social partner dancing but please don't feel obligated to dance. You can also attend of rthe ambiance or the fun of dressing up!
You’re not required to bring your own partner. Anyone may ask anyone to dance. Your dance partner does not have to be a romantic partner. We’re here to have fun and dance as a community!
Please follow the Dance Floor Etiquette image below. Line of dance means the Leader is facing and traveling counter-clockwise on the floor. Some songs might have two or more dances that can be done simultaneously. Pay attention to where spot dances vs. traveling dances are taking place.

New dancers should stick toward the inside, as more experienced dancers are more likely to use the outside of the floor.
If you’d like to be asked to dance, try standing toward the front or on the direct sidelines of the floor. Sitting down or standing in the very back of the room makes you look unavailable to potential dance partners.
We suggest asking both “Would you like to dance?” and also “ How would you like to dance?” We’ve found this to be a great way to discover whether your partner would rather lead or follow, which can help you avoid some awkward moments later on.
Anyone has a right to decline to dance with anyone else, for whatever reason. However, if you decline a dance from one person, ballroom etiquette considers it polite to sit out the rest of the song rather than accepting a different offer. Because there are lessons held in connection with our event, there will be many folks at the social dance who want to apply what they've learned and grow as a dancer in addition to making friends. We’ve found that declining an offer without sitting out for that song may be taken poorly, even if that's not what you intend. An exception to this is if you have already promised to dance the current or upcoming dance with someone else. Please check out other ways to decline politely provided by our guest host at https://trickssi.com/lessons.php However, if you are declining because you are feeling uncomfortable with the specific person asking or their behavior, please talk to ballroom staff or contact the harassment helpline ( hro@pittjcs.org ) .

Dress Code

If you have medical restrictions on footwear or movement, please contact formal@teamtekko.us as soon as possible so we can help you access our event in a way that both accomodates you and keeps everyone in the spirit of a Formal Ball.

All other Tekko standards of dress must be met in addition to the following.

Face Masks Are MANDATORY.

You must wear a face mask at all times in the Formal Ball Room. The mask must fit snugly from over your nose to below your chin (for most styles). No bandannas, gaiters, or exhalation valves. If you are wearing a helmet, partial mask, or fursuit head, you must wear an additional medical face mask underneath. A small number of masks will be provided at the door. N-95 or equivalent masks are highly recommended. There will be no exceptions to this rule; it is in place to protect our immune compromised staff members.

Formal Attire

If bottoms are shorter than mid thigh or a few inches above the knee, there must be an opaque layer underneath that covers this area of the legs and ensures no undergarments are showing. Examples include solid-color leggings, thick tights, or dance shorts over tights.
Slits must not show anything inappropriate. Please wear something like dance shorts or cheer bottoms over tights if the slit in your bottom garment goes up higher than two inches above the knee.
No mesh or sheer materials in inappropriate areas.
No extremely low cut or “plunging” necklines. When in doubt, test to make sure your neckline is well-fitting at all times as you move without a possibility of slippage. Think: a neckline that would not require the use of double-sided tape.
Avoid or bustle trains on dresses as they can be stepped on.
No jeans or cargo pants. Dress pants or dress shorts (think Ouji-style) only.
Collared dress shirts are permitted but cannot be open. T-shirts and tank tops are not permitted.
Formal neckwear is encouraged but not required.
Undergarments should not be visible.

Movement guidelines

Participation in dancing will require freedom of movement for anything you choose to wear.
However you choose to move, your ensemble should stay attached. Utilize those safety pins!
Please consider the relatively small size of the room as well.

Tidy appearance guidelines

No matter what you choose to wear, please keep the image of a “formal” night out in mind.
Whatever you wear, ensure there is no slippage.

Shoes

There will be a floating floor at this event as well as carpeted areas, so please plan accordingly. To gain a better understanding of what you might want to wear, please read a guide on shoes for formal dances. ( https://trickssi.com/resources-shoes.php )

The following are considered appropriate footwear: dance shoes with smooth soles, dress sandals, pumps, flats, clean boots without thick or scuff-making soles, high heels, and dress shoes. Please make sure the footwear does not come off when dancing, or wear shoes with a strap or ties. Remember: we want to look “formal,” so choose something that looks like you could wear it to an indoor wedding.
Sneakers, tennis shoes, Demonias/thick-soled platform shoes, outdoor sandals (e.g., Crocs or Birkenstocks), and flip flops are not allowed.
Stiletto heels are STRONGLY discouraged for safety reasons.
If you have medical restrictions on footwear or movement, please contact formal@teamtekko.us as soon as possible so we can help you access our event in a way that both accommodates you and keeps everyone in the spirit of a Formal Ball.
If you don’t have any shoes that are approved per the above guidelines, remember that there is an INformal dance on Saturday at the same time. Lessons and workshops also don’t require approved shoes.

Cosplay

You are not required to cosplay at this event, but you’re more than welcome to!
Cosplay must follow the dress code as listed above. If a character wears an outfit that “almost but not quite” follows the guidelines (a character that wears a tuxedo with flip flop sandals), the cosplay must be modified until it meets the dress code. If you are unsure whether it meets the guidelines or if you need suggestions on how to modify your cosplay, email cosplay@teamtekko.us .
Please be mindful of costume pieces that may get in the way when dancing with a partner, including wings, tails, or horns.
You must remove swords, guns/other weapon props, and hats that are not secured to your head when on the dance floor.
Bulky fantasy armor must be removed when on the dance floor.
Whole-head latex masks will not be permitted on the dance floor for the safety of all dancers.
Eye patches over one eye are permitted as long as the other eye is unobscured and has peripheral view.
Body paint and face paint must be sealed.
If wearing a wig, please keep it secure with hair pins, bobby pins, or a velvet band.
Japanese traditional clothing, Lolita, and other cultural formal wear is also welcome as long as it meets the guidelines above within reason.
Dress Military Uniforms are welcome as long as they are formal Military Uniforms.

Fursuits

Fursuits will be permitted if attire is dressed over the fur suit and follows all of the above rules. (For example, a fox fursuiter has a gown or tux over the fursuit that matches the formal guidelines.) Suiters still must follow mandatory masking guidelines. Heads will only be permitted during photo opportunities as we must be able to see your face mask.
The only rule that will be waived is the no shoe rule.
It is highly recommended that if you wish to dance, you should dance with a handler or have your handler nearby if your headwear restricts your vision in any way.

Other

No obscene graphics, including 'parody' images, are permitted on any item of clothing.
Dress code decisions made by formal staff are final.

INformal Dance

There will be NO dress code for the INformal dance other than wearing a face mask and following Tekko’s general standards of dress found here: [ https://tekko.us/rules ].

Please note that the INformal dance is a 16+ event that may include songs with uncensored language or suggestive themes. It is intended to be a fun, relaxed atmosphere that allows participants to practice what they’ve learned over the weekend!

Host

Trickssi (she/her) is a cosplayer, formal dance coordinator, and founder of the Cosplayer Survivor Support Network (CSSN). She’s honored to be back as your host, dance teacher, and DJ for Tekko’s formal ball! A certified victim advocate from OH, Trickssi’s passions include creating inclusive support for marginalized populations and revolutionizing the way social partner dance shapes our anime convention community. Check out www.trickssi.com for dance resources and ways to support her work. For information about the Cosplayer Survivor Support Network and to see how you can help, please visit www.cosplayer-ssn.org .

Trickssi will be joined by the Tekko Formal Dance team. Ask us to dance!

Formal Ball