Galas Unless noted, all prices are per person and inclusive of beverages, tax, and tip. Back in Black Sheraton, 39 Dalton St., Boston. 617-542-8642. The first 500 callers pay $125; it's $150 after that. Cash bar. Dinner and overnight packages available. Casino proceeds go to Boston Cares. (Get directions). Rowes Wharf Restaurant Boston Harbor Hotel, 70 Rowes Wharf, Boston. 617-748-1828. $500. Overnights available. (Get directions). Cafe Fleuri Le Meridien, 250 Franklin St., Boston. 617-451-1900. $500 per couple. Overnights available. (Get directions). Ritz-Carlton 15 Arlington St., Boston. 617-536-5700. $3,000-$6,000 per couple. (Get directions). Boston Park Plaza 64 Arlington St., Boston. 617-426-6000. $900 per couple. (Get directions). Hyatt Harborside 101 Harborside Dr., Logan Airport, Boston. 617-568-1234 or 1-800-233-1234. (Get directions).

Whip out that cummerbund and dust off those pearls.

Swing orchestras, balloon drops, and the two-step are still in at the end of the century. The city's grandest hotels are throwing extravagant galas. In many cases you have to book a room to get in, but some are open to anyone with a bow tie or gown.

The biggest bash is the annual Back in Black gala at the Sheraton. Mix 3,500 spiffed-up 20- to 40-year-olds with a little bubbly and a super-swank setting and everyone will be making friends - you don't need a date to attend.

This year's gala hopscotches across the country via a trio of themed ballrooms: New Orleans, with a boisterous Mardi Gras pumped up by a zydeco band; New York City, with a dance band and a megascreen showing the Times Square countdown; and Las Vegas, with games of chance and a 22-piece orchestra. Party favors and a generous array of hors d'oeuvres are included. At $125 a head, this may be the best gala deal in town.

At Rowes Wharf Restaurant in the Boston Harbor Hotel, 250 movers, shakers, and fans of chef Daniel Bruce will start with a six-course Moet & Chandon champagne dinner. They'll burn it off to the tunes of the Uptown Revival Orchestra. Elegance will prevail: complementary Tiffany champagne flutes, Limoges votives setting the room aglow, and a floor-to-ceiling view of the harbor fireworks.

An oh-so-French flair and the White Heat Orchestra will make for a festive night at Hotel Meridien. The scene: the newly redone Cafe Fleuri atrium. The cast: a dressed-to-the-hilt mostly over-30 crowd. A five-course parade of edible luxuries - foie gras, truffles, filet mignon, and more - is on the menu. The Showstoppers swing troupe will entertain and instruct, so no excuses about not dancing.

Your gala choices increase if you get an overnight hotel package. For starters, there's the Ritz. Need I say more about this option. For the pleasure, be prepared to drop a few thousand.

The best black tie overnight deals are at the Boston Park Plaza and the Hyatt Harborside. The chandeliers, gilded balconies, and grand staircase entry to the Plaza's ballroom would make Cinderella think she'd arrived at the ball. It's tough to say "just $900," but with millennium prices generally being over the top, that's a deal for a couple to attend the gala, enjoy a gourmet dinner, and stay two nights.

The indecisive can have it all with the Hyatt Harborside's $750 per couple overnight gala. Start off with pina coladas and a reggae band at a casual Caribbean beach party. Then dine on everything from sushi to fajitas in the international buffet pavilion. A black tie gala with a front row view of the harbor fireworks caps off this swinging slumber party.

You can get decked out but save yourself the tux rental at a host of other formal but no-black-tie-required galas.

Originally published in the 10/21/99 Boston Globe Calendar.