Obamas dance until wee, small hours

WASHINGTON, Jan. 21 (UPI) -- First couple Barack and Michelle Obama took off their dancing shoes in the wee hours Wednesday after visiting all 10 official inaugural balls in Washington.

The first couple danced to variations of the Etta James classic, "At Last," including Beyonce's rendition, at the Neighborhood Ball.

Both the Obamas and Vice President Joe Biden and his wife, Jill, pledged to attend all 10 officials balls, scattered throughout Washington, and they began just after 8:30 p.m. Tuesday. First daughters, Malia and Sasha, did not drop by any of the fetes, but their mother told ABC News they would be playing hooky on Wednesday, The New York Times reported.

The balls capped off a day of photographs, speeches and parades for Obama, who made history by becoming the first African-American to be sworn in as U.S. president.

After the Neighborhood Ball, the new first couple dropped in on the Obama Home States Ball, a party for residents of Illinois and Hawaii.

"Aloha!" Obama said into the microphone. "What's going on?"

"This is a special ball," he said. "Because it represents our roots: Hawaii, Illinois. And together you've given us so much."

One party-goer told the Times it wasn't about dressing up or the food or the entertainment -- it was about seeing the Obamas.

"The ultimate is seeing the president and the first lady," Susan Peevy, 45, from Rockville, Md., said. "I don't know who's performing, and I don't care. Just so they show up."