In the landscape of Greek society in the inter-war period, towns became the crossroads where men and ideas came together. The capital especially attracted the latest European trends in fashion, entertainment and manners. Society life kept up a brisk pace, despite the political and social problems that characterized the period. Dances and gatherings were at their peak. Casinos proliferated and the Racecourse of Phaliron was inaugurated. Love of nature became fashionable and the numbers of mountaineering and excursion societies increased, while bains mixtes (mixed baths) at the beaches of Spetses and Phaliron scandalized the more traditional. Physical training was winning more supporters, with the emphasis on female sports. Trendy dances such as the foxtrot, tango and the sprightly charleston were gaining more ground. In 1928 the first film company, 'Grik film', was founded, while around the same time the first 'Cinema School of Athens' opened. Cinema was by now the favourite entertainment amongst all social classes, stealing its audiences from the theatre and Karagiozis. The theatre was in crisis; however, it did not lose its audiences completely due to the revues which parodied political and social events on stage. Apart from the big theatre companies of Kyveli and Kotopouli, many less well known groups emerged, touring the Greek countryside to confront the crisis.