A chocolate lover's dream--chocolate-dipped strawberries, rum balls, tortes, biscotti, pecan pie and much more--lured approximately 600 people to the ballroom of the Charles Hotel yesterday.

The third annual "Chocolate Fool's Day" gave chocolate fanatics a unique opportunity to indulge themselves by sampling an enormous variety of chocolate treats.

"I am not usually a chocolate lover, but I guess I am one today," said Steve A. Wotovich '95, one of several Harvard undergraduates who took time out yesterday to enjoy the festivities.

All proceeds of the event benefited the Cambridge Performance Project, a multicultural, arts education program, officials said.

The nonprofit corporation focuses on "teaching dance and theater to children in an after-school setting," said Joan Green, executive director of the project.

"Everybody that works in the arts is constantly scraping in order to find funds," Green said. "When we first came up with the idea, we thought it would be hard to get sponsors, but we have had great support," added the director.

The event, which took six months to plan, is expected to raise $5000 for the program.

It attracted support from 28 chocolate makers from across Massachusetts

"The chocolatiers are very happy to cooperate with the project and they take great pride in the chocolate they bring," Green said.

C'est Bon, a bakery and take-out cafe in Harvard Square, was one of the many chocolatiers present. "This is the first year we are involved, but we are very happy to contribute to the good cause," said George Sarkis, owner of C'est Bon.

While the good cause attracted many of the chocolatiers, others were simply drawn by competition. "They are very competitive when it comes down to it," Green said.

A panel of celebrity tasters, including Mayor Kenneth E. Reeves '72, judged the competition. The panel selected the most outstanding creations to receive the 1992 Chocolate Fool's Awards.

The awards included "For Your Eyes only," for the best decorated chocolate treat and "The Chocolate, the Whole Chocolate and Nothing but the Chocolate," and award for the best unadulterated chocolate.