Viva la prom

Students of the 2023 class enjoy “A Night in Vegas” prom

photo by Brooke Bohan

Senior Jaylee Luna dances with her friends at prom. The dance was held at the Hard Rock Café on May 22.

As prom was drawing to an end, junior Jenna Lopez and senior Malacy Crossan walked to the dance floor for one last dance. The room was sparkling with flashy purple and blue decorations as they held onto each other. Crossan took her hand and spun her around, admiring her beautiful dress.

“It was magical,” Lopez said. “The venue was amazing and being able to have fun with my boyfriend and seeing everyone’s different dresses was so fun.”

On April 22, prom was held at Universal CityWalk’s Hard Rock Café, where the dance is traditionally held. Unlike the location, the theme this year was not traditional, giving this year’s dance a unique theme, A Night in Vegas.

“The theme was fairly easy to come up with because we wanted a theme that would match the vibe of Hard Rock Café. This made it easier on us regarding decorations and things like that,” junior class president Ainsley Pomp said. 

Students were able to dance the entire night with their friends and partners under purple and blue flashing lights. They danced to songs like “No Hands” by Waka Waka Flame and “Party in the U.S.A” by Miley Cyrus. 

“My favorite thing about the dance was everyone was up and dancing the whole time. I went to another school’s prom and it was not as fun because most people just stayed seated,” senior Melina Lange said.

With 500 students in attendance, the venue was crowded. Most of the students were in the middle of the floor dancing in groups and having fun.

“People were stepping on my feet so I had to keep pushing them off, but all of the dancing was so much fun and it exceeded my expectations,” senior Toní Greó said.

To enter the dance, students had to purchase a ticket through MySchoolBucks during ticket sales, which lasted from March 3-31 and show a form of ID to get in the doors. Once they arrived, there was a buffet that served caesar salad, macaroni and cheese, chicken tenders, bread, mocktails and soda.

Students were allowed to enter the doors at 7 p.m and doors shut at 8 p.m. During that hour, the staff held a mocktail hour and opened the top viewing deck to drink and take pictures. Senior Ian Miller was crowned prom king and senior Ruby Isaacs was crowned prom queen, ending the night.

“This was pretty similar to last year’s schedule, the only difference we made was with the layout. We made a smaller dance floor and had fewer tables around the venue,” Pomp said.

The layout change came with some complaints as there were less tables, leaving many without space to sit and eat throughout the night.

“The seating arrangement was bad, there was nowhere to sit and we had to stand the entire time,” senior Josh Brawner said.

Some students did exciting things after prom like staying in a hotel, hanging out with friends or going to Universal Studios.

“I stayed in the Hard Rock Hotel after prom and the price was worth it. I also went to Universal Studios the next day, even though we were tired it was still fun,” Brawner said.

Even though there were some complaints, the dance was a success and students had a great time.

“I loved the dance and I am excited to do it again next year,” Lopez said. “I had so much fun and was able to dance with my friends the entire night.”

Photos that were taken at prom can be found on smugmug.com.

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