We’ve all seen those Disney Channel Original Movies, the ones where the characters get ready for their senior prom, talk about how it’s going to be “a night to remember,” and then have the time of their lives – after surviving all the preceding drama, of course. By now, it’s become pretty clear that high school is perhaps a bit different from what Disney Channel portrayed; however, that doesn’t mean the idea of prom has completely lost its magic.
Like many, senior Marissa Levin has been eagerly awaiting the start of prom and has been preparing for quite some time – even adding a unique touch to her dress by creating her own applique for it.
“I’m really excited for prom,” Levin said. “Finding out about something like prom when I was younger was really exciting for me. I’ve definitely been looking forward to it.”
Levin’s boyfriend, senior Jonah Barry, has a slightly different perspective when it comes to prom, looking forward more to the activities their group is doing before and after prom than to the dance itself.
“I’m not expecting too much [from prom] because I don’t plan to be there for a really long time – there’s always the bare minimum so I’m just expecting it to meet that,” Barry said. “Good music is all I want, pretty much.”
Of course, prom wouldn’t be prom without the friends, the pictures, the dinner, the afterparties, and of course, the elaborate promposals. For fun, senior Natalie Pang decided to bring back an old joke between her and her friend senior Linda Wu and make it into the perfect promposal.
“Our sophomore year for Valentine’s Day, [Wu] sent me a picture of Trump on a card, and it said ‘I wouldn’t deport you,’” Pang said. “So now, two years later, I thought that’d be funny if I did a proposal, the same theme. So I cut out a huge picture of Trump on a pink poster board, and I wrote the words “I wouldn’t deport you, prom?” And of course, she said, yes.”
Although prom is marketed as a fun and exciting event, that doesn’t mean that preparing for prom is super enjoyable – especially when it comes to picking out the perfect dress.
“[Dress shopping is] really exhausting,” Wu said. “I went to a few malls to buy dresses and you basically have to allot your entire day just to look for a dress. And it takes hours of standing [in line] and walking around and trying stuff on. It’s so tiring and I can honestly say it’s the worst part.”
Nonetheless, prom is not just about dancing to whatever deafening remixes the DJ might be playing or getting blinded by the flashing strobe lights, but rather, it is an event that allows seniors to celebrate the end of high school with the people that made it memorable for them.
“I’ve heard a lot [about prom] from my old senior friends,” Levin said. ” I guess I just expect a lot of fun, a lot of dancing, and good music.”
