Trying to bring students back together after the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the faculty, as well as Student Government plan the formal night of the year for juniors and seniors to enjoy.
“Prom is a fun night for our junior and senior classes to get out, as well as socialize,” junior class advisor Michele Cheeney said.
To plan an event this large, they have to start somewhere.
“We talked about themes for junior prom in class last year, as well as a little bit this year,” junior class advisor Kim Dudek said. “Students went down to see what decorations we had from past years and decided to choose a theme from there.”
Some faculty members have their own beliefs on the topic of how prom should feel, as well as what prom should look like.
“In my opinion, the theme is prom. It’s the most formal dance that students are going to attend at the school. So we try to keep it simple and elegant,” senior class advisor Bryan Fagan said.
“A lot of time and effort” gets put into the process of creating a night for student socialization, according to Fagan.
“About a year and a half ago we booked the date for senior prom at The Fuge,” Fagan said.
Some individuals involved with set up say it take longer than the prom itself.
“Sometimes, it takes four hours to set up everything and two hours to take down, which is more than the actual prom itself,” guidance counselor and prom DJ Daniel Glatts said.
As for getting prom up and running, it “depends on the venue,” Fagan said.
“I work with [assistant principal Matt]Haines to set a good date for the occasion, as well as keep in contact with the [venue,]” Fagan said.
With steps, such as decorating, the venue plays a role in how the students want to set up the night.
“[Senior Student Government] will take a walk-through of the venue on April 7 to tour the place and see what it looks like,” senior Annabel Cunningham said.
According to Fagan, knowing the layout of the venue plays an important role in decorating for the event.
“We will visualize what we would like to set up while taking a walk through to give us an idea on what we can go above and beyond on,” Fagan said.
On the day of, setting up takes “multiple hours and people.”
“It takes around 25 of us to set up all of junior prom before the day of,” junior Simon Hershberger said. “We have a general checklist of ideas but not specific, as well as general guidelines to follow.”
Some of the night has a more fluid structure. “Parts of prom are probably going to be spontaneously planned,” Hershberger said. “Even with prom having a set date and time, no one knows exactly what the night is going to look like until they arrive.”
Some of the experienced prom staff also agree that the event itself is often unpredictable at times.
“With my experience in working with students and adults, half the music I just know what I am going to play. The other half is based upon what the students come up with for me to mix in,” Glatts said.
Junior prom will be held April 29, in the cafeteria and senior prom will be held on May 20, at The Fuge in Warminster.