The junior class danced the night away at their city themed prom on Saturday, March 30. Over 100 students met in the cafeteria from 7-11 p.m. to dance, enjoy dinner and dessert, take pictures in the photo booth, and admire the sparkly metropolitan decor.
It all began over 4 months ago when a group of junior parents got together and began planning prom. Led by junior parent Charna Kaufman, many KO volunteers worked to brainstorm ideas, order decorations and set up prom.
Form Five Dean David Hild bridged the gap between the parent prom planners and the students. “My role is to act as a liaison between the parents, who do the majority of the work to make the prom successful,” said Mr. Hild, “and the kids who ultimately go to the prom.”
Juniors were given the opportunity to vote on which theme they wanted the most for prom. “About five options were sent out on a Google form,” junior Anusha Memon said.
“There was a Paris-themed one, a circus-themed one and a city-themed one among others.” Ultimately, the theme “Big City, Bright Lights” won and was announced to the junior class at a form breakfast where invitations were also passed out.
The invitation detailed the theme, time, place, and price of prom, which was $50. Mr. Hild was responsible for collecting RSVPs and money from the junior students. According to Mr. Hild, around 80 out of the 96 junior students chose to attend prom. “We had 101 kids go,” Mr. Hild said. “Not everyone in the 101 was juniors, however. Some were underclassmen, seniors, or off campus kids.”
On March 30, the festivities began at 6 p.m. at junior Amelia Levine’s house for prom photos. The Levine family graciously offered to host pre-prom photos for the entire grade at their West Hartford home in their backyard.
“I wanted to host because I wanted everyone to be included in something for prom,” Amelia said. “It turned out to work really well, and it was a lot of fun.” Parents were even invited to stay after the juniors left to enjoy a catered dinner where everything from salad to pasta to chicken parmesan was offered. “It was really nice of Amelia’s family to host everyone,” junior John Doar said.Juniors then arrived at KO for the main event.
The cafeteria was transformed into a sparkling city complete with a giant cityscape, glowing lights everywhere, and even real park benches. Balloon bouquets, silver chandeliers, flashing stars and confetti dusted table cloths all added to the glitz and glamour of the decorations.
Overall, the guests seemed to be extremely impressed with the prom decor. “I thought the moms did a really good job with the decorations,” junior Molly Jones said. “Everything was so beautiful in the cafe; it looked nothing like it usually does.” Junior Ben Zamstein said he was also pleased with the decorations. “The parents did a really good job setting it up,” he said.
Another big hit of prom was the food. Provided by Chef Woerlen and Sage Dining, there were plentiful options for food, including Caesar salad, burger sliders, pasta, french fries, and punch to drink. For dessert, there were cupcakes and many chocolate covered treats including pretzels, marshmallows, and strawberries. Students really enjoyed the buffet. “The food was really good,” sophomore Henry Krieble said. Senior Nell Schwartz said she especially loved the dessert buffet. “I loved the chocolate covered strawberries,” she said. “That was the best part.”
Another fun aspect of prom was the music and dancing.Music was provided by Boppers Entertainment company, and the DJ played a variety of genres including pop, rap, and even some disco hits. Artists such as Ariana Grande, The Jonas Brothers, and Cardi B were played. “The DJ was really good because he played a lot of throwbacks,” junior Remy McCoy said.
Senior Jacqueline Dugan said she enjoyed dancing with her friends. “The dancing is always fun because it brings everyone together,” she said. However, there were some mixed reviews on the music with juniors commenting on too many songs in Spanish and not enough rap.
Overall, the dance has been deemed a success by juniors, outside guests, and chaperones alike. “The vast majority of the kids I spoke to said they enjoyed it and they had fun,” Mr. Hild said. “Trust me, I have been to a lot of junior proms, and it was a good prom.”
