Prom. When we hear the word prom, we think of so many things- dancing, friends, and fun. Prom has been a rite of passage for graduating students since the 19th century. Prom comes from the word Promenade, which means dance. Prom has changed so much over the last 50 years. We have gone from arriving in stretch limos, to party vans, to just taking your own car to save money. The way we dress for prom has also changed drastically. Until recently, maybe the last ten years, people would get really dressed up and treat the prom more like a formal event. Guys would wear tuxedos and match their dates’ dresses, and the girls would get all decked out and get a formal gown with tiaras. Now, the boys may wear suits or even just a shirt and tie, and the girls wear more of a party dress and sometimes even wear sneakers! Venues went from high school gyms to country clubs.
The biggest change is possibly how we ask each other to prom. In the early 2000’s promposals were introduced. Promposals are a more elaborate and public way to ask your date to prom, usually using posters, food, or even scavenger hunts. This was a new trend on social media as well to post your promposals for all to see.
To find out just how much proms have changed over the years, I asked my mom about her experience, ( a long, long, time ago)! When I asked my mom if she went to her prom, she told me that yes, she did, and it was held at Danversport Yacht Club in May of 1997! Wow, that was a long time ago. She told me a little bit about her experience- “I went to the prom with my boyfriend at the time, and he just simply asked me. Promposals were not a thing back in my day. We went to the prom in a limo with other friends, and after the prom, we went to Kowloon restaurant to eat and then back to a friend’s house for a party. I wore a very fancy dress and had my hair done, and my date wore a suit. I still remember that night very vividly, and I am so happy that I went. It is a memory that I will have forever. I hope your senior prom is something you will never forget, too!”
So, will you be going to Prom? Do you hope to be asked, or do you want to do the asking? Will you make a promposal? Will you go in a group or with a date, or alone? How do you plan to dress? I asked my friend Tea Princi, who is a graduating senior this year, about what her thoughts on prom were. Here is what she said- “I do plan to go to prom, and I hope to go with a date and possibly hang out with friends after. I would do a promposal with a poster. And I plan to wear a fancy dress.”
There you have it, folks. Prom is coming sooner than we think! So what are your plans? Whatever your plans look like, or however you get there, I hope to see you at prom in May, and I am personally hoping to make some lasting memories that I will remember forever.
