All You Need to Know About Prom

Hopkins prom is an annual event for juniors, seniors, and their guests. Ava Maccaro ’24, a member of the prom Committee, says this year “the theme for the dance is Mean Girls and Y2K.” Mean Girls was a popular movie from the 2000s, and Y2K means “year 2000,” or fashion trends from the 2000s. Maccaro shared that the prom Committee arranged for the event to be held at Woodwinds Venue in Branford on June 4th at 7pm. According to alumnus Lera Strickland ’23, “The night lasts several hours; there is catered food, a DJ, and last year there was even a professional photographer! The night starts with a sit down dinner and then everyone moves to the dance floor.”

When it comes to going to prom with a date versus with friends, students at Hopkins have differing opinions on which is preferable. Based on a survey, 75% of students say they are going to prom with a date, although 60% say they prefer to go to dances with friends. Mason Sulzbach ’24 thinks that “it’s prom, you gotta have a date” while other students like Connor Tumasulo ’24 say they have “gone to dances with friends and with dates and always had more fun with friends.” Beyla Ridky ’24 says, “I don’t think it makes a huge difference! Everyone socializes with everyone either way.” Overall, the most important thing to consider according to Ellie Welby ’24 is that you “go with whoever makes you happy.”

Promposals, although not unique to Hopkins, are a lighthearded part of our school’s culture. In the springtime students find creative ways to ask each other to prom, often making use of  posters and a bouquet of flowers. Oren Arbisman ’27 who “thinks [promposals] are sometimes cringy”, a survey reveals 83% of students at Hopkins are in favor of promposals. The student-run @hoppromposals2024 Instagram page currently has 345 followers and 19 posts as of May 19th. Brandon Kumpf ’24 says, “I think promposals are a really fun tradition that we do. It’s a super fun thing to see around campus, and a good way to figure out who is going with who.” 

Hopkins students have a wide variety of fashion tastes for prom according to the survey: Sophie DelMonico ’24 “prefers clothes that stand out” and Tomosulo agrees that “it’s better to be bold than boring.” However, others like Ella Zimolo ’24 “think satin looks very elegant,” Ridky said she “loves flowers,” but Webly argues “Corsets for the win.” Aside from specific styles, Grace Zhang ’25 thinks “matching outfits, whether it's with your friends or with your date, are just really cute and a nice display of the relationship you have!” Isabel Pizarro ’24 agrees and said, “I think matching with your date is cute!” More specifically, students should “match the guy’s tie with the girl’s dress” according to Annie Gnidula ’24. 

Over 70% of students going to prom this year think the $125 fee is too expensive. “There needs to be more fundraising if prom is going to cost this much,” says Welby. “The price is too high,” agrees Pizarro, “I think the Prom Committee could work on lowering the cost.” Delmonico agrees as well and says, “I’d make the tickets cheaper. The tickets at my boyfriend's school are only $75.” Caitlin Phipps ’24, a member of the Prom Committee says, “I’ve heard a lot about the price this year and I completely understand the pushback! The Prom Committee student members are not involved with the ticket pricing, but we have inquired about it and we’re told that it is due to inflation. Venues are getting way more expensive which works out to a higher cost per person.” The Prom Committee also tries to lower the price for individuals through events such as Hire a Senior where students can pay seniors to do tasks for them. Despite the cost being divided among the amount of students that attend prom, Phipps said, “All money for tickets is taken before the event, so the price won’t change based on how many people show up. We don’t make a profit at prom; we’re just looking to break even.” 

Phipps explains the process of deciding this year’s theme: “In the winter, the senior Prom Committee (Prom Com) members pick a theme! We have to take the past themes into account. ’23 was Tropical Island and ’22 was Hollywood, so we can’t have anything similar. We landed on an unofficial ‘Mean Girls’ theme, which is more sparkly Y2K.” The decorations for this year’s dance will include “super cool references to the ‘Mean Girls’ movie, alongside pink and silver decorations,” according to Phipps. 

Some students were unhappy with the theme. For example, Tatia Casella ’25, says she “would change the theme. Y2K is not it.” Grace Zhang ’25 also says she feels “pensive about the theme this year.” Kumpf responds to critics by saying, “Historically the theme has been up to Prom Com just because it’s not a major part of your actual time at the event. If, in the future, Hopkins wanted to instate a dress code, I would definitely want the student body to be able to vote for it.” He continues by encouraging students to join the Committee: “Picking the prom theme is one of the perks of being on Prom Com! If someone wanted to be a part of the theme selection process, they definitely should apply next year.”

 The prom is more than just food and dancing. Kumpf shared that the Prom Committee “hired a Photo Booth to be at Woodwinds, and we are planning a few other cute surprises to make prom more memorable this year, especially since it is not at Anthony’s. According to Kumpf, “We designed the sweatshirts and are creating some other cool photo opportunities at the venue. Unlike last year, we won’t have Beckerman taking photos because we will have the Photo Booth.” 

Phipps believes “prom is more special than other dances because of the attitude around it, the separate venue and the glamorous outfits are a fun change of style from what we would normally do as a class.” According to Phipps, “The purpose of prom is to enjoy the glamor and have a fun night with your date/friends.” Kumpf says, “Overall, I think prom this year will be great! The Committee is trying our best to make it fun for everyone.”