Prom — that enchanting night when a girl can feel like she’s in Cinderella’s glass slippers.
On May 7, Lawrence High School will host its 2011 prom. Students will have a choice to base their appearance on the prom theme “Out Of This World.”
Senior Kianti Vann hasn’t chosen her dress yet but is planning on ignoring the theme and wearing a black dress. She preferred the idea of a rave theme.
“Planets, what are you thinking?” Vann asked. “Who voted for this? When I saw that we voted for that, I got heated. Who wants to go to a Star Wars themed prom? I’m feeling the rave.”
A lot of preparation is put into this occasion. After all, prom is a long-awaited night — a final farewell for the graduating class.
So, what isn’t there to stress about? Girls worry about their dresses, shoes, hair, accessories, makeup, pedicures and manicures.
“I am really stressed from my prom group because it keeps increasing in size, and no one can make a decision about what our plans are,” senior Kelsey Taylor said.
Dress shopping must end in perfection, but perfection can be expensive.
“It’s going to cost me like $100 for my nails, another 30 for my hair, my shoes will be 85, and my dress cost around $280,” senior Nicole Bostick said.
Creativity is considered in the search for the dream dress. Girls must decide what size they need, what color, and how exposed they want to be.
“For me, it’s really hard picking between two of my favorite dresses,” Bostick said.
Hair magazines bombard girls. They wonder if their hair should fall perfectly or stay in an up-do, or possibly something in between. They debate whether their hair should be straight or curly; maybe a hair clip would top it off, or even a head band.
The men seem to have it a bit easier, though not without a little stress.
“I have to make sure I got all the details straight, like get my tux,” Junior C.J. Roush said. “And I gotta look good.”
Together, couples stress about matching the dress, tie and corsages, going out to dinner before the dance, sharing the night with a group of friends and parents sobbing about the beautiful pictures they’re taking in the perfect setting.
“My mom’s a photographer so she’ll be taking pictures of us,” Bostick said.
They face self-imposed problems but also crave to reach their date’s expectations.
As important as appearance is on that special night, there is one more thing. It’s common for people to ask their sweetheart in an admirable and unrefusable way. Roush shares how his girlfriend asked him to prom.
“It was so surprising, I was very excited.” Roush said. “She [senior Kendyll Severa] took a picture of herself asking me to prom on the beach in the sand.”
All in all, incredible preparation for a high school goodbye.