The Roaring Twenties is all but unfamiliar to East’s juniors, for F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic novel, The Great Gatsby, is read in every 11th-grade English class. But this year, the Class of 2025 not only gets to experience the glitz and glamor of the Roaring Twenties within the walls of B-wing but also under the glimmering lights at their very own prom.
“We just revealed our theme, The Great Gatsby, so I really hope everyone is super excited about that,” said the Junior Class President, Jessica Lazaroiu (‘25).
On February 6, SGA sent out a form to the Class of 2025 listing the top three Junior Prom themes, Day and Night, the Shore, and Great Gatsby. This gave juniors outside of SGA the chance to have a say in prom. While the other themes received a handful of votes, Great Gatsby quickly proved desirable, becoming this year’s theme.
“I liked how they allowed us to pick our favorite theme,” said Alana Rellosa (‘25). “I thought it was a really smart way to get people excited.”
SGA officers and representatives have been working together diligently for the past few months in preparation for the Junior Prom on April 12. While the dance location, The Westin Mount Laurel, was chosen months ago, they are now beginning to focus more on finishing touches and theme-related aspects.
“We visited our venue that we booked last year, we scoped out what we plan to do in each room, we booked our DJ somewhat recently, and now we are focused on breaking off into committees in SGA so that there can be different special focuses,” said Sydney Herring (‘25), one of the Class of 2025’s Vice Presidents.
With the special date lying under a month away, Lazaroiu, along with the other officers and class representatives, continue to brainstorm ideas that aim towards making the dance different from proms in the past as well as an entertaining experience for all juniors in attendance.
“We’ve just been discussing with [the representatives] about the music, food, specific decorations, and any fun activities just so people can enjoy the time and have more things to do besides just dancing and eating,” said Lazaroiu.
SGA members aren’t the only ones planning for prom. Whether it’s attire, photo plans, hair appointments, or dates, different juniors have had prom floating in the back of their mind for the past few weeks.
When it comes to finding the right dress, most people prefer going a few months in advance to check out different stores, different looks, and different prices. With prom dresses being such important purchases to so many people, an Instagram account was created to prevent people from buying identical gowns.
“It was a little stressful at first but I like to think I found my dress faster than other people,” said Rellosa. “Even though I didn’t go to many stores because I chose my dress pretty quickly, it was definitely a fun experience.”
While the excitement involving suits may not be as notable for some students, it’s an exciting experience getting to dress up for the night no matter what attire you plan on wearing.
The Class of 2025 SGA looks forward to welcoming everyone at the Westin in Mount Laurel on April 12. Although the date remains a few weeks away, all juniors continue to prepare for a night of fun in the Roaring Twenties.