Yesterday was Prom for New Trier High School. Nearly everywhere I looked I was reminded of the ridiculous amount of money that was lavishly spent on this one night. Prom is a dance that takes place in all classes and communities however, the different aspects of prom is certainly indicate class.
1. nearly all groups of 16, 17, and 18 year-olds arrived in limos, or at least party buses. Some of these limos were large enough to fit 50 people.
2. The prom was held at the Rosemont Center, where chandeliers line every ceiling.
3. Dinner was, let's just say, surprisingly extensive. There were chefs with huge roast turkeys, slabs of beef, ham, salad bars, fruit, cheeses, pasta, burgers and (to show how culturally diverse we are) kabobs and spanikopita.
3. The dance was elegantly decorated, and we were trusted with real glass plates, metal silverware and clothe napkins.
4. There were large TV screens on the dance floor showing both music videos and live footage of the dance.
5. A professional photographer was distributing printed photos in folders for anyone who so desired.
6. Many girls were clad in designer dress, shoes and glitzy jewelry- correspondingly guys all had on nice tuxes, complete with cuff links and shiny shoes.7. Probably a quarter of girls got their hair professionally styled.
8. At my after party, Arnold Palmers were served.
The indicators continued into the night, but my main point I guess is simply that there are indicators of class EVERYWHERE! Regardless of the fact that prom is a lavish occasion regardless of social class, the details of every prom can indicate what class the school falls into.
Carolyn- you make a lot of good points here, and I agree that a North Shore prom must look a lot different than one in a neighborhood where not so many people can pay a lot of money to go to a dance. However, I think that some of the things you saw were not as expensive as they may have looked. As a guy, I'm certainly not an expert on girl's styles, so I won't even try to say that girls can find good looking, relatively inexpensive dresses (I just don't know if they exist). However, the guys didn't have to buy a tux. Most people rent a tux for just about $100. Some borrow their dad's tux (free of charge). I got my tux for free because I was part of a program that Men's Wearhouse uses to promote their store in high schools. I agree that the cost of the photographer and food and renting the Rosemont must have been large, but for just $65 all of that stuff seems like a really good deal to me. At my after party, everybody brought their own home made food to serve. Nothing fancy, just fun treats. I also saw a lot of limos (our group came in a stretch Hummmer), I also saw some buses that were not party buses, but rather a typical shuttle bus that seats a really large group; maybe up to 50 people. I definitely understand that there are some indicators of social class here, but I think that with a little bit of effort, one could cut down on the cost and still look good and have fun. Therefore, some of the supposed indicators of class may not be as glaring because more people would be able to afford it.
ReplyDelete