Adding another year to the decades prom has been celebrated by PHS, June 1 brought together upperclassmen at The Westin Princeton at Forrestal Village for a night of festivities, starting at 6:30 p.m. The spotlight fell on a picturesque scenery, with gowns flowing elegantly across the dance floor surrounded by floral, candlelit tables. 
After arriving at The Westin, attendees enjoyed a social hour paired with hors d’oeuvres, the boasting of a myriad of appetizers, followed by an evening of catered dining — serving chicken parmesan with salad — and DJ’ed dancing that wrapped up at 10:30 p.m. Photo booths complete with colorful props and a karaoke station were set up around the venue. To top it all off, a grand chandelier sparkled overhead, glittering as the light show illuminated the clear glass.
For most attendees, the night started well before 6:30. Groups of friends and their dates gathered to get ready for prom together, taking group photos to capture long lasting memories.
“We got together and took pictures, it was like a pre-prom,” said Rohun Chivate ‘23. 
Many attendees agreed that the highlight of prom was the music. Colorful strobe lights flashed across the dance floor accompanied by musical hits, making for a night of high energy dance moves, romantic slow waltzes, and even a brief crowd surf. Some memorable song favorites included Pitbull’s “Fireball,” Lil Uzi Vert’s “Just Wanna Rock,” and Wiz Khalifa’s “See You Again.” 
“The music was like something you would hear in a club. It was popping and thrilling,” said Marsden Edler ‘23. 
Behind the energetic, candlelit night was months of planning by the prom committee, which started having weekly meetings in October. In addition to narrowing down a venue and theme, which upperclassmen voted on through Canvas polls, details such as food, specific decor, and activities were discussed and narrowed down by the committee. For Heather Harris, teacher supervisor of the prom committee, seeing these visions play out on prom night was especially rewarding. 
“The theme this year was candlelit nightfall, so there [were] warm, glowing candles, nice flowers, and seating. It’s like a nice restaurant dinner, but prettier. It focused more on orangish [lighting] and more of an intimate setting,” said Ashlena Brown ’24, junior class president and member of the prom committee. 
An integral part of the longstanding high school tradition are promposals, elaborate requests to be someone’s date at prom. Many PHS juniors and seniors honored this tradition during this year, creating promposal posters full of puns and inside jokes. Most of these affectionate gestures were displayed on a PHS instagram page called “phspromposals_2023”, which contains over 1000 posts with promposals dating back to 2014.
“I think promposals are the best part of the experience — you get to see what jokes people make. [Mine] was a poster after this one baseball game I had, and it [had] a very big Parks and Recreation reference,” said Matty Baglio ’23, senior class president. 
Promposals were not limited to be between love birds, as attendees often “prom-posed” to their close friends.
“Promposals are really fun, especially if you prompose to your friends, I think it can be really funny,” said Hermy Berteloot ‘23. “I proposed to my friend and it was an inside joke between us. People were looking at us weird, but I had fun.” 
Throughout the decades, another consistent component of prom is the presence of elaborate gowns and suits. Attendees often dressed to match, wearing ties corresponding with the color of their date’s dress. Others honored their culture, dancing in traditional gowns such as qipao and sarees. For many attendees, outfit shopping before prom was an entertaining and unforgettable way to connect with family and friends. 
“I picked out my dress with my mom last year and again this year. It’s really fun because it’s a way for us to spend time together. She also tried on some dresses which were pretty funny,” said Berteloot. “It was also a way for her to also enjoy the last memories of me in high school.”
This year’s prom was deemed a success by attendees, having a large event turnout with approximately 600 students attending. Many attendees agreed that contrasting from last year’s outdoor prom, 2023 was a drastic upgrade. 
“We had to drive so far away [last year], and it was just hot outside,” said Edler.
Following the night of an enchanting, successful prom, many attendees traveled to post-prom festivities– a second round of partying–or returned home accompanied by friends. 
“I went to my friend’s house [after prom],” said Felix Aguayo ‘24. “People want to keep having fun. They don’t want the night to end.”
For the graduating PHS seniors, prom is one of the last major events in their high-school experiences. After four years of high school molded by the COVID-19 pandemic and polished off with demanding classes, prom marks both an end and a new beginning.
“Prom is one of the last big celebrations for me and my friends,” said Emma MacMillan ’23. “It’s a great way to round off high school.”


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