Sparkly dresses, loud music, and… Richard Nixon?
Whether or not you went to this year’s prom, chances are you’ve already heard tons about it. Like, where prom was held: the Richard Nixon Presidential Library in Yorba Linda.
The location, which is home to Nixon’s grave and house, a rose garden, a large fountain, a gazebo, and lots of outdoor seating, definitely received some varied feedback.
In an interview with them, one of my prom-going friends whom we’ll call E said the location choice was “interesting” and “kind of weird,” elaborating that they “don’t want to dance with a giant portrait of George Washington,” (which was apparently hung in the dance area). Ultimately, however, they said the space was “not bad” (a ringing endorsement).
Talking to another friend of mine called “Z” about the prom location, said “It was fire,” shortly followed by “It was good.”
Another friend, who also wished to remain anonymous (Amiya Harris), said the Richard Nixon Presidential Library was “the freakiest spot to get down to,” adding, “I thought the location was pretty. It was cool, they had a tour of Nixon’s house.”
Based on these answers, I’ve come to the conclusion that the location, whilst it may seem a bit strange, was an overall good location — with the exception of one thing I can’t get out of my head.
In case you didn’t already know, the theme for this dance was “A Night in Paris.” Right off the bat, the Richard Nixon Presidential Library seems like an oddly American setting for Paris-themed dance.
And as far as I know, there wasn’t a whole lot of “Paris-like” decor either, barring a single picture of the Eiffel Tower. E suggests to “keep the location more consistent with the theme” for future dances, a statement I would have to agree with.
Also, from the information I’ve gathered, none of the food or drinks offered were distinctly Parisian either, with selections like chicken skewers, mozzarella sticks, a chocolate fountain with bananas, marshmallows, strawberries, pretzels and rice crispies, cream puffs, cookies, mini donuts, cupcakes, and assorted pastries. It does sound delicious, though, so maybe it’s not that big of a deal.
Along with the eating, prom offered a plethora of activities like caricatures, a photo corner, poker, and blackjack, about which my friend Z says, “Gambling is fun.”
On top of all this stuff, there was one central focus — the music. It is a dance, after all. From talking to my friends, I’ve gotten a lot of mixed reviews about this.
E expressed that they thought the DJ was good and played a good and large mix of songs. And then there’s Amiya Harris, who wished to remain anonymous, who said that the DJ was not good and didn’t play music that was really popular or good to dance to and that the songs were too long.
Yet, the DJ wasn’t the only source of music, as there was also a live band. Amiya says that she “had a lovely time dancing to the live music” and E accredited the live band to being one of their favorite parts of the night.
So, okay, maybe the location was a little funky, and maybe the presence of a theme was negligible, but this year’s prom overall sounded like a “good experience and a nice way to close out the year,” as put by my friend, E.
All in all, even though I didn’t go, it seemed like a really nice event. I’m glad my friends had a good time and I’d be curious to know what’s in store for next year’s prom.
