After a successful night rally, parade, and football game, Alhambra’s Homecoming celebrations ended with a lovely dance on the night of October 7. Adorned with sneakers or loafers, sparkly dresses or dress shirts, Alhambra students and guests made their way onto campus for a night full of excitement. They were greeted with snacks, candy, and decorations inspired by this year’s Homecoming theme, board games. Candy castles from Candyland stood outside the front doors and Apples-to-Apples cards littered the walls. On the way into the gym, where the dance floor stood waiting, students passed under a blow-up archway and streamers hung from the doorway. More streamers decorated the bleachers and the stage for the DJ. Unlike last year, the bleachers remained out to provide seating to students. The entire gym floor was now a dance floor, with the DJ’s stage at the back of the room. Disco lights illuminated the space just enough, as the overhead lights were off. The DJ played music all night long, blasting tunes from rap to pop.
Another new addition to this year’s dance was a Silent Disco. The idea for a Silent Disco is that a group of people wear headphones with the same music playing in them. The crowd dances to the music they hear, but the room is silent to anyone without a headset. Originally, the silent disco would be held in the commons, but most students wore their headsets on the dancefloor, where the same music was playing from the speakers. Students reported the music being glitchy, and it got worse as they moved away from the DJ. One group of seniors reported liking the idea, especially because one person could wear the headphones when their group left the dancefloor for refreshments and could alert the group when a known song came on. They also concluded that wearing the headphones on the dancefloor added a layer of volume and clarity to the quality of the music. It was an enjoyable modern addition to the average school dance and has room for improvement.
Overall, Homecoming 2023 was a wonderful end to Alhambra’s Homecoming events and the first dance of the school year.
