Never been to prom? You now have the opportunity to while also supporting students of the School of Theatre and Dance in a fundraiser at NIU.
The School of Theatre and Dance will hold a 80’s, 90’s and 2000’s nostalgia themed prom from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Feb. 7 in the Black Box Theatre in the Stevens Building. The event was organized by Antonio Horn, a senior BFA acting major at NIU.
Horn said the idea for Nostalgia Prom Night emerged after brainstorming fundraising ideas to help support the BFA showcase, which takes place in April.
According to Horn, the BFA showcase is an event where students in the School of Theatre and Dance can display all of the skills they have learned in front of others.
“It’s like a big showcase where we showcase a lot of plays and reels that we have done in practice, and we do it in front of, you know, family, agents, just to get our name out there and to show them all the skills that we strive to acquire with the four years that we’ve been here in SOTD,” Horn said.
Horn wanted to create an event that’s enjoyable and inclusive for everyone.
“I wanted it to be a chill event. I didn’t really have a set goal, I just wanted everybody to have fun and also contribute into us, OK, and also with the prom event.,” Horn said. “I also wanted to promote other people on campus, not just the actors, because I know a lot of money would go to the actors. But I also wanted it to be some traction to come into the Stevens Building, since a lot of people is not in here, they’re not having classes here.”
Some activities that will be showcased at the prom include a DJ, dancing, raffles, many surprises and a possibility of a performance, according to Horn.
“It’s gonna be a lot of surprises. There is a lot of stuff that I’m trying to add on to it now, and I’m just still brainstorming ideas of maybe there might be a little performance going on. There might be some strolling going on. It might even be a few games here, but you just got to pop out. Don’t miss out,” Horn said
An array of vendors such as a Polaroid photo booth and an artist who will create cartoon characters of attendees will also be present.
Horn said the event is open to everyone regardless of whether they are a student at NIU or not. The theme of nostalgia was chosen to allow people of all ages to enjoy the event without feeling left out.
“Since my goal was to make it to where everybody could come out, I didn’t want something to where, if it was really themed, that somebody got to go out and buy something specific,” Horn said. “I wanted it to be to where everybody got a piece of something that they can relate to.”
If you are interested in attending, tickets are available online through Eventbrite, with current prices for tickets being $20 for a single ticket and $45 for couples.
