Every year, Bearden’s Prom Committee brainstorms, researches, and selects a creative theme to inspire the dance’s aesthetic and marry many different elements into a cohesive event; this year will be no exception.

The 2020 junior-senior prom theme, Las Noches en Havana, translated as Nights in Havana, is centered on Cuban culture in the 1950s. 

“Think of gorgeous bright colors, crisp whites, and a lot of greenery,” co-sponsor Mrs. Melinda Sims said.

Despite appearances, the committee’s process behind selecting and developing a theme for the dance is equally intentional and complex.

“Every year…we name off as many things as we can, and my friend [Chloe Cross] came up with it,” junior and committee member Sarah Yeow said. “We had all the themes on the board, and as we started talking, we bounced ideas off of each other.

“We were really intrigued by the colorfulness of the Havana theme.”

Following initial discussions, Yeow along with Cross and Suany Diaz were given the task of turning the brainstorming session into multiple, feasible possibilities for the final theme. The three committee members also assumed the role of presenting their findings to the group.

“We narrow[ed] it down to two or three [then] we started going on Pinterest, creating PowerPoints, presentations,” Yeow said. “We presented that one and two other themes and then we voted.”

Although the Prom Committee does a majority of the heavy lifting regarding event planning, other Bearden departments play crucial roles in bringing the concept into fruition.

“Mrs. [Vicki] May pulled one of her students to design the ticket and the poster,” Mrs. Sims said. “We get to see the creative kids in the school that aren’t juniors and seniors but have a lot of talent and would love to help contribute.”

The artist behind this year’s prom poster, senior Calley Doyle, hand-drew the image of a woman in red standing along a colorful Cuban street.

“I met with [sponsor] Mrs. [Anna] Graham to discuss what design she wanted, and she told me that she was looking for a vintage 1950s Havana postcard-like design,” Doyle said. 

Equally as purposeful as theme selection, Doyle’s brainstorming process combined historical inspiration through photographs with her own artistic vision.

“I started brainstorming by researching elements commonly associated with the 1950s, including vintage convertibles, glamorous hairstyles, and ruffled dresses,” Doyle said. “From there, I planned out which objects would be which color and created small thumbnail sketches to organize the overall layout.”

Even months prior to the event, committee members and fellow students alike are hard at work planning a memorable night for the Bearden community.

“I think it’ll be really, really cool…with all the elements that we have planned,” Yeow said. “We have put a lot of thought into it already through…really discussing what we want and how we want it to be executed.”

Bearden’s prom will be held at The Mill and Mine on May 9 from 8 p.m. to 12 a.m. Tickets will go on sale for $45 during lunches March 23-27 for eligible seniors and March 30 through April 3 for all eligible juniors and seniors. 

To be eligible for the event, students must meet the following requirements: fewer than 10 unexcused absences, on track to graduate, and no OSS. Students will be notified of eligibility March 9-13 during third period.