I say go for it. Even though I was much of a loner, I was part of a languages program and shared five school years with pretty much the same people. It was a lot of fun, during the prom and after the party. It was well-organized and school staff was on duty to help us get home safely.

So unless you profoundly hate your classmates, I say go for it! Just looking at some people's attire or arrival will be a lot of fun.

I find it silly that I replied to this thread two months before actually going to prom. Maybe I thought this thread would be dead by now, but if so I was wrong! Well, now that I went to prom last Saturday I can tell you my answer based on my experience.

Prom is worth going to if you have some friends there to go with that will engage you into their conversations so you don't feel left out. I was very fortunate to have those 2 friends there with me, otherwise I wouldn't have enjoyed it. I only had one of my dude friends there and he was always in a big group of people, so I didn't really get to talk to him. I didn't bring a date simply because I didn't want to However, those 2 friends I mentioned, who happened to be girls, I stuck with the whole time because it was just them and one of their friends, so I didn't have to butt in to a giant group to start a conversation.

Prom is also worth going to if the music is what you'd define as good. The "dance music" at my prom was rap (which I think is common now for any school dance) so some of the people there had no idea how to dance to it. The one song/dance my friends and I knew very well was the cupid shuffle. It made me laugh when that came on because the tables of people sitting down suddenly rushed up to the dance floor, excited that they finally heard a familiar song! That was my table too XD

Finally, prom is worth going to if there's amazing food. My prom had a small, not at all fancy meal but it was somewhat delicious. We had wrapped manicotti, mashed potatoes, corn, and bread with seasoning. For dessert, we had giant cookies!

My friends and I only danced to one song together by out of nowhere, forming a circle and jumping around. If any of my other guy friends were there, I would have done something like that with them too. But no, I had to hold hands with a group of girls just to dance in a group, which of course was a little awkward! Once we actually did it I stopped caring though because it was fun.

xxAriaxx : Nice to hear that you had something you really liked to do that you could go to that night!

I believe it is worth it, only because you can go during your Junior and Senior years. I'm going into my junior year, and I'm hoping to finally find someone willing to go with me to prom (and homecoming, both my Freshman and Sophomore years were rejections)

I never went to prom, or homecoming, I wasn't a real popular kid and I felt that is something people that were popular went to, and if someone that wasn't popular went they were made of, and besides I had no interest in the music they listen to or dancing. I got offered a few times to go, but I declined. Personally I think it's just a popularity thing, and not worth the time, hassle, and stress. I look back and still think it was a great move for me to not go.

It wasn't ever an option for me. But I never saw the appeal to begin with. Seems like a huge waste of money to me.

I must be an unpopular kid who wouldn't have had fun.

   Well, my reply might be a bit tardy to the party, but my overall opinion on prom is that the whole giddyap's quite alright.

   While prom didn't matter to me as much as it did to the general masses, I just wanted to experience as much I could of what adolescence had to offer.

   My school threw the thing in the local college's convocation center with a "Beauty and the Beast" theme. Tickets cost $25, while the after-prom tickets were much less.

   My prom tux rental, though, was near $200. My mom knew the woman owning the local boutique, so that was a plus; but Mum and the store owner insisted that I get a tux that "went with" the colors of my date's dress, so they got a beige tuxedo with a light blue tie, vest, and pocket garment. It wasn't bad I guess, but I just didn't see why it would be the end of the world if my tux conflicted with my date's colors. I gave my date a corsage while she gave me a boutonnière.

     Before prom, people did ask me if I was going. Then they'd ask me if I had a date; I'd respond that I didn't have one, or that I was planning on going alone. In fact, my English teacher did the aforementioned song-and-dance, and told me, right in front of a few bachelorettes, that I could ask them if I wanted (needless to say, my face went red). Then around a month or two before the event, one of my friends messaged me, asking me to prom. I said yes, as I contemplated going with her beforehand, and I understood how much going to prom with a date meant to a lady.  We went with a mutual group of friends (one who was bringing her long distance boyfriend from NC). I hung out with quite a few social groups, but the group I was closest to, and went to prom with, you could say, would be the "outcasts/emos".

   The event was pretty fun; there was great food strewn along tables next to the walls, there was a huge dance floor with all the lights and loud music you'd enjoy more on ecstasy (drugs are bad, mmkay). The DJ did have swell tastes in music; I just died when they played "Death of a Bachelor"! While most of the others were *ahem* inappropriately dancing to the music, a friend and I tore it up on the dance floor. People loved my dancing; some even had me teach them my "moves" (little did they know, 'twas all improv)! They did play a couple of slow-dance numbers; one of which I awkwardly danced with my date to.

   If you were feeling a bit sluggish, you could always duck out into the courtyard for some fresh air; that did save me from passing out and/or throwing up.

   The night left me too exhausted for after-prom (free movies, inflatables and whatnot) and the post-prom-act-of-love, which I was too single and responsible for anyway.
   (Y'see, I thought bathroom drug use and the hanky-panky after prom were uncommon around my small town, but "Never Have I Ever" and gossip have taught me otherwise. I'm a boring kid, apparently!)


TL;DR: Albeit overrated, prom can be fun, depending on your school & personal tastes. Much dancing, many social traditions & customs. You'd probably enjoy it if you're more socially "into it", but do know when to stay home or do something else.

I escorted many beautiful girls (which their parents paid for) because they thought the guys were hound dogs and trusted me (as a best friend). My physics class bought my home coming ticket because I got mugged while hiking 30 miles to gather the materials for our float. It was all pretty stale except that one prom got me a Crystal cup and homecoming was made fun because I dressed up like tuxedo mask and refused to speak except the dj (and only to request songs I heard girls I danced with linked). I gave roses (paper ones I handcrafted) only to girls who had no dates or whose "dates" said they invited them for the secret pig party contest, and waltz with every girl who I gave roses to or asked for a dance.

My own senior prom I skipped in favor of a weekend that cost me $5 for a reenactment and a masquerade ball (which apparently I got so much popularity for that people stop me all over the country and ask for a dance, when I attend folk dances).

So I say if you want to dance go find a local dance that is within your affordability and in your style. It'll probably cheaper and will definitely be of better quality.

I'd say give more towards your education.

To be completely honest, prom is a unique experience to go to, regardless of age. Buying a cute dress is fun and all, but let's think. What's more important to you? Prom, where you'll spend one-night wearing fancy clothing which cost you a lot of money, or something more apparently fun, such as going for a night to eat in a restaurant where it is a lot cheaper and you will probably have a more quality service.

Not only that but no one wants to relive the horrors of Carrie now, do they?

From what I've heard, prom is more fun when you are going with friends. I never actually went to prom (or homecoming for that matter) primarily because I thought it was a waste of money, I didn't have/find anyone to go with, and because I was appalled at some of the stories and yearbook pictures surrounding prom. There's absolutely nothing dignified about prom at the high school I went to, it's just a million people tightly packed together while bumping and grinding on one another.

I had the opportunity to go, but I turned it down because I knew it was something I wouldn't be interested in from the start. I'm a highly solitary person, and in big social situations like this, I have no idea what to do and it just ends up being an uncomfortable and unenjoyable experience for me. Even if I went, I would've probably regretted it.

Overall, I think prom is best for people that have a plan and people to go with. The type of person you are also factors in, if the word "prom" makes you shudder, then it's possible that it's not something you would enjoy, therefore not making it worth your time. 

It sound to me that you do not really want to go. If you do not want to go then do not go. I went to my prom solely because I could wear a pretty dress and get my picture taken in it. Good thing that is why I went because the only other thing to do there was eat and stare at he boys that refused to dance leaning against the walls, or go out on the floor with your girlfriends and risk being crush by another posse of girls.

  I do find it odd when people say they never tried doing something and know already that they would not like the experience. It is not like this topic is about something inherently unpleasant [like touching a hissing arthropod or reptile].

 My anti-anxiety booklet calls this habit of predicting social outcomes "forecasting".

 My reason for not attending the graduation banquet with my parents was that everyone there except my family would be people I had little contact up to that point with as I was a generally ostracized student. Even the so-called dancing afterwards may have been strictly obligatory. I had been to Halloween "informals" at school so I did not label this term end event as anything special. I am not sure anyone at that school knew how to be formal. I had made school in my mind out to be a hostile social prison where I continually failed to acknowledge the people who would have really liked me. Needless to say, I did not find the learning environment to be hospitable and celebrating my "graduation" would have felt akin to making public reference to all the Subway sandwiches I could have eaten but didn't.

On the female side of things, it seems a rather silly thought that a fancy dress purchased to pretty up for a formal event ought to be only worn once. If a lady needs such a dress, maybe getting one she can wear as one of her go-to party dresses in the coming years is more practical.

 Historically, promenades used to be a quarterly, seasonal, monthly or even weekly occurrence in developed societies. Held so often, such community events would only set one back the previous equivalent of what five dollars would be today. As that tradition declined in popularity, people began to place an extra emphasis of importance on school age formals. Promenade events at school like Homecoming Formal, Winter Ball, Themed Formals and of course the graduation formal [colloquially known as prom today] still persist because people keep placing that extra importance and in some cases resulting anxiety on the occasions.

 The same businesses that provide for weddings and advertise in wedding magazines also love school promenade events. The atmosphere gets so pretentious that silver spoon kids "need" new formal clothes to dazzle observers like never before [just forget about wearing the exact same clothes ever again]. Same mentality as vain female celebrities throwing tantrums if any person wears the same dress or outfit. Males obliged to wear tuxedos. All this means large volumes of sales for local business interests. Hey, no one told the boys and girls to be practical about their expectations.

 All these promenades are really about is succumbing to the complex expectations of modern society. You think cave-dwelling women worried about if the lady in the next cave over got an animal hide skinned from the same animal as their own attire? Methinks they perhaps knew what was genuinely important and lived their lives deliberately without worry as to what any observers judged their looks to be.

 P3

That question depends on how you look on the outcome:

A) I didn't go
B) I went

Both scenarios have ups and downs.

A) I didn't go; I stayed home and pitied myself for not going. But I might have learned something about it >.>

B) I went and had a good time. But I got home late and no I'm grounded lol


[This whole post is meant a joke]

In my opinion, no.

Nothing in high school really matters once you get out into the real world, and 99% of all relationships you form with people, be it friendships, romantic relationships, or otherwise will crumble within 2-3 years of leaving high school.

You might get lucky and keep a friend or two, but in general there's no reason to go out of your way to try to preserve or elongate a friendship of convenience.

Since nothing in high school matters once you leave, and prom is a high school fixture, prom doesn't matter, unless you are dead set on getting laid, and are lucky enough to know someone who will give you that release.

It's funny how people talk about how prom is amazing and great to go to. One of my co-workers and I were talking about this a few weeks back. He was going on about how prom is great, and he asked if I ever went, I told him no, I found it to be a waste of time, and he questioned me why, I gave my thoughts and told him how I felt about it, and he said "well you should of went and met new people." Well with the fact that most of my friends didn't go either, and the people that went I wasn't really friendly with, why would I go? He really couldn't answer me there, but all he could do is mock me, so I mocked on how it's stupid to go to some stupid dance, with garbage music, etc.

I didn’t go. No regrets, but as others have said, it all depends on you.