Why have a prom theme?

The Prom Organiser’s top three reasons for having a prom theme:

1. Having a prom theme makes it easier to design posters, invitations and tickets
2. The prom venue decoration options can be narrowed down to a focused design
3. Prom guests can choose to join in with their outfits (e.g. colours, accessories) and that’s a lot of fun for them too

Prom themes make everything to do with design easier, as without a theme, your options are simply endless. The prom theme brings motifs, colours and prominent shapes with it that can inform everything you design for the prom. For example, if you go for Arabian Nights, it immediately conjures up images of desert sand, rich fabrics in vibrant colours, and the arch shape of Arabian architecture, just for starters.

How do you choose a prom theme?

The first step is to brainstorm as a committee. Go crazy! Come up with all the wild, wonderful ideas you can and write them down on a big bit of paper. Don’t think about whether it’s feasible, it’s all about the ideas at this stage.

Next, take a step back and look at each idea, considering the following questions:

1. How could that prom theme help with visual design?
2. Is it easy to make or find prom decorations that fit in with that theme?
3. Can we make good use of this theme on a tight budget?
4. Would anyone find this theme too awful / offensive / stupid to be able to enjoy their school prom?

The last one might be strange, but let’s say one of your brainstormed ideas is a zombie prom. Zombie films and books are popular at the moment, but there are lots of people that find them scary rather than funny. It might seem like a huge amount of fun to people who think that sub-genre is a laugh, but it might be too niche, and too out there for everyone to enjoy.

That list of questions will help you prune the crazy ideas into a list of feasible prom themes. But you’ll still have to choose between them and at this point you have three options:

1. Put it to a committee vote
2. Have the chairperson decide the theme
3. Put it to a vote in the year group having the prom

You could involve the whole school in the last option, but as only one (two at the most) year group will be attending the prom, it seems more fair to just let them vote.

Always bear in mind that the theme won’t please everybody, that’s impossible. If the choice of prom theme is just causing too much grief, arguments and tantrums (they do happen you know!) then you might want to choose a colour based theme instead. One school in Somerset went down this route and chose silver, blue and purple. It served the same purpose in terms of designing posters etc and made decorating the prom venue much easier.

So, there you have it, a quick guide to choosing a prom theme. I’m gathering up lots of prom theme ideas at the moment for prom themes part two, so it’s your turn now:

Tell us your favourite prom theme ideas, and we’ll feature them in the next prom theme post! You can tell us over Twitter, on our Facebook page or in the comments below. Have fun!

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 Once you have a smaller group of committed volunteers, there are three critical decisions you need to make:

1. Do you have a formal prom committee with defined roles?
2. What is the date of the prom?
3. What is the prom theme?

The formal committee decision

 There are pros and cons to this approach, so a discussion about it might be a good idea.

Formal prom committee pros:

• Everyone knows who is responsible for what
• No tasks get left out or forgotten, because there will be a nominated person (or people) responsible for them
• People can concentrate on things they like doing and not have to worry about the other stuff
• People can get credit for more specific things

Formal prom committee cons:

• People might take on a role and find out they hate it
• Not all committee roles are glamorous – how do you handle filling the role no-one wants?
• Do people want to be stuck in one role for the next six months?
• What happens if someone needs to drop out because of unforeseen circumstances?
• What if someone thinks they can do the job but can’t handle it?
• Some roles are harder than others, or have more responsibility

Ultimately this decision is all about finding the balance between being efficient and organised, but not so regimented that all the fun is taken out of it. One approach could be that everyone discusses ideas, tasks etc, but the responsibility for making the decisions actually happen falls on a specialised prom committee member. For example, you can all discuss the decorations together and decide what you want, but then it’s up to the committee member responsible for décor to actually go and source materials, get quotes and buy the gear, and arrange for it to be put up on the day.

Setting the date of the prom

Your school might have already decided upon the date – so there’s one less thing for you to worry about! If it hasn’t been decided already, then there are few things you need to bear in mind.

Firstly, the prom is likely to be at the end of the year, so find out the date of the last exam so everyone can be chilled out on the night. If any key prom committee members are in the last exam, you might want to set it a couple of days later so they can get their head around prom stuff again (especially if they’re the ones decorating the venue!).

Secondly, you need to make sure that the date doesn’t clash with any other major events in your area. Some events (like festivals) are held at the same time every year, so they’ll be easy to find out about. To be absolutely certain, pop into (or call) the local tourist information office as they will have a long term schedule. (It’s best to visit as they may not have an up-to-date website.)

Thirdly, spare a thought for the Mums and Dads that might be the taxi for the night and choose a day that is at the end of the week (Thursday or Friday is ideal – Saturdays might clash with weddings and other family events).

Deciding upon a prom theme

Having a theme for a prom gives you the opportunity to have lots of fun with decorations and entertainment, and can help guests choose what to wear. It makes planning a prom easier too as it narrows down all the options, and it makes a more memorable night.

It’s critical to decide upon the theme at the first proper meeting, as it will shape all of the planning and budgeting for the entire prom. You might come to an agreement quickly, or you might have a few favourites you can’t choose between. You could always hold a ballot, either within the committee or for the whole school year. Or it could be a matter of choosing the theme that is the cheapest and easiest to arrange.

Don’t forget that the prom theme can simply be colours, rather than something more complex. Black and white balls are very popular, for example, and a black and white prom could look really stylish with minimal effort.