Every August, Loyola High School hosts one of the biggest dances in the LA area. Inviting girls from nearby sister schools, like Marymount, Notre Dame Academy, Immaculate Heart and others. thousands gather in Malloy Commons to dance. Three years ago, Loyola hosted its last first dance of the year called Camp Flog Paw.
Student Body President Dante Sampedro ‘23 said, “So many people from different girls schools in Los Angeles come to have fun.”
And then the COVID-19 pandemic hit, preventing a dance for two years With the loss of the dance, the classes of 2024 and 2025 (though they had the winter formal) missed out on an important part of their highschool experience. Thankfully, this year, the dance is coming back.
This year, Student Council plans to make some changes to the dance, but also plans to keep some things the same. For example, rather than sending and passing out physical invitations to the girls’ schools, Loyola plans to go completely virtual with the advertising and invitations. Students should share invitations found on the Loyola Student Council Instagram.
Additionally, the plan is to move the second dance floor, hosted by MPC, Modern Poets and Composers club, to the front circle rather than the gym. Loyola plans to keep following the same formula when it comes to entertainment: a professional DJ equipped with a stage, lights, and a screen.
Similarly, the dance will have its usual clever name, typically a parody of another popular concert or music festival. This year, the dance will be called Cubchella, taking inspiration from the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.
An increase in attendance for this first dance is also expected. Traditionally, the first dance is attended by underclassmen, mostly freshmen and sophomores, and “usually gets around 1500 to 2000 attendees,” said Chris Walter, Director of Student Activities.But, since only the senior class has had a chance to experience the first dance, the student council expects attendance to be even higher. This will be a first time for Freshmen, Sophmores and Juniors.
However, with a higher attendance comes more issues such as excessive moshing, trespassing, and illicit substance use, all things the faculty hopes to prevent.
Walter said, “The goal is ensuring the safety of everyone.”
A majority of the funds raised through Loyola’s first dance goes to the Winter Formal and the Junior/Senior Prom, the two most popular events on campus. With the expected higher attendance, students should also look out for even better dances later in the year.
After three years, the first dance’s hiatus finally comes to an end on Sep. 24. Make sure to invite all your friends.
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