In May, the senior class office announced that senior prom will be at the Exploratorium in San Francisco on June 2. The class officers anticipate around 350 students will attend.

This year’s theme is “The City of Stars,” which, according to senior class vice president Colina Guan, was chosen in accordance with the venue’s view of the night sky. The “City of Stars” theme was also inspired by the Oscar-nominated film “La La Land.”

Guan said the Exploratorium was reserved by the senior class officers a year in advance. Class officers decided on the venue after visiting it on the suggestion of class adviser Arnaldo Rodriguex.

The tickets start at $185 with ASB and $205 without, with ticket pricing increasing by $10 a week. Ticket sales started on the week of May 8. According to Guan, the ticket prices are expensive because of the venue’s rental price of $24,700 and the fact that they were mandated to use that venue’s preferred caterers.

Recent senior prom ticket prices have almost always been this expensive in recent years, with last year’s price being $185 as well, Guan said.

Senior Sahm Rafati said he understands where the high price comes from and thinks the venue is worth it. He is excited for prom to be held at the Exploratorium because there are several exhibits to look at as well.  

According to Guan, the senior class has already sold five and a half buses worth of tickets, which translates to 270 students attending already.

“This year, the venue is much grander; we're serving hors d'oeuvres instead of buffet style, and we have Royal Coach buses instead of yellow ones,” Guan said. “It's also more expensive because we're required to use the luxury buses this time, and the ride there is an hour.”

Since this is the last high school dance for the Class of 2018, officers said they have put in extra effort to make it a memorable night.

Preparations that the class officers have done for prom include planning a marketing campaign and filming and editing promotional videos. DJ Delicious will be the prom’s DJ.

For their promo video, the senior class office used music from “La La Land” to promote the dance’s “City of Stars” theme.

“I feel pretty proud of what we've accomplished for this prom, but it’s definitely bittersweet since it’s one of the last school events we have before graduation,” Guan said.