The painted sunset lights streaked across a glimmering Lake Travis, slowly disappearing into a breathtaking evening sky to serve as a backdrop for countless students’ photos as juniors and seniors flocked to the Oasis on Saturday, May 3 for their annual Prom dance centered around the theme ‘Tale as Old as Time’. 

The venue was covered in red and gold, from rose petals to ambient lighting. As students entered, they were greeted inside by a casino layout, followed by three photobooths, and finally the ballroom, holding refreshments and booming with music. The balconies were also a popular spot for photos as students greeted each other. 

“I thought it was really impressive,” Avery Chen ‘26 said. “[Initially] I thought it was just going to be an outdoor event, but it turned out to have a lot of lights and decorations. I liked how we were able to choose the songs that we danced [to].”

The 2025 Prom had been prepared by Student Council’s (StuCo) junior class officers, who had worked to organize Prom for over a year. This included handling venue and activity funding, such as photobooths, as well as choosing decorations to serve the party’s concept. After a lengthy process, the officer team was able to see their efforts come to fruition. 

“I think the hardest part was just constantly checking up on vendors,” Junior Vice President Rheya Kurian ‘26 said. “We’re always trying to improve prom from previous years, and something we really wanted to focus on was making everything on theme.” 

A highlight of every Prom is the voting for Prom king and queen, and this year was no exception. After forms were sent out for potential royalty, Prom king and queen nominations were announced one week later. Several nominees took the one-week window as an opportunity to campaign. 

“I did expect to be nominated,” Prom King Kaya Chen ‘25 said. “I had a few friends [and] they were like, ‘should we nominate you for royalty?’ I was like ‘sure, why not?’. It’d be fun to look back on in a few years.” 

StuCo’s sophomore class was in charge of counting votes throughout the night, diligently working at a booth throughout the evening. After hours of collecting and counting ballots, Chen and Siyona Jain ‘25 were crowned Prom King and Queen respectively.

“I’m really, really happy I won,” Jain said. “I didn’t really campaign, and I think there were other people who were campaigning a lot harder, so I just didn’t see it coming.”

For many seniors, the night held a deeper sentiment as they experienced one of their last high school events. The students gathered to celebrate with their classmates and create final memories before their upcoming graduation. As the entertainment at the Oasis drew to a close, many finished off their night at afterparties or friends’ gatherings, making it a night to remember. 

“Prom is kind of like a wrapping up of the school year,” Lili Yang ‘25 said. “It’s just kind of like a celebration of the hard work we put into surviving at Westwood. It’s like one final push and it’s all over.”