Why Prom Court Needs to Die

Photo by Church of the King on Unsplash

Ah, prom.

A quintessential part of the high school experience. For some, it’s the greatest night of their lives. (Usually those who peak in high school.) For others, it’s a social crisis. And for still others, it’s just another night. Fun, but not everything.

And, of course, you can’t forget about the prom court. In movies, prom is usually the climax and the crowing of the prom king and queen always has something to do with how the story is going to end. It happened in Glee. It happened in The Duff and Mean Girls, except in those movies the dance was a homecoming one instead of a prom (in my mind, sort of the same thing, socially speaking, except prom seems to be more formal). Even in really innocent kids’ movies, like The Princess Protection Program, there’s a prom with a prom royalty vote.

The point is, it’s a popular storyline in tons of coming-of-age and teen movies. There’s almost always a prom. And at the center of it is the royalty.

And it happens in real life.

There’s girls and guys in high school who want so badly to be the king or queen of prom or homecoming. They tape posters around the school and make pretend friends with people they never talk to and dance around the football field at games trying to get votes. They claim it’s their destiny, that this is what they have always…