Disco balls glinting red and blue light into the crowd, hundreds of students danced together, celebrating with the most school spirit since before the pandemic.
This week’s festivities included a dodgeball tournament, a Powder Puff football game, a bonfire, and a boys’ volleyball tournament. Students participated in spirit days, gearing up for the end of the week. But it wasn’t until Friday that the school gathered in support of one another.
A successful pep rally and carnival preceded the first LHS Homecoming Football Game win in several years; a staggering 48-26 triumph over Skyview High School.
So tonight, after a busy but extremely well-attended week of festivities, Littleton students gathered in the South Gym and Cafeteria to dance like no one was watching.
“I’m really proud of how many people showed up,” said senior Bella Borrego. “Normally, we don’t have this many people.”
Ticket sales for the dance reached over five hundred in the pre-sale alone. And whether it was waiting in line for the bathroom or squeezing into the mosh pit, it was clear that many more people were in attendance than in previous years.
But attendance wasn’t the only thing that changed. The dance last year was held outside as a COVID-19 precaution. And though many students enjoyed the setting, it was purely a preventative measure to protect students and still allow them to have fun.
“It’s always been inside, we just did it outside so we could have a dance last year because we still had some restrictions,” said Student Council sponsor Melia Gobble. “Now that those have been lifted, we’re back to the tradition of having it inside.”
Many students expressed that they preferred the dance inside.
“I thought the lights outside were cute, but I like the participation inside better,” said Borrego.
For freshmen who didn’t get to experience school events before or during the pandemic, tonight’s dance served as their first example of what a high school dance looks like.
“The dance has been good, the music has been great. A lot of mosh pits in there, very interesting,” said freshman Elie Anthony.
For many, mosh pits were a pre-pandemic luxury. But now, after years of lost time, the student body has come back stronger than ever. So, screaming along to “Party in the USA”, it seems we’ve found each other once again.
“It’s been a couple years since I’ve seen a dance like this,” said Gobble. “I think people are ready to engage back with their friends, with events, with tradition.”
