”The prom of the oldies”

Wanhojentanssit

• The prom of the oldies is a traditional celebration of the highschool´s new seniors.

• On this big night 2nd graders become 3rd graders, which means they will become the oldest class in highschool

• This tradition is quite old in Finland. In Juankoski it started in the 80s.

The preparation

• The prom night isn’t of course just a one-day thing,it needs a lot of preparation, the dance practise starts about 2 months before the big night

• BUT the girls start their own preparation many,many months earlier. They set up the date for the make-up and hairdo and start looking for the perfect dress.

• Usually the boys don’t have to see so much trouble, they only have to get a fine suit and shoes.

The prom night

• Dancers get to eat a fancy supper at school

• The prom includes about 7 different dances, from old classics like a walz to an Argentin tango. ( Plus a separate dance with the students’ own choreography,which isn’t so serious ;)

• Some of the dance names are Cicapo, The Rose Of Texas, The Viennese Walz,,,,

• The prom lasts a few hours.• After the prom the dancers leave for some

after-prom party. Usually they’ve rented some cottage,etc place for celebration.

• The evening is very tiring, because they have to dance in many places. Here in Juankoski they dance twice at school ( for the secondary school students and in the evening for their family members and friends), once in Kaavi and once at the old people’s home.