Thursday, June 14, 2012 By Melodie Khanjian Juniors Tadeh Gharib and Natalie Sarukhanian win best dressed at Monte Carlo Night. - File Photo Advertising Students gamble into the night (June 8, 2012)--The dance floor and tables were packed to maximum occupancy. After a year of silence in the auditeria, the sound of music blasting and cards being shuffled was audible. Students from all grade levels poured onto the cramped dance floor and surrounded the blackjack tables to win a few hands or show off their best moves. English teacher Conrad Pruitt, class advisor and blackjack dealer that year, was in charge of last year’s class responsible for the event. “As the advisor I knew the event wasn’t interesting for the students so we made it a casino night, because it gives students something to do other than dance,” Pruitt said. Spring Formal that year was special because it was the first dance, other than prom, being thrown in a couple years. In previous years, ASB and class committees had trouble raising enough money or having enough students attend. In fact, this dance was quite the opposite. “Mr. Pruitt did a phenomenal job with the setup,” said Elijah Lopez. “The casino feel was the perfect atmosphere. In fact, I think that this year’s dance was not as good as last years. There were more attendees last year.” For the class of 2012, Monte Carlo Night was the first opportunity for peers to see each other in something other than polos. Girls spent time looking for dresses and doing nails. Seniors Natalie Sarukhanian and Lily Chorbadjian went all out to get ready for the dance. “It was really fun, we got ready separately, but we scheduled our makeup appointments together at the mall, so we were together,” said senior Natalie Sarukhanian, “then later we met up as a group to take pictures before we went to the dance.” The blackjack tables were the boys’ battleground; many sat to play and to win. Anticipation was high, even though the stakes were not. The floor was packed with both girls and guys dancing the night away while having fun with friends. Like every dance related occasion, girls removed heels to be more comfortable and scurried back and forth to the bathroom to make sure that everything remained perfect. The night ended at around 11:00 and people slowly trickled out. “The dance floor was packed the whole night,” said Natalie Sarukhanian. “It was the first dance experience the senior class experienced at the school.”

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