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Halloween Dance

 

Halloween festivities began early for the students of Thomas Aquinas College, California, with the annual Halloween dance last weekend. This year’s theme was Día de los Muertos, and the Sophomore Class, which hosted the event, decorated St. Cecilia Hall with strings of lights, colorful paper banners, and bouquets of marigolds. Snack tables were filled with jalapeño poppers, flan, and pan de muerto, with horchata and hot chocolate to sip on between dances.

Dancers arrived in costumes, dressed as characters from beloved books, movies, and TV shows; historical, contemporary, and pop culture figures; and even inanimate objects! Many students planned group costumes with friends, and Snow White and her seven dwarves, Henry VIII and his six wives, five founding fathers, and a group of fast-food mascots mingled with the other costumed partygoers. Others, more in keeping with the night’s theme, wore La Catrina makeup, the skull designs traditionally worn on the Day of the Dead.

Photos: Halloween Dance
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Before the dancing began in earnest, the sophomores treated their fellow students to the night’s entertainment: a short film about two TAC students watching the newest episode of their favorite telenovela, featuring love, betrayal, and a murder mystery. The audience watched as murder suspects were questioned and offered their alibis, but before the culprit was revealed, the entertainment came to a pause. The audience was then asked to choose one of three possible endings to the film by voting on whom it thought to be the murderer. The suspect whom the audience cheered for the loudest was decided guilty, and the movie continued, showing the ending where that character was accused and arrested for the murder. “It was really creative how they had multiple endings,” said Katherine Zbeigen (’25). “Now I want to see the other endings, too!” 

Shortly after the entertainment came the contests for best costume. In three rounds for group, couple, and single costumes, the competitors showed off their impressive and elaborate costumes in the middle of the dance floor as a group of judges looked on. Paige Zwibel (’26) won in the singles contest with a beautiful La Catrina makeup look, while sisters Claire (’25) and Catherine Rey (’28) took first place for the best couple’s costume as Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy. For the group contest, several sophomore ladies won with their clever “Bald Man Convention” costumes, dressing as iconic bald characters such as Shrek, Homer Simpson, Charlie Brown, and many more. “The costumes were really original and fun,” said Jeremiah King (’26). “It was great to see everyone’s ideas and their creativity.” 

After the entertainment and costume contest, the rest of the night was left for dancing, and pairs of costumed dancers took to the floor to enjoy the music and to swing together late into the night.