Courtesy of Mimi Papathanasopoulos

This academic year, the Yale College Council has ensured that every class will have a formal event, aiming to showcase student performers and musicians at each dance.

For many students, formals are a memorable part of the Yale experience — but it is unusual for every class to have one. This year’s formals have had their fair share of firsts, including subsidized ticket prices.

An integral part of the planning is the creative decision-making process. 

“I think the most difficult aspect of formal planning is finding a theme that not only everyone will love, but also fits the venue,” said Karen Yang ’26, the Sophomore Class Council’s vice president of creativity and concepts. 

According to Jalen Bradley ’27, the First-Year Class Council’s board discussed themes before voting for their favorite. Once they had decided on the theme, they began searching for student DJs and a string quartet. 

This year, “Celestial Garden” won the FCC board’s vote. According to Bradley, the committee tried not to reuse themes or choose ones that were similar to other classes’ or residential colleges’ formal themes. The current theme combines the ideas of “Enchanted Garden” and “Celestial Bodies.”

“We all want to make the First Year Formal memorable,” said Carrie Lange ’27, who is responsible for organizing the decorations for the event.

While Lange said she would like to keep the specifics of the decor a surprise, she encouraged attendees to interpret the formal however they wished. Noting that guests should wear whatever they like, she said that the theme “Celestial Garden” is intentionally open-ended.

On Friday, Jan. 26, the Sophomore Class Council hosted its first formal since 2022, changing the trend of sophomores not having a formal.

According to Sophomore Class President and YCC Health and Accessibility Director Mimi Papathanasopoulos ’26, SoCo wanted to host a formal because the class does not have many opportunities to convene in its entirety. She also said that planning a formal is a significant undertaking.

SoCo planned the formals over months, negotiating with contractors, searching for performers and sorting out safety issues. Ultimately, the committee planned an event that included drinks and desserts, live music and photo booths.

The Sophomore Formal theme, “Rhapsody in Blue,” was chosen through a Google Form sent to the class in early November. The survey collected theme ideas, music suggestions and refreshment preferences. 

Joana De La Torre ’26, vice president of operations for SoCo, said that deciding on a theme meant balancing creativity and feasibility. Deliberating on unique themes that would be realistic to plan, Vice President of Marketing and Communications Avery Dewitt ’26, said the council debated four or five different themes before settling on “Rhapsody in Blue,” a piece by George Gershwin. This year marks the piece’s centennial anniversary.

“Our goal is to ensure our capacity is as large as it can be,” said Olivia Lombardo ’25 of events hosted by YCC.

The Omni Hotel is the only venue in New Haven with a capacity of 1,000, and SoCo aimed to guarantee that all interested sophomores were able to attend. SoCo also chose the hotel because the First Year Formal is always held in Schwarzman Center. Thus, they felt a new location would be a refreshing change. The junior class formal will also be held in the Omni Hotel with a “Bridgerton Ball” theme.

In an effort to appreciate student groups on campus, SoCo chose The Yale Undergraduate Jazz Collective and the band Public Discourse to perform at the event. DJ Chris Rush also had a set at the Sophomore Formal.

The junior formal will also showcase performances by members of groups such as the Berkeley College Orchestra, Davenport Pops and the Yale Ballroom Dance Team.

Ticket prices for this year’s FCC formal have been reduced from the regular price of $15 to $5. 

“The subsidization is from the Dean’s Office, which was 22k dollars that went to the formal,” said Andrew Boanoh ’27, current FCC President.  “People have reached out personally to say that 5 dollars was financially troublesome as well, and we provided aid to anyone with that need.”

Echoing that sentiment, Papathanasopoulos said that the community’s response to the subsidization of ticket prices was overwhelmingly positive, noting that tickets for the formal sold out.

Lombardo, the YCC events director and former beat reporter for the News, said that the council’s events board is very collaborative in budget planning. She said that advocating for subsidized pricing has been a years-long process, giving particular mention to each class’s president and council for working together to make the change happen.

“It was so exciting to be able to showcase our amazing student groups,” said Papathanasopoulos. “We loved seeing our class rocking it on the dance floor.”

The First Year Formal will be held on Feb. 23.