WILLIAMSBURG — If glimpses of high schoolers' pink prom gowns and crimped hair have sparked nostalgia — or regret at skipping the big night when you had the chance — one popular local venue has just the remedy.
And it comes with spiked punch.
Sentimental partiers can journey back to high school next month with Williamsburg's first '80s-themed "adult prom" at the Knitting Factory, where cover band The Ronald Reagans — known as "the big 80's show" for performing at weddings, clubs and parties around the city — will take the stage.
Guests should come decked out in their best retro prom gear, whether bought from local vintage stores or handed down from relatives, and vote for the king and queen in true high school tradition, Knitting Factory nightlife manager Richard Sloven said.
"It's to give people a chance to dress up and relive their youth... We’re going to have king and queen contest dance-offs, prom photos and serve spiked punch," he said, noting that he hoped the prom would become an annual celebration at the venue.
More than just a blast from the past, the prom is a chance for adults to act like the immature teenagers they still are, organizers said.
"Everyone still knows all the same people, still talking s--t behind your back, and still inferior to the 'cool kids'... DAM, still feels like high school," organizers wrote on the event page. "So let's PARTY like it too!!!! Kick off the summer @ Billyburg Prom."
Sloven, 28, who admitted he still felt like he was in high school, said the adult prom was perfectly suited for the neighborhood.
"I think it’s the vibe of the neighborhood — it’s a bunch of big kids running around having fun all the time," said Sloven, who plans to wear a "cutoff blazer with a tie to be a little more '80s style" than the typical prom attire.
"I was born in 1984, and the '80s were a time I didn’t get to experience [as a teenager]," he said. "So we’re going to roll with that and let people imagine what it would be like had they been teenagers at that time."
Prom attire is not required — but it is "expected," he said.
"You can get grungy with it, but show you put in some effort."
The Williamsburg Prom will be held at the Knitting Factory, 361 Metropolitan Ave., May 30 at 8 p.m. Tickets can be bought online.
