The students of Aliso Niguel had their 2025 homecoming dance on Sept. 20, hosted at the high school. The dance consisted of a large dance floor, karaoke, games, food and carnival rides.
The homecoming dance is a large social event where students can come and have fun. There was a bag check for students who did not wish to carry their personal belongings during the dance.
The dance was open to all grades, with students being able to bring guests this year. In the past, students have not been permitted to bring guests to the dance, but this year students could bring people from other schools as long as they were in high school and were approved by the school.
The dance had positive reviews overall: from freshmen to seniors, most students enjoyed the dance. Many students said that the overall dance was more fun this year than last year, but the music choices were not as great. Hayley Pascua (9) said that, ”The dance was pretty great but the DJ playlist was interesting”.
Students have voiced that the music at homecoming was better last year, and even the freshmen who experienced it for the first time this year were not fans of most of the songs that were picked. The dance also included a photobooth where you could stand with your friends and have pictures taken of you in front of a backdrop. The photobooth was a hit, with a long line to use it throughout the entire dance.
The dance was themed “Roadtrip” with each grade representing a different city across the United States. These cities were incorporated into the decorations all around the space where the dance was held. Lots of people from each grade attended the dance, with each grade having pretty similar reviews.
“I had an amazing time at the dance this year! The rides were fun and the churros were very good. You could tell everyone who went had fun!” says Ella Parke (10).
As for food, the dance mostly included snacks rather than full meals. It had a coffee bar, a churro truck, and a long table set up with all different types of snacks. The snacks were divided between nut free and nut-included snacks to make sure everyone with allergies was safe.
The game section of the dance was a great inclusion for people who aren’t a big fan of large crowds or roller coasters because they could hang out with their friends in a more relaxed environment.
The rides consisted of a large slide where students could race their friends and a large swing type ride where students were individually in swings and were spun high in the air. A senior named Josephine Rettich who transferred from Dana Hills High School last year stated that, “the slide was the best and I liked how open everything was”.
The dance area was crowded with people for most of the dance; however, many upperclassmen voiced their opinions on how the freshmen were constantly pushing inside of the dance circle.
Overall Aliso Niguel’s homecoming dance was enjoyed by students from all grade levels.
