THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, May 13, 1995 TAG: 9505130309
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY KERRY DOUGHERTY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 88 lines
For a group of Maury High School students, Friday night's junior-senior prom held a lot of cheap frills.
Several months ago about 20 teens made a pact: They'd go to the prom without going broke.
On prom night, instead of limos and dinner at La Galleria, it was dad's car and discounted dresses.
``Only $56,'' beamed Tracy Dotolo, twirling around in her full-length brown and gold slip dress.
She hiked the dress up to reveal gold platform shoes with cut-out toes, ``Got the shoes for $15 at Bakers.''
Dotolo grinned as her date, Jimmy Beck got into the spirit, confessing that he paid just $8 for Dotolo's wrist corsage of white rosebuds.
``I got it at the Navy Exchange,'' he said. ``No tax.''
It's not unusual for girls - or their parents - to fork out $200 to $300 for a prom dress. Shoes can run $50. Dinner at a tony Norfolk restaurant? Better plan on another $50. Then there's the limousine, the pictures and the hotel room afterwards for all night post-prom parties.
Not this crew.
Meet the parsimonious prom party. The kids who had fun and didn't drive their parents to the brink of bankruptcy.
``At first my parents thought I was crazy,'' said Caswell Richardson, whose date, Kristin Nabers, was one of the organizers. ``But then they realized we were just being sensible and they commended us for it.''
But there were limits. Caswell had planned to cut corners further by buying Kristin just a single rose. His mother nixed the idea and made him buy her a corsage.
The gang and a few parents gathered at Steve and Sally Herbert's Larchmont home for pre-prom pictures. Their son, Jack, had spent the afternoon washing and waxing his prom-mobile - the family's blue Toyota Camry.
Most of the group was passing on the professional package prom shots in front of a fake backdrop - those stilted photos can run as much as $50.
``This is our last daughter,'' sighed Sandy Dotolo, who had closed her fingers in a garage door on the way to the Herbert's house, but would worry about her swelling digits later - right now there were pictures to be taken. ``We must have done eight or nine proms by now.''
``Yeah, I've got the bills to prove it,'' groused Larry Dotolo, as he squinted through the viewfinder on his camera.
The Dotolos had urged the kids to pinch a few more pennies: Sandy offered to cook a lasagne dinner for the crew.
The kids declined.
They were going out to dinner and to a joint that takes reservations: Pizza Hut.
``We wanted to go to Doumar's,'' said Nabers, sporting a slinky green dress with spaghetti straps. ``But they wouldn't take reservations, so we had to decide between Taco Bell and Pizza Hut.''
Nabers confessed that her dress - at $80 - was a little on the high side, but it was on sale. Besides, her shoes were a bargain.
``Payless, 12 bucks,'' said the senior, who is headed for Hollins College next year.
But it's not just the duds that drive up the cost of proms. It's also the accompanying costs: the expensive dinners, the hotel rooms.
Maury's senior class president, Donna Tweet, took charge of the dining arrangements.
``We'll be spending about $6 each on dinner, including drinks,'' she said, taking a sip out of her Pizza Hut cup full of Coke.
Tweet, who ordered seven large pizzas in advance, was wearing a stunning beaded dress that set her back $150.
``But it was originally $399,'' she explained. ``I didn't go to the prom last year so I figure you average the cost of the dress over two years and it's a great buy.''
Besides, her parents were letting her have the thrifty teens back to their house for a big after-prom party.
``It gets ridiculous,'' Kristin Nabers said. ``You've got kids who work all summer to have enough money to go to the prom. It doesn't have to cost that much and we can prove it.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color Staff photos by Tamara Voninski
From left, Elizabeth Nuss, seated, Laurel Barnes, Joanna Peery and
Jack Herbert enjoy a prom-night dinner at Pizza Hut in Ghent.
A thrifty group of Maury High School seniors gathers at the Jack
Herbert residence prior to going out for group pictures.
by CNB