What is Behind Prom’s $150 Price Tag?

We’ve come to expect Gilman dances to be $10. Both the fall and spring dances were that price this year. Therefore, many upperclassmen—including me—were astonished by the $150 price tag to prom this year, which is $25 more than last year. So, what goes into the price tag? 

I interviewed Mr. John Schmick ‘97, the Upper School Dean of Student Life, and Jamie Howard ‘24, the Senior Class President, to find out what makes prom so expensive.

The cost of renting the Hyatt Regency Baltimore Inner Harbor for the night was by far the largest this year, costing $21,375 for the evening, $7,375 more than the Delta Marriott last year. This price also includes catering by the hotel, consisting of simple “prom food:” usually some chicken, salad, rolls, a dessert, and non-alcoholic drinks. 

Choosing venues is quite a complicated process, with many criteria narrowing down the list. Jamie stated, “It ends up being a lot more restrictive than we hope,” having looked at all sorts of crazy ideas, including holding prom on a boat. Most obviously, the venue needs to be able to accommodate close to 450 people.

In addition, Mr. Schmick and the student council (consisting of Jamie Howard ’24, Pitman Smyth ’24, Quinn McMahon ’24, Ryan Patel ’24, and Nick Lutzky ’24) were also concerned with making sure students have a good overall experience, which means easy pickup/drop-off and easy access to bathrooms. Furthermore, Mr. Schmick looks for venue-provided catering and decorations, as dealing with other contractors could become a logistical nightmare and cost more. 

Not surprisingly, the venue needs to be willing to host Gilman in the first place. Gilman prom is not necessarily the most profitable for these venues due to the lack of alcoholic beverage sales, and thus, many venues outright do not want to host us. After narrowing down the options, Mr. Schmick and the student council will contact the sales department to schedule a venue tour. Ultimately, the student council decides where prom happens each year if there are no major exceptions from Mr. Schmick. This year, the student council decided that the size of the Hyatt Regency justified the extra cost. 

However, the added cost of the venue doesn’t account for the rise in ticket prices. Due to a new contract with the bus company, the price of transportation this year was slashed to $7,200 from a previous $14,000. Thus, the money saved on transportation accounts for the extra money spent on the venue.

So, what accounted for the difference in price this year? Was it the DJ? Not necessarily. The DJ cost $1,500, a price that has stayed relatively constant. Our DJ, a Gilman graduate, Price Nelson ‘20, has run both the fall and spring dance and is now set on running prom as well. 

If it wasn’t the venue, transportation, or the music, what makes prom more expensive this year? The price spent on prom this year totaled $30,075, which is actually lower than the $30,381 last year. In turn, what actually made prom $25 more expensive this year is the lack of an extensive prom fund. The prom fund consists of any extra profit made from previous prom ticket sales, which ebbs and flows year over year based on how many people purchase tickets each year. 

There was only $2,000 to spend in the prom fund from last year’s sales this year, compared to the $8,000 for last year’s prom, which consisted of extra ticket sales from the 2022 prom. Therefore, ticket sales must account for the other $28,075 spent on the venue, transportation, and the DJ this year. Mr. Schmick expects at least 190 juniors and seniors to attend prom each year, and at $150 per ticket, ticket sales will raise $28,500, just enough to cover the bills. Any additional students who go will build the prom fund for next year. 
Before leaving the interview, I asked Mr. Schmick a question many other Gilman students have been wondering: why do we have to bring a date? Why can’t we pay half the price for one person? Mr. Schmick responded by stating that one flat price—whether or not you have a date—is much easier as he wouldn’t have to deal with issuing refunds if a student breaks up with his significant other, thus staying out of the drama.