In March, the class of 2021 class board received the information that they will be able to host a final senior sendoff event, class board president Ella Petrusha ‘21 said. Unlike a traditional prom, Lyonspalooza included carnival games, food trucks, live music and more. 

“LT has never done something like this before,” Petrusha said. “It is very different from prom because the event is informal, outside, and we are incorporating a Lollapalooza and carnival theme to this event. Hopefully, this will appeal to many students.”

With Navy Pier and dance floors closed due to COVID-19, it became clear that a formal prom would not be feasible, director of student activities Peter Geddeis said. However, alternatives to this year’s prom were thought out between the class board and their sponsors. 

“The seniors are the ones who came up with everything,” Geddeis said. “It has been a real pleasure and an honor to work with them in order to make their desires come true.”

Planning for Lyonspalooza consisted of brainstorming ideas for the carnival-like event, emailing and reaching out to various vendors and shifting from meeting once every other week to once a week to have more time to plan, class board secretary Sean Dolliff ‘21 said.

“We don’t want it to be like a prom,” Dolliff said. “We don’t want people to wear prom dresses but more casual clothing because it’s a more casual thing than prom.”

Lyonspalooza was held on May 16 at South Campus, assistant class board advisor Thomas Sloan said. Students were able to select between two time slots to attend, 1-3:30 p.m., or 4-6:30 p.m. They were required to wear masks and encouraged to stay socially distanced.

“I think the seniors that have been involved in the process especially are excited about just getting together and having fun, hanging out with their friends, eating food, playing games and running around on the football field,” Sloan said. “It’s different, but I think everybody is excited about the opportunity.”