A game of dress up
Every year, one day is set apart for dressing up like a favorite superhero, horror character, movie star or basically anything else.
Normally, that day is Halloween, but the costume-fest came a few days early in Logan at the Howl last Saturday.
“My favorite part was the costumes,” said Brooke Smith who went to the Howl as an Army girl. “I liked being dressed up and seeing everyone else dressed up. There were a lot of funny and creative ideas.”
Smith, an undecided junior, mentioned the best disguises she saw were a girl dressed as a suitcase and guys wearing shirts that said “skank patrol.” Costumes came in all forms, from a guy wearing almost nothing other than two innertubes around his waist, to ninja turtles, angels, a kissing booth and fairies.
Chris Moody, who dressed up as a “gay cowboy,” described the Howl as a really big costume party and went because all of his friends were.
The TSC Ballroom was where Moody, a senior majoring in nutrition and food science, spent the majority of his time. A DJ played hip hop and techno music and dancing was the best part of the night, he said. Other activities included blow-up toys and country swing dancing in the Fieldhouse. The movies “Hocus Pocus” and “Ghostbusters” were shown in the TSC Skyroom.
In the Hub, Howl-goers could play carnival games and listen to bands, including Fender Benders and Love You Long Time. In the TSC Auditorium, a magician involved students in several tricks, including mysteriously joining circle rings together and making balloons turn into cards. Alternative bands played in the Sunburst Lounge for those who felt like dancing and jumping around.
Things were a little different this year said Howl Chair Whitney Doe. More activities were available and the committee aimed to cater to a wider variety of students. For a while, the Howl had the reputation of being a scary dance party, Doe said, and now the Howl committee is trying to get away from that.
One thing the Howl was known for was sleazy costumes. This year, volunteers and police officers monitored disguises and tried to not let anyone enter who was wearing something they would get in trouble for on the street. Also, shirts were given to some of the guys who were not wearing them.
“There were still some costumes that were kind of revealing,” said Chauntelle Burgoyne, a freshman majoring in English technical writing. “I don’t know how it’s been in the past, but where I just came out of high school, it’s surprising to see what people wear. You would never be allowed to wear some of those costumes in high school.”
Burgoyne, who dressed up as a dead ’80s chick, said she supposes since it was Halloween, people think it’s an acceptable time to wear whatever they want, even if that means wearing hardly anything.
“It’s like on ‘Mean Girls’ when they say it’s the only time you can dress like a slut and get away with it,” she said.
Burgoyne said her favorite part of the Howl was all the different activities. At a normal dance, people either stand around and talk or dance, but at the Howl people were able to go to the hip hop room, listen to bands, see the magician or play on the toys in the Fieldhouse.
Although Burgoyne said she had fun, the Howl would have been better if there was more free stuff such as food and snacks to munch on and if it hadn’t cost so much to get in.
Howl tickets were $10 for USU students and $20 for everyone else if bought before Saturday. Tickets purchased the day of the Howl were $15 for students and $25 for the public 18 and older.
Matthew Leituala, Leadership and Activities coordinator, said the activities committee took some chances this year by restricted certain costumes and adding more activities, but believes it will pay off. The Howl should be a place where all different groups of students can be comfortable and have a good time, Leituala said.
-mnewbold@cc.usu.edu