By: James Cassar

 Ah, homecoming. Love it, hate it; it’s a quintessential part of high school. Tuscarora won’t have alumni until 2013, but the dance came boldly packaged with that moniker. It’s not pretentious, it’s what people have come to expect. Here’s another thing to expect: three categories of dancegoers that define a true Tuscarora throwdown take to the hardwood: stags, groups, and couples. Which group were you a part of? Let’s dissect these captured dreams.
 First plopped down on the scrumptious plate of school dances: those who go it alone. Without any emotional baggage to hold them down, their anchorless feet are busy tearing it up like Napoleon Dynamite on the gym floor. Everyone’s got different reason for ridin’ solo, some more noble than others. Homecoming King nominee and football star Cameron Molina is bringing chivalry back. “I just broke up with my girlfriend and it’s too soon for me to be taking anyone else,” he confesses, also adding slyly that he’s “not really okay” with playing the lonesome role. On the other side of the royal spectrum, you’ve got freshly-crowned Homecoming King Danny Chicas, who, despite his superstar status, decided to stag it out as well. “To go with a date is to be committed…which isn’t my swag.” His party rock anthem? The relevant bleach-blonde Billy Idol’s “Dancing with Myself.” Knowing Danny, he wasn’t able to relate to that for long. Is the favorable status ‘forever alone’? That’s for you to decide.
 Whoever invented the mega-saver site Groupon is rolling in the deep like Adele and it’s pretty obvious that during the eventful homecoming rush, the CEO is no doubt counting off Benjamins like a rambunctious auctioneer. Big-bad senior Media Sharif headed out to Not Your Average Joe’s in Lansdowne with several close friends. “It was really fun! Dinner was hilarious, and the dance was a great senior experience and I wouldn’t have missed it for anything!” And while nostalgia isn’t her main priority, sophomore Angela Villatoro‘s pretty sure that her time spent with her friends will be a day to remember. “I went to a friend’s house for dinner, took pictures, and hung out. We all danced until homecoming was over!” she says with a smile. The Beatles once sang about getting by with a little help from their friends, and judging by these two girls’ experiences, the Fab Four understood the homecoming dynamic perfectly. Did your friends come first at homecoming?
 And there’s the cliched third section that has been both loved and lampooned by everybody from Family Guy to Fred Astaire: taking a date. Twelfth-grader Joey Castilon had never attended homecoming before, so he and his girlfriend were excited to live it up. “We were made for each other,” he remarks of his date.  Attending the dance with her camera-carrying baritone boyfriend Chris Anderson, senior Jocelyn Jimenez didn’t feel tied down. “Going with a date was actually a lot of fun,” and although she blended in with the second sanction and came with friends as well, “my date and I still had an awesome time.” How about you and your date? Was the corsage worth it? And ladies, how ‘bout that boutonniere? (Bouton-what?)
 Stagged out, dragged out, or swagged out, homecoming isn’t about the company you keep or how awful your dance moves are, it’s about the memories you make. Whether you were singled out, in a ragtag group, or taking to the floor with a date, despite each experience’s uniqueness, one thing’s for sure: you’re Captured in a Dream any way you decide to go.