By Staff Writer Deeksha Raina
MSJ held its first-ever Homecoming Extravaganza on September 23. It was designed to replace the previous, more traditional Homecoming dance and took place outside at the amphitheater. The event featured airband performances as well as two food trucks. English Teacher Robin Grabowski, who was a chaperone for the event, said, “I think the kids had fun. It was the biggest group of kids I’ve seen and I’ve done the Homecoming [dance chaperoning] probably four years in a row.”
The Homecoming Extravaganza kicked off at 6:30 p.m. with electrifying music from DJ Garrett of Verducci Event Productions and DJ Sam of Level Up Entertainment. DJ Garrett had previously performed at the Senior Getaway a few weeks earlier. Airbands such as Sophomore Hip-hop and Senior Jazz Funk gave performances throughout the first hour.
When not dancing to the music, students milled around the two food trucks: “Mantraah!”, which offered vegan Indian food, and “Cookies N Cream San Jose”, which served ice cream. Students also took pictures in front of the class backdrops, which were displayed along the walkway between the office and N-wing. Each class had also placed its wooden class numbers along the railing near the library, serving as another popular picture location.
At around 8:00 p.m., the Homecoming Court Nominees were brought on stage in pairs and re-introduced to a screaming and cheering crowd. Activities Director Ben Breazeale then announced the Homecoming King and Queen: Seniors Shiv Salwan and Aileen Hsu. Immediately following the announcement, the DJs played “Thinking Out Loud” by Ed Sheeran, and the entire Homecoming Court, as well as many students, slow danced. Following the slow dance, five more airbands — Senior Ballroom, Senior K-Pop, Senior Hip-hop, Senior Singing airband, and Sleezy Crew performed to cheers and an excited crowd. Senior Brian Wu said, “It was really great getting to see an encore of airband performances as they’ve been preparing for the entire summer and only get to perform once. Everyone loved it and it was just really exciting to see some of our favorite airbands perform again!”
The night ended with the announcements of Homecoming rankings in four categories — skit, decoration, airbands, and overall. Seniors won first in all categories and won first place overall. Juniors won second in skit and decoration, and third in airbands, which gave them a second place overall. Sophomores won third in skit and decoration, and second in airbands, which lead to third place overall. Freshmen placed fourth in all the categories and overall.
The DJs played a few more songs as the dance started to wind down. Around 9:30 p.m., the Homecoming Extravaganza officially ended as a great success. L2 Homecoming and Multicultural Committee Co-head Senior Tai Dakin said, “I think that it was a huge success for it being the first time we tried this new format. There was a great turnout and people loved the DJs. I hope this sets a great precedent for what future dances can be like at [MSJ].”
Photos by Sports Editor Mustafa Ahmed, Web Editor Carolyn Ge, Centerspread Editor Mallika Gupta, Staff Writer Deeksha Raina, Opinion Editor Tanushri Sundar, Editor-in-Chief Monica Tang, Feature Editor Brian Tseng, & Sports Editor Cindy Yuan
