Get Out Your Fancy Clothes
Back Bay Ball this Friday at Westin Copley Place
The Back Bay Ball has been a mainstay of campus life for more than a quarter of a century. Drawing students from all of BU’s colleges, it is the University’s largest formal dance and a welcome change of pace during Boston’s long, cold winter.
The 26th annual Back Bay Ball, sponsored by the BU Programming Council (BUPC), will take place this Friday, February 25, in the grand ballroom of the Westin Copley Place Boston Hotel.
Last year’s ball attracted some 1,500 students, and the BUPC has even more ambitious goals for this year’s event: to max out the ballroom’s capacity with 2,200 students. And they’re offering lots of enticements to make sure that happens.
Tickets, at $25 per student, are on sale through Friday at the activities information desk at the George Sherman Union, and are $30 at the door. Among the incentives are $5 discounts to groups of eight or more students. Promotions include a free $10 gift card to the Dellaria Salon in Kenmore Square for the first 250 students buying tickets, as well as 30 percent off for hair and nails on Wednesdays, and 20 percent off for makeup on Fridays. The BUPC has also arranged a free shuttle back to campus, stopping at Myles Standish Hall, Marsh Plaza, and West Campus and running until 2 a.m.
“It’s hard to find ways to reach everyone,” says BUPC promotion manager Jeremy Lowe (CGS’12). “It’s trickier than you think.”
Back Bay Ball tickets assure students of a night filled with glamour. The event features free food, including finger foods, a cheese bar, and a dessert bar. There will also be a cash bar for students aged 21 and older.
Worried you don’t have your dance moves down? BUPC is installing an Xbox Kinect in the GSU today through Friday so students can practice their dance moves.
“It’s the most unique party at BU,” says Lowe. “It’s not a frat party in Allston—it’s the biggest party at BU and you get to party at the Westin. Legend has it that the Westin floor shakes because we have so many people on the dance floor.”
Anik Das (SMG’12), who attended last year’s ball, can vouch for that. “We noticed the coatroom ceiling was shaking,” recalls Das; the coatroom is under the ballroom. “When we got to the dance floor, the entire room was vibrating. The ballroom was jumping up and down.”
Despite the dress code (tuxes are not required; jackets and ties are acceptable) and the large crowd, Das and his friends were relaxed and at ease. “With that crowd, we had no social pressure,” he says. “We could just be ourselves, as opposed to acting all prim and proper.”
The Back Bay Ball is Friday, February 25, at the Westin Copley Place, 10 Huntington Ave., Boston, MA 02116. The dance runs from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. Shuttle service back to campus will be available after the dance until 2 a.m. Tickets are on sale through Friday at the GSU second floor activities information desk, 775 Comm Ave, for $25, and at the door on the night of the event for $30. For a student group discount, email bupc@bu.edu.
John Fichera can be reached at jfichera@bu.edu.
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