Colton, CA—On Valentine’s Day morning, as all of CHS’ lovers exchanged presents, they received disappointing news: the Sadie Hawkins Arabian Nights winter dance was canceled.

Poor ticket sales led to the decision by ASB to pull the plug on the event. Students who bought tickets will be issued refunds to the primary guardian on Zangle within two weeks.

According to Activities Director Alexandra Buskirk, ASB only sold 71 tickets to the dance, but needed to sell a minimum of 150 to make the event economically viable.

By contrast, the Homecoming Dance in September sold 600 tickets.

The history behind winter dances in recent years has been fraught with disappointment. ASB has attempted traditional dances, winter formals, and now a Sadie Hawkins event to encourage student interest.

For this year, they offered a taco plate provided by local taco vendor H and M Tacos, a DJ, photo booths, and glow-in-the-dark sticks to coincide with an Arabian Nights theme inspired by the Disney film “Aladdin.” Tickets were priced at $25 with an ASB card, $30 without, and ASB even held a “flash sale” to kick off the event promotion, pricing the tickets at $20.

“It was not a surprise since a Sadie Hawkins hasn’t been really a thing ever in Colton,” said sophomore class president Alejandra Primera Dimas. The sophomore class took the lead on the event planning.

Buskirk was surprised, however, by the cancellation. With all the advertising and the flash sale, she still wonders why a winter dance has never worked out at CHS.

“If somebody could tell me why, that would be great,” she said.

Still, Buskirk is optimistic about trying another all-school event. “Maybe we will try to do a different type of activity towards the end of the year.”