Even without the much anticipated release of The Great Gatsby film, anyone would have wanted to attend one of Gatsby’s dazzling 1920s parties.

Safia Jama Cross’s English classes recreated the mystery and glamour of these parties on Friday, April 5 in the teacher’s cafeteria.

This was the first Gatsby party at Townsend Harris. Ms. Cross was inspired by her own experience reading the book in high school, and recalls her own school’s party.

“I remember dancing the Charleston with two of my friends at that party, and there was music and people dressed up, but that was it,” said Ms. Cross.

She added that this celebration was more ambitious than the one of her time.

The parties were based  on the classes’ collaterals on the Roaring Twenties, which included art pieces, music and speeches from figures of the decade.

Anna Simonyan, junior, executed her creativity by dressing up for the affair. “After seeing different pictures of women from the 1920s, I had a better visual of what to wear.”

“I knew I wanted to do the Harlem Renaissance to tie in with my black roots,” said junior Danielle Williams, who emceed for her class’s party and recited a poem titled The Negro Mother by Langston Hughes.

To make the event feel like the true parties, AP U.S. History classes were formally invited to stop by.

Social Studies teacher, Charlene Levi, said, “We’re just finishing World War I, and it’s not something we can do in our curriculum, but the party is great and a real show of the humanities in our school.”

“I told Ms. Cross that it was the way I envisioned it with people talking, music playing, and presentations given,” commented junior Juan Ruiz on the atmosphere of the party.

Ms. Cross concluded, “I was really impressed with all the students, the way they rose to the task of putting on an event for 70 people, and it was beautiful to see everyone cooperating together.” She hopes that “we’ve begun a tradition of Gatsby parties.”