The iconic prom dress -- in all its floor-sweeping grandeur -- has been cut off at the knees.
Some promgoers this year are ditching the long gowns for dresses that skim the thigh.
A sprinkling of high-schoolers have donned cocktail-length dresses at senior prom for several years. But now, more designers and retailers have latched on to the idea. And with a smorgasbord of shorter dresses at the ready -- from the frilly to the sleek -- girls in droves will be heading to prom showing more leg than satin.
''I think a lot of people are going short this year,'' said Annie Berkowitz, a senior at Miami Killian High. She'll wear a ruched black sheath by Nicole Miller with a hemline two inches above the knee to her prom on May 10.
''It was just too annoying to dance with a long dress,'' Berkowitz said. ``And, like, a lot of things are becoming more casual.''
Full-length gowns for girls were once as essential to prom as boutonnieres for boys. But starlets like Lauren Conrad, Amanda Bynes and Hayden Panettiere are strolling red carpets in shorter numbers, convincing young admirers that they needn't dress like adults to look glamorous, said Marissa Grumer, senior market editor for Seventeen magazine, which has an annual prom issue.
''We just saw [actress] Brittany Snow wear a short dress to the premiere of Prom Night, so definitely, this is a huge, huge trend,'' said Brianne DiSylvester, assistant online editor for PromSpot.com, a site marketed to teens.
Joanne Stoner, CEO of online retailer edressme.com (whose prom offerings are on edressme
prom.com), said 30 percent of its prom dress inventory this year hits above the knee.
''We've increased them because there's more demand and more short dresses available for prom in the market place,'' Stoner said.
She and other vendors say the season's short-dress craze also was fueled by Betsey Johnson's spring/summer '08 fashion show in New York City. Its campy prom theme involved lots of crinolines and bows, but on truncated dresses. Johnson took the look to the limit -- and beyond. One tongue-in-cheek dress was so revealing, knickers flashed from beneath.
Other prom dress stalwarts like Jessica McClintock, Alfred Angelo and BCBG Max Azria are touting shorter designs, too, as are mass retailers. Macy's is offering a black Ruby Rox tuxedo dress that ends just above the knee; Bloomingdale's has a strapless taffeta bubble dress by Laundry by Design that's short enough to give a date an eyeful should the wearer actually sit down.
Some parents say that given the immodesty of today's casual teen clothing, diminutive prom dresses don't seem particularly risqué. Some welcome the trend as practical.
''Wow, that would be really nice if they can wear it again,'' said Sally Matson, mother of five girls, including two prom-going teens, one at Ransom Everglades in Coconut Grove, and another who is home-schooled.
Column dresses just seem dated and somber to some teens.
''While the long gowns are so dramatic, the girls are looking for more short, sweet, fun and flirty,'' DiSylvester said.
But even short dresses can scream prom. Lots of the girly confections still have voluminous skirts, sequined netting and sweetheart necklines. And the reduction in material generally doesn't mean a reduction in price, especially for dresses marketed for prom.
''In most cases, they really aren't'' cheaper, Stoner said. ``The short dresses are very embellished.''
But they aren't accepted everywhere, notes Grumer, of Seventeen. ``The girls down south will definitely do the princess thing, but in L.A. and New York City and the [East] Coast, it's a trendy thing to do.''
In Miami, at least, short dresses so predominate that longer ones seem in short supply. Lilibet Aquino, senior class president at Coral Gables High School, had her heart set on a regular gown but almost gave up.
''I found one, but in San Francisco, because I couldn't find one anywhere else,'' she said.
Miami Beach High senior class president Ashley Casal said she and her friends weighed the pros of short dresses, but also decided on long ones, even though their favorite designers didn't make as many to choose from this year.
''Personally, I wouldn't wear a short dress to prom,'' Casal said. A long dress is ``like, tradition.''
But there is one tradition Casal may toss to the wind: the boutonniere.
``You don't have to buy one anymore.''
