UChicago students will take a break from the life of the mind at the annual Lascivious Costume Ball tomorrow at Ida Noyes. Clothing, as always, is optional.

Well, almost. Although total nudity isn’t permitted, if past years are any indication, guests will find creative ways to expose a little extra skin. Body paint is a popular choice. Adult diapers even more so.

The annual tradition is being organized this year by Hype, a student group dedicated to improving the social life (and social reputation) of the College.

The theme is “1984,” an allusion not only to the Orwellian classic, but also to the year the University deemed the ball too wild to continue. In 2008, Hype resurrected the ball, and after a successful, relatively tame debut, were allowed to continue the tradition. With increased funding and a new room layout, Hype hopes to continue the Ball’s focus on fashion while also reinjecting the old party atmosphere.

“This year is going to be epic, but hopefully not so epic as to get the Lascivious Ball shut down again,” said Jeremy Saxon, ’13, who is helping to plan the event.

The night will open in the Cloister Club with a fashion show, where students will model the handmade fashions of six student designers. Models will strut across two angled runways that converge near the front of the room, offering guests a better view of their friends as they stroll the catwalk. In the center of the room, a DJ will stand on stage while Go-Go dancers perform around him.

After the show, the Cloister Club will become the central party area, while dance performances will continue upstairs, along with a photo booth and temporary tattoo/rhinestone/face paint station.

To accommodate the, uh, loose dress code, there will be a no-charge coat check when guests arrive. As usual, cameras are not allowed. The idea behind Lascivious is to let students express their sexuality however they choose, without all the inhibitions that accompany a normal night out. Also, organizers want to protect future senators and CEOs from the ghosts of their fun and exciting former selves.

A recent MAPSS graduate, Celene Reynolds, AM’11, wrote her MA thesis on the Lascivious Ball, focusing on how and why, as the College entered the 1980s, the ball’s raison d’etre waned along with the counterculture of the ’60s and ’70s.

Now Saxon and others think the tradition has a new relevance. “Everyone can come as what they want to be perceived as. I feel like it lets UChicago students let out their creative streaks a little.” Last year Saxon dressed in drag as Lady Gaga, performing a dramatic rendition of “Alejandro.”

As of Monday, Saxon’s performance for Saturday was still in the developing stages, although he did say it would be about the commodification of women in American culture. He bought a new wig for the occasion. “It’s, like, fire-engine red.”

Tickets were on sale in the Reynold’s Club all week, as well as on uBazaar, the new online ticketing system run by Student Government. In recent years, with only 500 tickets sold, the Lascivious Ball nearly always sold out. This year there are 900 tickets up for grabs.

“We’re kind of getting away with a lot,” says Saxon. “If you’ve never been to Lascivious Ball, this is the year to go. It’s going to be as big as it’s going to get.”