A Vampire Slayer's Very First Prom - Seventeen - Special Prom Edition

Buffy's Michelle Trachtenberg is getting ready for her senior prom too! Come along as she scours L.A. for the perfect vintage look. By Melissa Schweiger Photographs by Richard Reinsdorg/Winston West

Buffy the Vampire Slayer costar Michelle Trachtenberg, 17, is digging through her older sister's closet in search of the beautiful black halter-dress she's been coveting. Suddenly, the bedroom door swings open, Michelle is caught red-handed and quicky ushered out by her older sister, who is none too pleased.

No, it's not a future Buffy episode. A similar scene happened in real life, and the closet in question belonged to Michelle's real older sister, Eileen. "She used to find me trying on her prom dress and boy, would she yell," says Michelle, who's been playing Dawn, Buffy's mysterious, feisty little sister, for three years. But this May, Michelle is finally going to her own senior prom and she couldn't be more excited. We're going shopping with her on L.A.'s Third Street, where she's looking for her dream dress. The catch is, we want to find her a vintage dress. Michelle is game - obviously she has some experience trying on other people's clothes.

Glam Central
We head into Polkadots and Moonbeams, a store where glamorous gowns from the '40s and '50s hand in every corner. The boutique bursts with satin gloves, sparkly jewels and fancy hats that could have been plucked from Breakfast at Tiffany's. Sensing that we're having a very Audrey Hepburn moment, Michelle goes straight for a chic little black dress. "Oooh, this one is so glam," says the native New Yorker. "I can't wait to get dressed up. Last year I went to the prom, but since I was only a junior, I wasn't allowed to wear a formal gown. " Michelle intends to make up for it: "My girlfriends and I are shopping months ahead of time, in case we don't find something right away." From the way Michelle's eyeing the black number she has on (that's it, above right), it's clear she's of to a good start.

"Vintage is so wonderful because everything has a story," she says. "I love the fact that a girl from a different era wore this exact dress - maybe even to her prom." Michelle is drawn to a delicate antique necklace. "With jewelry, less is more," she says. "But with shoes, it's gotta be stilettos - they add so much attitude!" Speaking of accessories, who's going to be the lucky guy on her big night? "I don't have a date yet, although there are some contenders," she says, grinning. "I want to make sure everything else is perfect first; the date is the finishing touch." If she does set her mind on someone, she's not afraid to do the asking. "If there's one thing about me, it's that I'm completely unshy," she says. But going with a bunch of people would be ideal: "I really wish I could just go with a group of friends." Is there anyone from her cast she'd like to take? "They all make me laugh, but if I had to choose one it would be Nicky [Nicholas Brendon, aka Xander]. He's like my big brother," says Michelle.

School Spirit
"I'm taking a week off from work so I can go to my senior meetings. This is the last year we're going to be together and I want to be involved in planning our activities - especially prom," she says. Although Michelle's not on the prom committee, she has friends who are, and she makes her voice heard through them. "We're having it outside - it's a garden theme, like in J.Lo's 'Waiting for Tonight' video - so I requested heat lamps," she says. "Since the girls are going to be in strappy gowns, heat's a necessity!" Michelle dividers her schooltime between classes at her private Los Angeles high school and a tutor on the set. But even though she's not in school full-time, Michelle knows what backbiters high school kids can be - evil vampires or not. "Kids ridicule people for being different," she says. But Michelle hopes the seniors will overlook their differences and just have fun."

Dirty Little Secret
"My big prom dilemma is what to do with my hair," says Michelle. It's so naturally gorgeous it would make a Pantene model green with envy - so what's her problem? "I might do it half up, but when it's in a complicated updo, I get nervous that pieces will fall down," she says. "But I've learned not to wash it the morning of a big event - hair like mine styles better if it's a little dirty."

Don't Leave Home Without...
"A lot of girls think 'sexy' is showing a lot of skin, but to me sexy is something you feel great in," Michelle says. After a few close calls with her strapless dress at last year's junior prom, Michelle discovered the benefits of double-sided toupee tape (yep, the stuff bald men use - J.Lo used it to hold up her green Versace gown at the 2000 Grammys). "It keeps everything in place," she says. Any other fashion secrets for future promgoers? "If you trip in your heels, laugh it off so you don't look like an idiot."

Frankly Scarlett
Michelle changes in and out of prom looks while gushing over her faves: The pink tulle gown on our cover - "This looks like Molly Ringwald's in Pretty in Pink." A floral hippie dress - "Are you sure this isn't Marc Jacobs?" The tuxedo pantsuit two pages back - "So Saturday Night Fever." The grown-up red number below: "I feel like Barbra Streisand in Funny Girl." It's clear Michelle knows Hollywood fashion history. "When I was 10, Rosie O'Donnell introduced me to Gone With the Wind while we were filming Harriet the Spy," she says. "I've been hooked ever since."

Suddenly, inspiration strikes: "Remember the episode when Buffy went to the prom?" Michelle asks. "Her dress was so beautiful! I wonder if I could borrow it?" There she goes again, raiding her "older sister's" closet!