The 25th annual Mr. East competition was held today at 7 p.m. in the East auditorium. The theme of the competition was “Survivor” and ten contestants (eleven males in the 2012 graduating class) entered the competition.
The contestants started the evening off with a mash-up dance routine featuring some special skill that each of the contestants had. Then Dr. John Vivone, who came up with the idea of Mr. East 25 years ago after watching a TV program featuring another school’s “Mr. ____” event, went onstage and introduced the five Mr. East judges for 2012—all East alumni.
All of the contestants traipsed across the stage in their swimwear for the first portion of the Mr. East competition, while the chairwomen — Lily Campbel (’12), Sara Feigenbaum, Rebecca Mulberg (’12) and Jackie Susuni (’12 )narrated what each contestant’s ideal summer day would be.
Then all of the contestants did a seven-minute routine showcasing their specific talent. Mr. Saxy and I Know It (Evan Smith) started the “talent” portion of the competition with his routine—which featured the vocal talents of Seanna McCall (’13) and Jonah Bannett (’13), who was scat singing. Smith played several jazz songs, including the infamous “Careless Whisper” by George Michael (made famous by this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GaoLU6zKaws).
Then Mr. Every Kess Begins With Kay (Eric Kessler) made guacamole, and look-alikes of the other Mr. East candidates came by to try a bite.
Mr. Big Cheng Theory (Brandon Cheng) sang a few songs, followed by Mr. Fabtastic (Dan Fabi), who showed a movie about his life as a “super helper.” Fabi concluded his act by playing the piano and singing. His act also featured East alum Brad Cutler (’11) and Matt Tarnopol (’11).
Mr. Born This Way (Jorden Edwards) rode a stretcher into his act, Lady Gaga-style. He then danced to two Gaga songs: “Born This Way,” sung by a trio of East girls, and Gaga’s recording of “Judas.”
After a fifteen-minute intermission, Mr. Hot-C-Dot-C (Matt Dotsey) took the microphone. Hot-C-Dot-C’s act featured a short video, a stint as an Eminem impersonator, and the revelation of his true talent as a bassist.
Hot-C-Dot-C’s act was followed by Mr. British Bloke, who did a Simon Cowell impersonation that segued into a rendition of Jay Sean’s “Down.” He ended the act by dancing to Justin Bieber’s “Baby”—which was sung by Gaby Chapman (’13).
Mr. SiamEast (the dual act of Michael Berkowitz and Adam Rosenthal) went onstage to talk about their “family picture” slideshow. They then did a dance based on the “Yes” YouTube video by punchrobert.com
Once Mr. SiamEast danced off the stage, Mr. Big Time Rush (Brendon Rush) entered and had drum-offs with both Shelby Keller (’12) and John-Henry Bishop (’12). BTR then turned off the lights and played drums in complete darkness with neon drumsticks, accompanied by four other drummers.
Finally, Mr. Long Hair Don’t Care played bass with a very lively band. This concluded the talent portion of the night.
After the talent portion came the formalwear portion. The chairwomen read off each contestant’s ideal date, while the contestants and their escorts walked down the catwalk. Each contestant then handed a rose to his mother.
The final portion of the night was the question and answer portion, in which each contestant stood up on a stump and answered a randomly chosen survival question. Mr. Long Hair Don’t Care answered his question by saying, “long hair don’t care” and leaving the auditorium.
Dr. Benjamin Abo (’99) then took the stage to discuss his charity, which donates transportation to rural locations in Africa for women who might otherwise not be able to get to a hospital while in labor.
Mr. Fabtastic won the bronze medal and a number of gift cards. Mr. Saxy and I Know It won the silver medal, with several more gift cards.
Mr. Big Time Rush took home the Mr. East crown and the gold medal in first place. He also won two senior prom tickets, courtesy of the Class of 2012.
Throughout the show, past Mr. East contestants spoke of their time at East and at the Mr. East competition. Rush will now have his own memories to hold forever as the competition’s 25th winner.