The lights of the auditorium had a different kind of electricity, set off by a sequin-skirted senior, shaking his hips like Shakira. This was not a basketball game or an ordinary talent show. It was the night of Mr. EHS. Eleven senior guys, one stage, and many talented acts, all designed to raise money for the Make-A-Wish foundation.
Behind all of this was Elkhorn high school’s student council. They spent a lot of time planning everything that went into the event.
“Mr. EHS is a senior guy beauty pagent,” senior student council representative Parker Stevens said. “We picked students from the senior class, and they dressed up and performed for the judges for the events we picked.”
Student council members worked hard to pull the event off, deciding all the beauty portions from the judging to the scoring sheets and auditorium music.
“The students started with a beauty walk to a song of their choice followed by a bracket style trivia portion led by [former social studies teacher, John] Bacus, an athletic round, and a ‘sell this idea,'” Stevens said.
Among the judges was Biology and AP Physics teacher Chris Kurtt. Kurtt was a first time judge for Mr. EHS this year.
“It was really fun to see the seniors in a different kind of environment,” Kurtt said. “[The contestants] tried to impress the crowd and make us laugh.”
But for Kurtt, the highlight of this night was when everyone was up dancing having a good time.
For some contestants, such as Isaiah Weasel, the competition itself was not the main experience.
“It was a blast being backstage with everyone messing around,” Weasel said.
For many boys this night was a lot of fun and a chance for school to be seen as a little less serious. Even though he got pressured into joining, Weasel said he was happy to sign up when he saw his friends doing it, especially since the pageant was for a good cause.
One student managed to bring all of it to the table, knocking everyone off their boots. From being funny to legendary, Jameson Bennett won the night. Bennett walked into the competition with a clear, hilarious goal.
“I thought it would be funny,” Bennett said.
This does not mean Bennett decided to just wing it. He had prepared by watching videos on how to dance like Shakira.
That idea to watch the singer’s videos paid off during the talent portion, and attendees definitely will not forget the Sequined skirt he wore.
Bennett channeled his inner popstar and amazed the crowd. He ultimately was the crowd winner with his hip-shaking choreography. But as the crowd made donations to make-a-Wish to watch this crazy contest, there was a lot of fun happening backstage as well.
“It just gets better and better every year,” Stevens said.
