Full of singing, dancing, fashion and laughs, Thursday night at the Chapel provided a thoroughly entertaining show of the best of Colgate men. An enthused and exuberant group of students were gathered to watch the 5th annual Mr. Colgate Pageant, put on by the Pan Hellenic Association to fundraise for St. Jude’s Hospital.

Participants representing Colgate’s fraternities and the Link staff were judged by members of the Pan Hellenic Association in the categories of sportswear, talent, evening wear and interview. Senior Katie Holbrook and junior Jackson Fager proceeded over the contestants: Mr. Phi Delt was sophomore Jeff Smidt, Mr. Link Staff was sophomore Cliff Orsher, Mr. Sigma Chi was sophomore Simon Flynn, Mr. DU was senior Todd Garvey, Mr. Theta Chi was junior David Aldrich, Mr. Phi Kappa Tau was junior Taylor Rogers and Mr. Beta Theta Pi was senior Peter van Roden.

Accompanied by women of the Pan Hellenic Society, they displayed their first outfits of the evening and introduced themselves to the audience. The first competition was Sportswear when contestants shared their favorite sports moments and desired hookup, as well as their own athletic interests. Mr. Phi Delt declared himself over the Olympics score, “I am the heavyweight Beirut champion of the world.”

Mr. Link Staff professed his love of fly fishing and said, “When I’m not macking with the ladies, I like to take my time over the river fly fishing.” Mr. Sigma Chi came out in full squash regalia, Mr. DU was hoisted into the chapel on a chair in boxing clothes, Mr. Beta Theta Pi showed off the Beta bobsled team, Mr. Theta Chi claimed his favorite sport was Playfair and Mr. Phi Kappa Tau came out in a combination of golf and hockey wear.

After a performance by the Swinging Gates of “Son of a Preacherman,” the crowd eagerly awaited the talent portion of the night.

Strumming a bright blue guitar, Mr. Phi Delt played an acoustic version of “Ignition.” He was not alone in displaying musical prowess. Mr. Sigma Chi dedicated his song to the ladies and Mr. Beta Theta Pi sang about the hallmarks of Colgate student culture to the melody of “Hotel California.” Mr. Theta Chi, supported by backup dancers, serenaded the audience with an original song about Colgate both with a European accent and to “Hey Ya,” including the lyrics, “In Colgate there is a problem and that problem is the Dean, throw that Dean down that well so my house can be free.”

Two unconventional performances were Mr. DU’s clown on a bicycle routine and Mr. Thi Kappa Tau’s remix of “Revenge of the Nerds.”

However, the most eagerly lauded performance came from Mr. Link Staff who wowed everyone with his dance routine in eighties’ workout clothes. His breakaway pants, displays of flexibility and gyrating hips elicited raucous appreciation from the crowd.

The final competition of the evening was the interview and evening wear. Contestants displayed a liberal interpretation of evening wear ranging from suits with or without shirts, a rounded black outfit, traffic cone hat and a foam mattress pad. The questions drew upon the contestant’s ability to answer queries about some of their favorite things and personal aspirations.

When asked what Disney character he would be, Mr. Phi Delt proudly declared Simba from the “Lion King” because “he’s chill, his dad is the kind of the jungle, that’s pretty nice.”

Mr. Link Staff drew upon his experience as a Link when asked about why he should be the next Mr. Colgate and said, “I take a lot of pride in the Link staff, we enhance this school a lot.”

Mr. Sigma Chi struggled to answer what his most memorable night at Colgate was, as did Mr. DU when questioned about three songs for the soundtrack of his life. Mr. Beta Theta Pi said he would want to participate in “My Big Fat Obnoxious Fianc?e” of all reality television shows. Mr. Theta Chi described his ideal date at Colgate including dinner at Parkside, shots at Nichols and Beals and blacking out in Taylor Lake.

However, the best received performance was by Mr Phi Kappa Tau who was asked about his favorite ice cream flavor. He free associated from Rocky Road to “P, I, M…P.”

While the judges were tallying the scores, based off the competition as well as the amount of money they raised from collections in milk jugs at the Coop, there was a dance performance and another Swinging Gates song dedicated to MC Fager. Holbrook and Fager announced the winners: 2nd runner up was David Aldrich, Mr. Theta Chi, and 1st runner up was Cliff Orsher, Mr. Link Staff. Mr. Phi Kappa Tau, Taylor Rogers, was crowned Mr. Colgate.

Students cheered with standing ovations, foot stomping and chanting the contestant’s effort all during this fundraising event. All proceeds from Mr. Colgate will be sent to St. Jude’s Children Reseach Hospital in Memphis Tennessee, which accepts all patients without regard of their ability to pay and rely in public donations for their operating costs.