By: Laura Gronski

April 17th was a night of great anticipation as the audience waited in their seats, anxious to see what was in store for them in the Mr. Phoenixville pageant. As the lights dimmed and the show was about to start the audience grew quiet and the contestants came out dancing. The contestants strutted their stuff, showing off their moves and swagger for the judges. This year’s contestants included Ducky Ryan, John Wieland, Scott Crabtree, Steve Ng, Ryan Kother, Mike Randolph and Jordan Mattiola. The judges for the night were Ms. Scerbo, Mr. Gnias and Mr. Anthony, the student teacher for Ms. Santry. The hosts for the evening were seniors Steve Sabia and Kyriq Williams.

For the first event was the Swimsuit Competition. This event was full of bikinis, sarongs and grass skirts. The contestants were announced and soon paraded down the runway. Each contestant fiercely walked across the stage, boldly portraying their bodies in bikinis. John Wieland rocked the Hawaiian look, wearing a grass skirt on stage.

Next came the talent portion of the night which was kicked off with Ducky’s rap about the school. Next came one of the favorite performances of the night that had the audience cheering and singing. John Wieland sang “I Love Phoenixville,” a parody of Asher Roth’s song “I Love College.” Steve Ng showed off his dance skills, starting with some hip-hop moves and ending with an interpretive dance to “A Thousand Miles” by Vanessa Carlton. Mrs. Dippell was the main focus throughout many contestants’ acts, including Scott Crabtree’s act. He sang a song about missing Mrs. Dippell. Mike Randolph challenged and won in a triathlon against Ducky, which included a tricycle race down the aisles of the auditorium and a jousting fight on computer chairs. Jordan Mattiola put on a live singing performance, while playing his guitar. Ryan Kother ended the talent part of the evening with his stage performance of Soulja Boy Tell ‘Em “Kiss Me Through the Phone” with Steve Sabia and Kyriq as his background dancers.

After a short intermission the contestants were back to show off their evening gowns with their female escorts. One of the favorite gowns was John Wieland’s, whose red and white polka dotted dress was claimed by Steve to be “inspired by Minnie Mouse.” While many of the contestants walked to the stage accompanied by their escorts, Kother was carried up to the stage by his escort, Ruth Jasienski. All the other contestants looked good in their gowns, strutting down the aisles of the auditorium, eager to be reviewed by the judges.

Your browser may not support display of this image. As the judges deliberated who would win, the audience murmured quietly, waiting eagerly for Steve and Kyriq to read the ballot aloud. Everyone in the auditorium grew quiet as the winner was about to be announced. Steve Ng and Jordan Mattiola were announced as this year’s runners up and this year’s Mr. Phoenixville 2009 was… John Wieland! Congratulations to John and the rest of the contestants for a great show! You looked beautiful.