Senior Brendan Triola wins Mr. Fenton contest
May 26, 2017
Hoping to leave the Ruby Zima auditorium with the crown on their head, ten boys competed for the title “Mr. Fenton” on the evening of May 25. Described as a “pageant’ for male students, there were four segments contestants prepared for: casual wear, formal wear, best in shorts and an entertainment category.
“We do auditions beforehand, which determine right away whether the talent segment is right for the boy or not,” drama teacher Lori Thompson said. “We want the talent to be something that is entertaining to watch, not inappropriate, not something silly that doesn’t show much quality. They will grow over the rehearsal time, but the talent has to be something concrete.”
“Best in Shorts’ was the only category where the winner was determined by an audience vote, rather than judges. Spectators were asked to vote by donating money to their favorite candidate’s escort during intermission. Sophomore Joe Bujak won this category.
“My favorite part is probably being able to show off and be on stage,” Bujak said. “I find it really fun to perform and just be on stage in front of people, I always say that if it’s weird, you’re doing it right, and I felt like there was a lot of weirdness up on that stage. I was one of the fewer emotionally based acts, I felt that I could use passion to sing that song, and that’s what I like and strive to do. I strive to pour out my inner passion because it tells the story to the audience. I enjoy doing more serious stuff, although in the future I would like to do something goofy.”
Judges Danielle Blanchard, Dustin Nader, Nada Radakovich and Michele Windsor selected Senior Brendan Triola as Mr. Fenton 2017.
“I think my favorite part was engaging with the audience,” Triola said. “I was unsure of what to expect at first because I haven’t done it in a couple of years, but the second I walked out onto the stage I the crowd erupted and I got this feeling, I thought ‘I can do this, I can win this competition.’ I didn’t really have any confidence going in, I was unsure of my act because there were some more experienced theater kids doing it. I wasn’t sure how the crowd would react, but I think it went really well.”
At the end of the night, junior Arlo Simmerman, senior Frisco Alvarado and Triola won third, second and first place, respectively.
