Men wearing women’s underwear and hip thrusting in tight ‘80s aerobic wear, while fanatic girls cheer uncontrollably in the audience.
Sean Zent, a senior communications major, vividly remembers putting on a speedo, bending over and pretending to play in the sand on stage, which he said was actually “pretty weird”.
Combine 12 outgoing and talented gentlemen from different fraternities, a couple of swimsuits and an enthusiastically choreographed dance into one room and you get Alpha Phi’s annual Mr. Heartthrob pageant. Zent was crowned Mr. Heartthrob in 2011, representing Kappa Sigma.
“Most contestants are pretty comfortable with everything on stage,” Zent said. “I think the audience is uncomfortable if anything.”
The men participating get to weird out alongside their competitors by showing off their singing, dancing and relatively risqué swimwear, according to Lorraine Delarosa, Alpha Phi’s vice president of marketing.
Delarosa said that each participating fraternity chooses one contestant to represent them in the pageant, with the proceeds for the T-shirt and merchandise sales going towards the Alpha Phi Foundation and will be used for women’s heart health research, prevention and treatment.
“Honestly, my favorite part about it is that they all really bond at the practices so you kinda see friendships being formed,” said Delarosa, a junior English education major.
According to Delarosa, the event’s turnout is one of the biggest they get from the campus and other Greek organizations.
The men fight for the winning title in front of a panel of judges by presenting their personality through their talents, attire, swimsuits and dressing in formal wear, and finally answering a random on-stage question.
All of this, however, takes place after a group opening dance number choreographed by Alpha Phi’s philanthropy chair, Marissa Neitzel.
For senior computer engineer major and representative of Theta Chi, Daniel Esquera Corona, the group dance is the best part of the pageant.
Corona said he enjoys the fact that all fraternities can come together and gain different perspectives and he enjoys being cheered on by women while on stage, rather than the other way around.
“An auditorium full of babes checking you out is always a plus,” said Sam Fiore, a junior American studies major and member of Delta Chi.
For three weeks now, the men have been practicing extensively to win over the panel of judges on Friday. The panel will consist of Alpha Phi ladies from other school chapters and real pageant judges, according to Delarosa.
“We spend every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Sunday night from around 7 to 10 p.m. practicing mostly our opening dance that is about seven minutes long,” freshman finance major Nick Byers said.
Byers is a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon and cannot wait for the show because it’s his first time ever attending it — let alone performing on stage.
“I feel like I have an advantage over the other guys because I’m young and I’ve never seen a Mr. Heartthrob show before, so I believe it’s easier for me to come up with original ideas rather than just reproducing what someone had done the year before,” Byers said.
While others are confident, some contestants find the revealing portions of the pageant a little nerve wracking.
“I’m most nervous for the swimsuit portion cause I’m a skinny dude,” Fiore said.
Marius Lakeman, a senior criminal justice major and member of Sigma Pi is also a bit nervous because he fears that the younger audience won’t be able to identify with his talent.
“I decided I’m bringing Billy back … I’m gonna dress, sing, act, dance, move, groove all to Billy,” Lakeman said.
Lakeman said he’s not only nervous about getting on stage but is afraid that the audience won’t be familiar with Billy Idol and his work.
“All the guys are just trying to put on the best show we can,” said Will Parsons, a senior political science major and member of Pi Kappa Phi.
The spirit of competition is not absent from the pageant, of course. Each man wants to win to better represent his fraternity. Those who don’t win the title of Mr. Heartthrob have the chance to win Mr. Congeniality, as well as a spirit award for selling the most tickets and T-shirts and garnering the most support.
At the end of the day, no matter what the results are the participants recognize the pageant is for a good cause, women’s heart health and making ladies’ hearts throb.
The pageant is from 7 to 10 p.m. at Wilson High School auditorium Friday. Tickets are $5 pre-sale and $7 at the door.