To end the Homecoming festivities leading up to the football game against Lake Orion and the Saturday night dance, our school hosted a talent show or pageant for senior boys at 7pm on Wednesday, October 28th. 

Before the event began and an audience filled the auditorium, a three person team of students involved with the technical side of putting together school productions prepared lighting and sound for this year’s Mr. WB. Junior, Elizabeth Gordinier, is one of the students involved with tech and was excited to contribute good lighting to set the mood for the event. 

After students filed into the auditorium, the participants and teacher judges waited patiently to begin this year’s MR. WB. From Junior, Kirsten Hempelmann, a spectator of the pageant,

“I’m really excited and really want to know who is going to win tonight and I’m super excited to watch.” 

As the long, anticipated wait came to a close, the participants, Keith Morris, Ralph Rodgers, John Payne, Jason Onwenu, and Dru Burke, got ready for round one: the question round. Contestants were asked about their favorite animal and who inspired them, the audience loved everyone’s responses. 

The second round was the talent round and was filled with many exciting moments. Keith Morris sang and performed twist and shout, Ralph Rodgers sang sweater weather, which initiated the audience to bring out their phone flashlights to sway along to the song. Following that, John Payne performed a drum solo, Jason Onwenu played “hot cross buns” on the recorder, and Dru Burke ended with a story about working at Kroger on a 66 degree day. 

Dru Burke, who had only signed up last minute and was completely unprepared after some seniors dropped out from the competition, enjoyed his experience participating in Mr. WB. 

“It was fun, [my favorite part] was watching other people, but I’m glad that I did it.”

However, as the second round came to a close, it was still unclear who the winner could be going into round three: costumes. The contestants’ outfits ranged from Jack Sparrow, a lions football player, and ended with Dru Burke’s homemade costume, “a chick magnet”, that was a wearable piece shaped as a magnet with pictures of chicks on the end. 

After a round of costumes, round four welcomed all of the contestants onto the stage and gave them a few moments to hype up the crowd and get themselves on their side before they casted their votes. Finally, the votes were all cast and the leadership members in charge of putting on this event came onto the stage to announce the winner, Ralph Rodgers. 

Once the contestants left the stage, Arthur Yang, the class of ‘22’s Mr. WB went to congratulate the new winner, welcoming a start to the senior traditions for the class of ‘23.