Eight nominees will participate in Mr. Vassar

On Friday, Feb. 25 at 8 p.m., the Daisy Chain will be sponsoring the annual Mr. Vassar fundraiser on the second floor of the Students' Building (UpC). Mr. Vassar is a spoof on the typical beauty pageant in which two men from each class compete in a variety of challenges to decide who will be crowned "Mr. Vassar."

Each of the eight contestants takes on a persona to coincide with the theme for that year; this year, the theme for Mr. Vassar will be Hot Mess, a term expressing a state of disarray first made popular following its usage by Christian Siriano in the fourth season of Project Runway. The winner of the event will be decided by a panel of faculty judges including Senior Lecturer in Physical Education and rugby Head Coach Tony Brown, Associate Professor of Psychology Abigail Baird, All Campus Dining Center Chef's Helper Darrin "TC" Weaver, and Lecturer in Athletics and women's soccer Head Coach Richard Moller.

In honor of Vassar's sesquicentennial, the Daisy Chain hopes to make this year's Mr. Vassar its largest and most memorable fundraiser yet. Sarah Wadlinger '11, another Daisy Chain coordinator, wrote in an e-mailed statement, "This year's Mr. Vassar is already shaping up to be an amazing event and we hope it's going to blow previous contests out of the water. The theme, Hot Mess, will make sure this contest is hilariously fun for all involved. All the nominations have been sorted, and potential candidates have been contacted…we can definitely say we've got some fierce competitors this year. Everyone should be looking forward to seeing their classmates as the hottest messes their imaginations can create!"

This year's Mr. Vassar pageant is shaping up to be nothing less than spectacular, featuring a wide variety of personalities from all over campus. This year's Mr. Vassar contestants include David Iselin '11, Candido Diaz '11, Erik Lorenzsonn '12 [Disclosure: Lorenzsonn is Online Editor of The Miscellany News], Michael "Mookie" Thottam '12, Dan Flynn '13, Matt Horton '13, Aidan Kahn '14 and Nick Braun '14. In an e-mailed statement, Flynn wrote, "You could say I'm pretty excited and flattered to be chosen as a contestant for Mr. Vassar. I mean, I know I'm a big deal, but it's nice for other people to recognize that."

As their big debut approaches, these men are each slowly starting to prepare their Hot Mess performances. Diaz has begun developing his talent as well as working on developing a persona named Fernando, who will most definitely be a "hot mess." Similarly, Kahn has begun preparing for his big day by doing "lots of push-ups and calisthenics, mostly creative calisthenics, also some drama exercising and… getting in my mindset. As well as growing a mustache." Kahn describes his persona as "a little piece of himself, and a poignant piece," which he hopes will "move people without bringing them fully to tears." Flynn is also in the process of preparing his persona, writing, "I don't know much about my ‘persona,' per se, but, well, I think I will defer to the words of the poet Drake in saying, ‘I'm doing me / I'm living life right now, mayne / and that's what Ima do til it's over / til it's over / but it's far from over.'"

To add to the Hot Mess spectacular, the event will be hosted by Vassar Improv and will also include a special performance by members of FlyPeople. The Daisy Chain will also be hosting a promotional fundraiser for the event in which students can vote on what professor or college administrator and student leader they would like to pie in the face. Tickets for the event will cost $1 each and can be bought at the Daisy Chain table in the College Center throughout the week or at the doors of the event.

Aaron Gabaldon '13, one of this year's ushers—the male counterparts to Daisies—said of the event, "Working on Mr. Vassar has been a great experience. It has been a blast discussing the men who are nominated and finding the judges. Mr. Vassar is a great and hilarious tradition and everyone should definitely show up to watch the crazy, and check out some hot guys."