Pageant season is in full swing. Whether audiences watched the Miss America pageant or enjoy the TLC series Toddler's and Tiaras, everyone seems to love a little friendly competition, including 11 brave Emmaus senior boys.

On Jan. 30, the Student Government Association held their second annual "Mr. Emmaus" competition in the Emmaus High School auditorium. The audience was comprised of students and parents anxiously waiting to see the boys "strut their stuff" on the stage.

According to SGA advisor Michael Mihalik, the "Mr. Emmaus" competition seemed like a fun way to get students involved while raising funds for spring events.

"First, we are always looking for new events to run and this was a great way to showcase last year's senior class and just have some fun in the winter time," Mihalik said.

Second, we donate $5,500 to STEP for Afterball and we run many events for the school that cost nothing to the students such as Final Fling and the Ice Cream Social."

The event was spearheaded by senior Laura Erle, who served as executive director of the pageant. Erle said a male pageant would be an excellent way for the senior boys to "relish their classmate's support and show their unique talents and personalities to the audience."

Erle said her fondest memory of the event was teaching the contestants to dance all while watching new friendships and a sense of camaraderie grow.

"My favorite part about directing Mr. Emmaus was getting to work with the contestants," Erle said. "We spent a lot of hours together during rehearsals and I loved watching them bond and gain confidence as we neared the big night. We created memories through this process that we'll always remember."

Assistants included sophomore Nina Rowan and freshman Nicholas Quinn. In addition, juniors Elliot Laubach and David Pickett were appointed as technical directors. Seniors Adrea Cope, Pooja Joshi and Natalie Vercillo emceed the evening, providing background on the contestants as well as the occasional light-hearted joke.

Cope, a member of SGA, said she enjoyed being involved with Mr. Emmaus because it allowed for ample student participation. She also said she has a high regard for the contestants.

"I think it takes a lot of courage to get up there, and a lot of them are singing too; a lot of people don't know that they can do that, so the experience is new to them," Cope said.

The 11 contestants participating were seniors Colton Carlisle, Zaid Darwasheh, Rutvij Dave, Arun Doodnauth, Davíd Eckhart, Kristyan Koenig, Christopher Neely, Marc Primelo, Ryan Ruth, Evan Wait and Seth Workman.

The boys were each introduced with a video explaining why they should be crowned "Mr. Emmaus." The audience members appreciated the hilarious answers.

Next, the boys surprised the audience with an opening hip-hop number, choreographed by senior Dance Team members Sarah Freyman, Heather Kern, Tierney Noreika, Kristina Pasquarello and Amber Sienkiewicz.

Contestants spent a lot of time learning the dance, as well as preparing for the rest of the competition.

"There were weekly practices, two Saturday rehearsals and then three dress rehearsals," Mihalik said. "It's unbelievable how much work goes on behind the scenes, and that's why every boy on stage deserves credit, as well as every other student who was there all those nights putting the show together. Mr. Emmaus is much more than one night."

The first category was the casual wear competition, where contestants each modeled their usual school clothes, in order to see them in their "natural habitats." Following the casual wear competition was the swim wear competition, allowing the boys to get creative and show off their personal flairs.

The audience then got to enjoy a performance from the EHS Dance Team before the formal wear competition.

Contestants were accompanied in the formal wear competition by their girlfriends, friends or even in one case, brother's girlfriend. Each pair (or trio) created their own special routine to model their formal attire, each notable in their own way.

The talent competition proved to be a favorite. There were quite a variety of talents displayed, including singing, hip-hop dancing, a dramatic reading of the Pledge of Allegiance, cinderblock smashing, rapping and two multicultural talents, including a dance and an instrumental performance of an African harp.

After the talent competition, the Dance Team performed once again while judges tabulated their scores to reveal five semifinalists. Among the judges was EHS graduate and former Mr. Emmaus contestant Erick Castillo. Castillo described coming back to judge the competition as "coming home," saying the Mr. Emmaus contestants become somewhat of a family.

Seniors Kristyan Koenig, Christopher Neely, Marc Primelo, Ryan Ruth and Evan Wait all moved on to the Interview round in hopes of being crowned as the next Mr. Emmaus.

The contestants were each asked a single question ranging from "If you could change one thing in the world, what would it be," and "what defines a leader." After the interview, the emcees acknowledged all who made the night possible, while the judges determined the final scores.

The results were as follows: Evan Wait in fifth place, Kristyan Koenig in fourth place, Ryan Ruth in third place and Christopher Neely in second place. The winner of $300 cash as well as the title of Mr. Emmaus, was Marc Primelo.

"I'm very excited, I share the prizes with everyone here, we all had a great time," Primelo said.

Primelo will study archeology and anthropology at Dickinson College in the fall.

Second place winner Christopher Neely reflected on his experience with Mr. Emmaus and also on Primelo's win.

"It [receiving second place] feels good, I think Marc really deserves it," Neely said.

Mr. Emmaus 2013 generated a large audience and was a success in the eyes of the contestants, the audience and all of the students involved.

"Though they sometimes stressed me out a great deal, they're all amazing guys and I am so proud of them," Erle said. "It's incredible watching the transformation from the very first rehearsal to the night of the show. It was just so awesome getting the chance to make this idea in my head become a reality."