La Cañada High School students compete for a crown and a cause
With Polish dancing, mean Tweets read aloud, freestyle rapping, comedy and a heavy drum-and-bass light show that captivated the auditorium, school spirit was truly on full display for the fourth “Mr. La Cañada” pageant on Saturday.
The male pageant is widely popular among classmates, who attend and clamor to see what their classmates will pull off on stage, all for a good cause. At the end of the evening, senior Armand Manoukian, also known as Mr. Spirit, was awarded the Mr. La Cañada crown.
“It’s so much fun to do it,” Manoukian said. “I didn’t care whether I won it or not. Everyone worked super hard.”
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Associated Body Student (ASB) Director Marian Price said that between the pageant and a restaurant fundraiser tied to it that was held earlier in the week, the organization earned approximately $2,110, which will go to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.
ASB member Alexandra Schilling, who along with member Jenna Kaufman organized this year’s pageant, said they really stepped it up for 2017 to aim for a higher fundraising goal. The March 15 fundraiser at Blaze Pizza awarded the contestants extra points to their overall score in the pageant if they got a several of their friends and family members to attend.
“As stressful as it can be to plan such a big event like this, it’s all worth it in the end to see everything come together,” Schilling said. “And especially this year — to be raising funds for breast cancer, something that personally affects me — I’m really proud of the event.”
Kaufman and Schilling spoke on stage to their classmates during the video segment of the pageant, highlighting how breast cancer affects many students in some way. The video included several interviews with students on campus who discussed the topic, whether it had touched their grandmother, mother or aunt.
Pageant hosts Tatiano Safarian and Zoe Williams kept the show going with strong banter, including the question-and-answer portion with the contestants. Williams said they spent a lot of time rehearsing, including putting in more than 12 hours on Saturday.
In her first year as ASB director, Price said she has been impressed by the amount of work, time and energy the students put into “Mr. La Cañada.”
On Monday, she said she reflected with students on how it went.
“There was a general sense that even though the event was a success and people were happy with the turnout, for the time and effort it takes it should be more/better advertised, not only at school level but in the community,” she said. “We loved the talent show and the energy and humor of the candidates. We are already looking at next year and thinking that we will need better transitions, more time for rehearsal and more chaperones.”
Sanderson is a contributor to Times Community News.