The crowd of friends and family cheer loudly as senior and junior boys display their various types of talents on the stage in the auditorium. They have been preparing for several weeks, picking out the right suit and practicing their talent, whether it be lifting weights or performing a skit with their partner.

By the end of the night, a winner is announced and crowned Mr. Annandale. The winner is given a sash as well. Leadership has held their interest meeting on Dec.15. While some are interested in joining their year, others have to be encouraged by their friends to participate.

Leadership hopes to keep the categories that they have been using every year, but also hopes to see new talents and acts that will entertain the crowd.

“We are just really excited for [Mr. Annandale] and we to get a lot of participants,” senior Nina Fairman said.

Fairman, who is the head of the Leadership committee coordinating the event, hopes to make this year’s event much more exciting.

“Everyone enjoyed it last year, so we hope to make it just as good or even better! And we really want boys who are excited to participate so we can make it a lot of fun,” Fairman said.

There are five categories for this competition: Mr. Strength, Mr. Elegance, Mr. Talent, Mr. Spirit and finally, Mr. Intelligence. Mr. Annandale will be chosen based on the number of previous winnings in the sub-categories.

In the muscle category, seniors and juniors have to display their muscle strength by using weights or using their escort as assistance. Contestants can also wear workout clothes to show off their muscles. In the elegance section, seniors walk down the stage with a female escort, both dressed in formal attire. There are many ways the seniors and juniors can earn points in this category such as doing a cat-walk or matching with their escort. For talent, students can choose their best talent to persuade the judges to give them a high score. Participants usually sing a song, play an instrument or perform a practiced skit. For the spirit category, participants must wear red and white and show off how much spirit they have. They can also chant the “fight song” and try to get others to join in with them.

For the intelligence category, the contestants must be in the top five. They will be asked an easy question about their lives, their future, or what they can do to change AHS.

The judges will consist of mostly teachers as well as other staff from the school and will decide who wins for each category. There are various sections a senior or junior can win in Mr. Annandale, however, there will be one overall winner who will be crowned.

Mr. Annandale will be be held on Feb. 13 at 7 p.m., and will take place in the auditorium where it will be decorated in a pageant manner. Leadership will sell tickets to the event starting at $5 in advance and will have a price of $7 at the door. All of the funds from the event go towards the junior and senior classes.

Junior and senior boys who wish to participate must complete and turn in their contestant packets by a time around Jan. 14. Packets can be picked up in room 271A or during lunch if students who would like to take part in the event, cannot attend the interest meeting.

Upcoming dates to keep in mind is on Jan. 20, contestants will be able to find out if Leadership received their forms. Feb. 4 is the deadline for participants to turn in their song list that will be used during their time on stage. There are no exceptions to this deadline. On Feb. 5, there will be a mandatory rehearsal during the extended W4. Contestants must make sure they have practiced their routine on their own. On Feb. 12, there will be a second mandatory meeting and the escorts must be present to help to go through the performance.

More information will be revealed once the day of the contest arrives.