November 23rd, 2021 — It was the Tuesday before Thanksgiving at Morris Hills. Energy buzzed through the air. “Are you going tonight?” one student asked excitedly. “Obviously!” their friend responded. It was the day of the annual senior class fundraiser, the  Mr. Morris Hills Pageant. Students, teachers, and Morris Hills families streamed into the school to see twelve of our favorite senior guys strut their stuff on the Morris Hills stage. 

The class of ‘22 got to throw it back to their childhood with this year’s pageant with the Disney theme. Tarun Ari, Hamza Alvi, Kyle Berdin, Taha Bouftila, Winter Brown Boyce, Logan Bruno, Nick Ciampi, Mason Epstein, Alex Kuzmich, Brendan Lenahan, Akhil Ramesh, and Ryan Sislin were the contestants. Senior class officers Olivia Ciampi and Maddie Kirkpatrick hosted the event. Judging the pageant were Junior Class President, Joe Laux  Homecoming Princess Nicole Narciso, senior class adviser Ms. Yaeger, and, the Mr. Morris Hills of the Class of 2003 history teacher, Mr. Mein. 

The guys opened with their first dance, choreographed by students Katie Lanzerotti and Ava Moreno. From there, they transitioned into the red carpet for a fashion show, contestant Q&A, talent, and impersonation sections of the pageant. 

All the seniors shone equally. Kyle Berdin brought out his inner Rihanna by performing the iconic Tom Holland “Umbrella” dance that originated on Lip Sync Battle. The traditional Mr. Bell impersonation was performed by Mason. Hamza performed a hilarious impression of Mrs. Malandrino, and Tarun’s Dr. Toriello impersonation brought the best of our MH principal to the stage. Ryan’s hilarious Mrs. Kellner impression paid tribute to our favorite assistant to the athletic director. Alex displayed phenomenal acrobatics in his gymnastics routine. Logan’s performance of “Baby I’m Yours,” by the Arctic Monkeys blew away the audience, while the rap battle between Brendan and Hamza showcased even more talent from the contestants. Nick, Akhil, Ryan, and Mason all came together and brought their inner Mean Girls out, dancing the legendary choreography to “Jingle Bell Rock”. Taha and Winter, meanwhile, brought out their competitive sides in an epic dance battle. 

The jam-packed auditorium was filled with tears of laughter and nostalgia. It was the perfect way to close out before the long weekend. At the end of the night, Mr. Congeniality was awarded to Nick Ciampi. The grand title of Mr. Morris Hills was bestowed upon Ryan Sislin, along with the honor of Mr. Money. 

Dr. Toriello, impressed with Tarun’s impersonation of him, felt that “it was so nice to be live and back on stage,” certainly a change from last year’s videotaped pageant. Sislin, the night’s champion, said it “felt great” to be crowned Mr. Morris Hills among this year’s outstanding candidates and was “excited to make his way down to Applebees.”

Mr. Morris Hills remains a classic Scarlet Knight tradition. With this year’s pageant, the class of 2022 checked one more item off their senior year bucket list. Mr. Morris Hills of ‘22 will reign proud, until next year, when the Class of 2023 takes to the stage.