Mr. Corrado and Mr. and Ms. Shipstad: a Tale of the Tape

Despite plenty of events occurred this week including the Minute to Win It Pilots After Dark event, the Fields Hall Spring Spectacular, The Upright Citizens Brigade Traveling team visit Mago Hunt Recital Hall, the Pilot Dance Team Spring Showcase, Fish’s Dodgeball tournament, and the Battle of the Bands in the Anchor, I am paying off the teases made last week about Mr. Corrado.

Mr. Corrado over the last few years has followed Mr. and Ms. Shipstad and usually has been viewed as the tamer version of the dorm-based competition until this year.  The final round of Mr. and Ms. Shipstad for the last several years was called "How Bad Do You Want It?"

Predictably within a college environment, some contestants were creative by crafting Astor Roth's College into an ode of the building, getting a tattoo of the Shipstad logo (an S overlaid over an anchor), or swallowing a goldfish.

Despite efforts from the coordinators to tone down the segment, contestants have branded themselves with an "S" for Shipstad, lick salt and hot sauce off their RA and tried to drink a gallon of milk while being pelted by cherry tomatoes.

In an effort to rebrand the event, the Shipstad Hall council, in conjunction with Staff and the office of Residence Life, dropped the round and replaced it with a series of Minute to Win It-style challenges in which contestants have to complete a given task within the allotted time, all in minute increments.

How similar are these two events that rely on the stereotypical export of residence halls, people willing to make a fool of themselves? Here's a hopefully objective comparison of the events.

Year of Origin:
Mr. Corrado- 2004

Mr. & Ms. Shipstad-1999

Number of contestants (2011): 
Mr. Corrado- 6
Mr. & Ms. Shipstad- 6 (3 male, 3 female)

Rounds:
Mr. Corrado- "Cribs" Video, Talent, Underwear, Question and Answer (Q&A), Tug of War

Mr. & Ms. Shipstad- Evening Wear, Talent, Q&A, Minute to Win It (formerly How Bad Do You Want It?)

Sample of Talents:
Mr. Corrado- Singing “A Whole New World”, singing and playing a montage of songs, dancing to a country song, solving a Rubik’s cube
Mr. & Ms. Shipstad- Singing an opera song, sing and dancing to “Singin’ in the Rain" with an umbrella, "Accents from around the World," an informal Q& A with a Scotsman, Tiffany from the South, and Svetlana from the Motherland.

Question Asked of a Contestant:
Mr. Corrado-If you were a zombie, which contestant would you bite first?
Mr. & Ms. Shipstad- If you were Hall Director for a week, what would you do?

Perspective of previous winners on this year’s event:

Mr. Corrado 2010, Ben - "I was amazed so many people chose singing as their talent. I was also pleased at how well the guys pulled off the opening routine.”

Mr. Shipstad 2010, Kyle- “It’s hard to compare to last year because this year did not have How Bad Do You Want It, but it was good. Some of the talents were interesting.”

Ms. Shipstad 2010, Lara- “Fun, entertaining, and showed that How Bad Do You Want It is not necessary for Mr. and Ms. Shipstad to be successful.”

Co-host view on the event:

Mr. Corrado- “Well organized by the Hall Council. Closing the doors brought a sense of anticipation to the event.”

Mr. & Ms. Shipstad:-“This was a great two-hour period where the building was able to come together.”

Qualifications:
Mr. Corrado-Male resident of Corrado, raise $50 for the Holy Cross Charity
Mr. & Ms. Shipstad-Resident of Shipstad

Prize for winner:
Mr. Corrado-Trojan helmet and plunger

Mr and Ms. Shipstad "Crowns"

Mr. & Ms. Shipstad- (Mr.) Hat  (Ms.) tiara, earrings and ring 

Perceived Core Audience:
Mr. Corrado-Corrado residents and female inhabitants of the West Quad
Mr. & Ms. Shipstad-Shipstad residents, East Side Quad inhabitants

Mr. Corrado 2011 Crowd awaits fun

Crowd size:
Mr. Corrado-close to 300 people
Mr. & Ms. Shipstad-close to 150 people

Location Held:

Mr. Corrado-Buckley Center Auditorium

Mr. & Ms. Shipstad- Shipstad First Floor Lounge

2011 Mr. and Ms. Shipstad Crowd awaits a retooled event

Overall, both events pleased their audiences with the exception of those who might have had high expectations, thought the talents were lackluster, or technical miscues compromised parts of the events.  No event can satisfy everyone, but these events allowed their respective dorms to allow a small section of the UP community to become a part of the dorm community, at least for two hours.

Have you been fortunate to ever attend either event?  If so, what did you think?