To get involved in SouderTHON, Stopyra participated in the Mr. Souderton and talent show competitions giving memorable performances that displayed a variety of unique talents.
This year’s Mr. Souderton competition took place from 12-1 a.m. At this point in the night, after almost six hours of nonstop activities, students were beginning to tire.
However, as soon as senior Christian Stopyra hit the stage, that all changed.
Stopyra performed the famous Rasputin dance routine for his talent in the Mr. Souderton competition.
“Even before I started dancing, people recognized the song,” Stopyra said. “I was not expecting that.”
Stopyra, an underdog entering the competition, quickly grabbed the attention and the hearts of the audience.
The crowd began chanting Stopyra’s name and calls of “We want Christian” could be heard from the top balcony and soon spread throughout the crowd.
“The whole Mr. Souderton thing is not possible without the students,” Stopyra said.
According to Stopyra, the Rasputin is his “signature dance.”
“I do [the Rasputin] occasionally at dances so I know some people have already seen it,” Stopyra said. “Usually, people get pretty excited when I do it. So, having everyone there kinda raised the roof a bit more.”
Stopyra said that his win was surprising given the “intense competition” running in the show.
“Honestly, I was not expecting it,” Stopyra said. “[There was] really intense competition with [seniors] Joey [Beck] and Dan [Barndt] with the stand-up comedy. There’s lots of diverse competition.”
According to Stopyra, his sign-up for the competition was a last-minute decision as he decided to join a day in advance.
“I figured, why not wing it. A couple other people said that they were also winging it so it made me feel like I wasn’t making a dumb mistake,” Stopyra said.
According to Stopyra, the last-minute decision was a good one.
“SouderTHON is fantastic,” Stopyra said. “I missed it my sophomore year because of COVID-19 but I’m glad I’m able to do it this year to the extent that I did. I’m really happy about that.”
After his Mr. Souderton win, Stopyra also participated in the talent show.
“I’m playing ‘Fly Me to the Moon’ by Frank Sinatra while rollerblading.”
His unique performances in both the Mr. Souderton and talent show competitions won over the crowd.
Before Stopyra, Alum Ryan McDevitt held the Mr. Souderton title for four years. The Mr. Souderton tradition was postponed due to COVID-19 and lack of interest.