Joe Vitali (CAS ’25) kicked off his Mr. Georgetown performance with an interpretive reading of One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish. He then made a jarring pivot to rapping “Super Bass” by Nicki Minaj–a clear fit due to its matching rhyme scheme.
From those first few minutes, it became clear that the next four acts of Vitali’s performance as “Mr. D.C. Reads” would be full of twists and turns.
Every homecoming weekend, a handful of clubs nominate someone to represent their group’s talent and energy at the Mr. Georgetown pageant. The preparation is arduous: contestants have to rehearse a seven-minute group dance, plan a club showcase, give a talent performance, and get ready to compete in an interview and trivia competition on the fly.
However, Vitali was up to the task.
Judges and audiences alike found joy in Vitali’s subversive spontaneity, which won him a crown, velvet robe, and golden sash to represent the triumph of him and his organization, D.C. Reads. Vitali is one of the lead coordinators for the group, a student-run social justice organization that reads children’s books with students at D.C. public schools.
A valuable part of the competition for Vitali was the opportunity to draw more attention to his organization and the Center for Social Justice, the resource center that makes D.C. Reads and its peer programs possible.
Vitali made frequent allusions to D.C. Reads, especially in his catchphrase he repeated throughout the five acts: “Because reading is what? FUNDAMENTAL!”
Photo by Sydney Carroll
The catchphrase evolved into a crowd chant by the end of the night. It was inspired by one of Vitali’s favorite shows, “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” where contestants “read,” or essentially roast, each other. Through that double meaning, Vitali’s catchphrase mixed his own interests with the organization he represented. In true D.C. Reads style, Vitali wanted to craft a nuanced performance that audiences would have to read into.
Audiences may feel surprised to discover that Vitali’s only theatrical experience dates back to 2015: he had a one-line part in the seventh grade play. A five-act solo performance at this year’s pageant presented a much heftier task.
“We were on the Gaston Hall stage throwing our bodies around and embarrassing ourselves in front of people. But I felt like, ‘It’s senior year and we’re making the most of it,’” Vitali said.
Photo by Sydney Carroll
During the talent showcase, Vitali stunned audiences with his obscure Taylor Swift knowledge: even under the pressure of hundreds of spectators, Vitali identified 30 songs in two minutes from a shuffled playlist of every Taylor Swift track. His guesses were based on only the first few seconds (or even half second) of the track. Some songs he could narrow down to the location in which Swift had performed that specific recording—the crowd went wild when he identified “Cornelia Street, Live from Paris.”
When Vitali motioned to play the next Swift song, it was Katy Perry’s voice that sounded out instead. That launched Vitali into a full lip sync performance, turning his act on its head once again.
“I think the audience really wanted that shock factor,” he said.
Shock was key to his performance, but the moment that clinched the win for Vitali didn’t arrive until one of the final competition rounds, when he swept the scoreboard in trivia.
“It was really fun getting to show off that obscure knowledge,” Vitali said. “Usually it’s just my friends that have to listen to my obscure rants.”
Vitali encourages his peers—especially new students—to embrace the unexpected during college. The night of Mr. Georgetown was full of surprises, culminating with the ultimate shock for Vitali: his coronation.
“I was not expecting to win at all,” Vitali said. “Just look at all the pictures of me after they announced it—that jaw was dropped.”
Photo by Sydney Carroll
He gave a specific shoutout to Nick Vianna (CAS ’25) as his most formidable opponent. Vianna—also known as Mr. Pep Band—was so dedicated to his performance that he taught himself tap dancing for two weeks ahead of the competition. On the night of the pageant, he played piano and saxophone simultaneously with his tap routine.
“When we saw him break out all the instruments and the tap shoes at dress rehearsal, we were all thinking about pulling a Tonya Harding on Nick,” Vitali said, chuckling to himself.
That playful competition and the friendships that came with it were the highlight of Mr. Georgetown for Vitali. The contestants grew close over six-hour weeks of joint rehearsal in HFSC studio purgatory.
“There was much more camaraderie than competition,” Vitali said. “Connections have honestly been my favorite part of this.”
Four years ago, Vitali might have confined his obscure knowledge dumps to his close friends and never thought about entering a three-hour long pageant. Now, he has a message for both new and returning Georgetown students.
Photo by Sydney Carroll
“College as a whole is about stepping out of your comfort zone and trying new things,” Vitali said. “You really want to make sure you’re taking a step back and breathing and processing the experience of it all.”
