Class Council members matched up single students with a date for Valentine’s Day at their Saturday night game show spinoff, “Date My Roommate.”
Four pre-selected bachelors and bachelorettes took the stage in the Hippodrome to quiz contestants numbered one, two and three on their roommates’ potential compatibility. The matched couple in each round was awarded a $50 gift certificate to dinner at Paparazzi in Georgetown.
“I know you guys have roommates who need dates, because that would be ridiculous if you don’t,” sophomore class chair Priya Ramanathan said as she introduced the game to the audience.
The game began and ended to the tune of the Backstreet Boys’ “Quit Playing Games (With My Heart).” Contestants wore paper hearts around their necks, identifying them as “Bachelor,” “Bachelorette” or “Roommate.”
Ramanathan hosted the game show, guiding the bachelors and bachelorettes through a series of questions. Roommates answered questions about topics ranging from their roommates’ grooming habits to their favorite movies, holidays and vacation spots.
“How much can your roommate bench press?” bachelor Tim Mahedy asked contestant Arden Anlian.
“How much do you weigh?” Anlian answered.
Mahedy chose Anlian’s roommate, Kirsten Vernegaard.
“Kirsten set me up, but we decided to switch last minute. I’m more complimentary of her,” Anlian said of their decision to put her in the roommate spot.
About 30 students filled the sofas lining the Hippodrome, laughing, cheering and shouting suggestions to the contestants. The bachelors and bachelorettes also sat in the audience and were revealed at the end of each round.
The Class Council conceived the idea for the show during a brainstorming session at the beginning of the year, Class Council Representative Sara Gimmy said. They decided to save the event until Valentine’s Day.
“It’s like ‘The Dating Game’ with a cross of MTV’s ‘Date My Mom.’ Granted people are going to talk to each other, we tried to keep the identity of the bachelors and bachelorettes as secretive as possible,” Gimmy said.
Bachelorette Bethany Remely realized during her round of questioning that she knew who one of the roommates was describing.
“Roommate number three, your roommate is gay and dating one of my friends,” Remely said.
She chose another contestant, freshman Matt Alderman.
Most contestants were sophomores who had responded to an e-mail the Class Council sent out to advertise the event, which lasted about two hours.
