One of the eight contestants, Joel Tate will be portraying Walt Disney. His escort and dance partner is Allison King. His manager is Katie Constantine.

“I think Walt Disney portrays a sense of imagination that we should all have an opportunity to portray,” said Tate.

Tate is excited for the competition because he gets to wear a tuxedo. He thinks it is interesting that group of boys have been brought together that usually wouldn’t have interacted very much.

“I decided to do Mr. Linganore to fulfill a prophecy that was said when I was in eighth grade by a former Linganore teacher, Mrs. Estep,” said Tate.

Tate is the president of the National Honor Society and a member of Mu Alpha Theta. He currently has an internship at Tate Family Dentistry in New Market.

Outside of school, Tate works at Giant and lives on a 120-acre farm with 16 cows and three donkeys.

Tate plans to attend Hood College to participate in a pre-dental program and then attend the University of Maryland School of Dentistry.

“I think that I will win because I really want the audience to know who I am, and I want them to laugh. I love Linganore and the community, and I don’t want to leave at the end of the year,” said Tate.