By their own admission, The Deadbeats won’t be the most talented act at Tigers Roar.

Thursday, March 15, 2001

By their own admission, The Deadbeats won’t be the most talented act at Tigers Roar. But they do promise to be among the funniest.

The Deadbeats are John Mattson, Adam Evans, Gerrit Plantage, Noah Langseth, Stuart Ness and Matt Entorf.

The group actually formed for the talent show at Southwest Junior High School four years ago. Matt Wulff was part of the group then, but Langseth has since replaced him.

&uot;We made it up at lunch and in the locker room before auditions,&uot; said Mattson. &uot;We almost didn’t get enough guys.&uot;

Then, they called themselves the VeeGees and danced to songs like &uot;YMCA&uot; and &uot;Stayin’ Alive.&uot;

&uot;The girls loved us, so then we had to do it in ninth grade,&uot; Plantage said.

&uot;That was our best one,&uot; recalled Evans.

That year, the group did a parody on Richard Simmons and &uot;Sweatin’ to the Oldies.&uot;

&uot;We were in warmup clothes and did this workout video,&uot; Evans said. &uot;We lost 100 pounds in five minutes.&uot;

Last year, the group’s first year at Albert Lea High School, they did a parody of Michael Jackson’s &uot;Thriller.&uot;

&uot;We wore jumpsuits – the Salvation Army is a great place for us,&uot; Ness said. &uot;And we made it look like we’d been dead for some time.&uot;

They went all out with props, lighting, tombstones and glow-in-the-dark bones.

That was where the name, &uot;The Deadbeats&uot; came in.

While they’re back to a new &uot;food show,&uot; they didn’t feel it was right to change their name, since people will no doubt remember them from last year, they said.

&uot;This year, I think we’re at our comical high,&uot; Plantage said.

Their act will include a medley of Weird Al Yankovich, including &uot;Rye or the Kaiser&uot; (to the tune of &uot;Eye of the Tiger&uot;) and &uot;Fat&uot; (&uot;Bad&uot;) as well as &uot;Robin Hood – Men in Tights.&uot;

&uot;We do have green tights,&uot; Evans said.

They’ve all pitched in and helped make their own costumes, but give lots of credit to the Noah’s mother, Marsha Langseth.

&uot;But we love all our Deadbeat Moms,&uot; Mattson said.

All members of the Albert Lea High School Show Choir, The Deadbeats say they owe a lot to ALHS Choral Director Diane Heaney -&160;and the 1970s with its music that gave them their start.

&uot;We do this more for fun than anything else,&uot; Plantage said. &uot;If we mess up, it’s just a little bit funnier.&uot;

&uot;Come with an open mind,&uot; added Evans.

Mattson said each year they plan to work on their act earlier, but each year it gets a little later. They do, however, already have their idea for their senior grand finale: &uot;Memories: The Best of the Deadbeats.&uot;

Tigers Roar, the annual student variety show at Albert Lea High School, will be presented at 7 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday, March 15-17, in the high school auditorium.

Tickets for Tigers Roar are $5 for adults and $4 for students and seniors. They are available at the door and at all three Andersen Hallmark locations.