Last minute planning may have contributed to what some called the offensive nature of their performance, Lee added.

"We basically came up with our dance routine literally 15 minutes before the show," he said. "In the midst of that kind of urgency and excitement we didn't really think about other possible issues in terms of being too raunchy."

Contestants in the Miss Pfoho competition, which has been held for the past five years, are judged on appearance, talent and their performance in a question-and-answer session.

Contest winner Matthew A. Romero '02, whose stage name was "La Femme Romeo," said he thinks the competition might be headed toward becoming less obscene.

"Two years ago the person who won Miss Pfoho [did so by] deep-throating a banana, but last year Miss Pfoho won by singing 'The Rose,'" Romero said.

Romero's winning act included lip-synching and dancing to a song from the musical Rent. Although his performance contained "pole-dancing," Romero said that he heard his was among the less explicit performances. Contestants were not allowed to view the other acts.

Bain refused to comment, saying the matter had been dealt with within the House.