CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) – Before Charlize Theron could pick up her Woman of the Year award, she had to prove she was worthy.

That meant dancing to disco music, striking modeling poses and wooing someone wearing an elephant suit and a pink sparkly bra – all to delight of the cast members of the Hasty Pudding Theatricals at Harvard University, the nation’s oldest undergraduate drama troupe.

“I hope you all know I’m a high school dropout. I just thought I’d be clean with you guys,” Theron said Thursday.

Earlier in the day, Theron led a parade through Harvard Square as part of the annual festivities that precede a roast. She was also joined on stage by a cast member impersonating Keanu Reeves, Theron’s co-star in “Sweet November.”

For all her efforts, Theron takes home a gold-colored pudding pot.

The awards are given each year to performers who have made a “lasting and impressive contribution to the world of entertainment.

“She’s done so many different projects, she has such a range, she’s someone we can look up to,” said Talisa Friedman, a spokeswoman for Hasty Pudding.

Theron, 32, won the best actress Oscar for her performance as a serial killer in 2003’s “Monster.” She was nominated again for 2005’s “North Country” and has appeared most recently in “In the Valley of Elah.” She was also named Esquire magazine’s “sexiest woman alive” in October 2007.

Actor Christopher Walken is to receive the Hasty Pudding Man of the Year Award on Feb. 15, prior to the opening night performance of “Fable Attraction.”

“The two of them just epitomize what the award stands for, for the pudding,” Friedman said.

AP-ES-02-07-08 1826EST