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July 2006 Edition Of Excellence
Du'Bois' Dish By Nicole DuBois (MGA 2006)
Where do the days go? It is now the month of July, and
with only a few months left in my MGA reign, it is about to be a whirlwind of
pageants. So get ready contestants and have your seat belts on for a bumpy ride,
and to the new lucky winner of MGA 07, the airports are quite an event. One lady
scanned my crown last week, and said to me “ I know that is not a crown”, and my
response, “ Jealous”? She then just smiled and waved me through security. Oh the
joy’s of traveling with rhinestone jewelry…..
On May 28, the Miss East Coast Regional was held in Hagerstown, Maryland, with 3
wonderful contestants. The location for this event was Deer Park Lodge, Promoter
Brian Alexander, and the owners and staff of this great bar are to be commended
on an excellent job with this prelim. The entire staff was so welcoming to me,
made me feel right at home, Jello shots and all. Turtle (Sean) picked me up at
the airport and took me out the night before the pageant. We had a blast.
Pageant day food was prepared for judges and contestants, and I also had the
privilege of working with 3 of my MGA sisters. Raquel, Sabrina, and the AMAZING
Hot Chocolate, who I now affectionately call Instant Co-Co, thanks to our friend
Kimbol. Love you sis…By nights end Stephanie Michaels and I crowned Coti
Collins, with Chantel Reshae as first alternate .Two more girls just one more
step closer to fulfilling there dream of becoming MGA.
I took a few days off at the beginning of the month to revitalize, rejuvenate,
and just plain REST. My best friend Shawntel and I flew to L.A., for the Madonna
concert. I saw her in Atlanta 2 years ago and hated it, but she was unbelievable
this tour. We danced, sang, and had a few adult beverages throughout the night.
A good time was had by all. So if she is anywhere at a city near you, it is well
worth the price to see Madge..
June 10th, found me in Memphis, Tennesse For Mid South Gay Pride. Do not be
disappointed in me but this was my first and last gay pride, at least in the
heat of the summer. Why do the gays insist on doing festivals and parades in the
heat of summer? I had a great time with L&T, Anita Cocktail, and Victoria
Parker, but it was HOT!!! Happy Gay Pride to ALL.
June 17-18, I had a chance to work at my home bar The Bourbon Pub/ Parade in New
Orleans, Saturday night was my spotlight performance, Foam Party and all, and
then on Sunday with Raquel and Tiffany. It is always great to see Ryan, Josh,
Blair, Adam, and the entire gang. Love my boy’s…
On June 21, I flew to Dallas, Texas to Emcee and entertain @ Miss Highland Park,
a direct prelim to Miss Gay Texas America. This was the 14th year for Michael
and Richard to host this event. I also worked with Layla Larue, Rachel Erikks,
Aaron Davis, Kourtney Wells, and the newly crowned Miss Gay US of A- Alyssa
Edwards. Thanks guy’s for the wonderful time and I will see you all in The Rose
Room August 26 and August 27 @ The Roundup for Miss Southern Elegance.
Friday June23, my wonderful friend Charles (Dawn Davenport) drove Miss Lazy (me)
to Knoxville, TN. To work Sat. night @ The New Rainbow Club West, with the show
cast and my sister Maya Montana, we had a grand time, and then on Sunday, Miss
Smokey Mountain Regional was held. New Promoter Will Pappas did and outstanding
job, with 4 contestants battling it out. Contestants from TN. Ohio, GA., and
MS., traveling to get exposure and there name out there, is what this business
is all about. Congrats to Symphony Alexander-Love on her win and Mercedes
Alexander on being first- alternate. Great job goes out to Will and his awesome
staff.
I will be leaving in a few days for Tacoma, Washington for the Miss Northwest
prelim, so the results will be forthcoming next month. Good luck to all who
enter.
Contestants please make sure to double check everything you are taking to your
respective prelims. Music on good quality CD’s, wigs that look fresh and new,
gown checked for threads, wrinkles, missing stones or beads, etc., all costumes
clean and a wrinkle free male interview suit (please take to a dry cleaners and
do not try to iron at home) clean and pressed shirt. You know that your first
response to the judges is to tell them a little about yourself, so rehearse what
you are going to say, but do not make it sound rehearsed, and remember the key
word here is BRIEF. Judges have very little time to get to know you- so make it
count, and when shaking hands, you are giving a Male Interview, so please do not
shake hands like a girl!!!
Until next time if you look into your make up mirror and still see a dude- KEEP
PAINTING, MAKE-UP IS OUR FRIEND…..
Much Love, Nicole
From the desk of Larry & Terry
Communicating through On Stage
Interview…..
Do the points of On Stage Interview really matter when this
category is only worth 50 points per judge? Absolutely! Many times, when the
scores are extremely close, which is in most pageants, the On Stage Interview
category has determined the winner. As we continue to say, you should never
“give” points to your opponents. In a typical America pageant, On-Stage
Interview immediately follows the Evening Gown category, therefore there will
likely be a few brief moments that you must speak to the audience while the
judges are completing the Evening Gown scores. Usually, you, as a contestant,
will be asked to give a brief biography of yourself, prior to answering the On
Stage Question. Your biography should always be brief and include past, present
and future detail. Typically, the “brief biography” portion of the On Stage
Interview is not judged but you should be prepared, just in case.
The On Stage Interview category allows you to present yourself, in female attire
and communicate to the audience. This category will show your ability to
communicate to an audience and the ability to answer a question. Public speaking
is a very important part of the job as a Miss Gay America, not only during your
reign but after your reign as many will call upon you, as the most recent former
Miss Gay America, to emcee their contest therefore it is strongly recommended
that you obtain as much experience as possible, to emcee.
It has been said, that sometimes, questions for On Stage Interview are too
serious or too difficult to answer. We stress to you that a Miss Gay America
must be a well-rounded, “best of the best” contestant and this category is just
one of five, designed to prove that you are not only well rounded, but are
truly, one of the very best in your craft. Questions asked will vary so you
should be prepared to answer most any question, except for those that are
political or religious in nature. Your choice to answer your question in terms
of politics or religion is up to you…
It is also thought that it is difficult to inject personality into the answer of
a serious On Stage question. This is true, but it can be done. You must find
ways to make your Stage Interview more appealing to the judges, such as changing
voice tones, speaking with passion during your answer and showing enthusiasm.
Remember, judges usually see through a phony answer, so keep it “real”.
There are two (2) subcategories, noted below, that comprise the 50 possible
points (per judge) of the On Stage Interview category. This article will
hopefully provide direction to you, the contestant, concerning this category and
how to realize maximum points.
ON-STAGE INTERVIEW
Ability to communicate 0 to 25 Points
Answer content 0 to 25 Points
Total points 50 points possible per judge
Scoring should be based on personality and poise, the ability to communicate on
a microphone in front of an audience, and the context of the answer in relation
to the topic given.
Ability to Communicate- 0 to 25 possible subcategory points
This sub-category is your opportunity to clearly communicate with the audience.
You are not only scored on what you say, but how you say it…
Questions you might wish to ask yourself to ensure maximum points are:
Is your interview too conservative?
Are your interview skills too flamboyant?
Are your interview answers too boastful?
Is your interview answer too timid and/or shy?
Do you have a nervous laugh?
Are your answers sincere?
Are your answers to the point?
Do you tend to ramble without directly answering the question?
Do you properly enunciate your words?
Do you speak too fast? Too slow?
How is your grammar when speaking?
Do you say, “you know” or “um” too often?
Do you make eye contact with the judges and/or audience?
Are you confident in your answers?
Do your answers sound too rehearsed?
Are your answers sincere?
Do you seem too arrogant?
Answer Content- 0 to 25 possible subcategory points
This sub-category is your opportunity to clearly communicate the answer of the
question, to the judges and the audience. While we generally say that there is
no correct or incorrect answer, the judges will most likely be able to determine
if you are dishonest in your answers or if you have not answered the question.
You should answer the question that is asked and do not elaborate on issues that
are unrelated to your question.
Questions you should ask yourself to ensure maximum points include:
• Are your answers too brief?
• Are you familiar with the Miss Gay America system regulations in order to
effectively answer administrative type questions?
• Do you ramble in your answers?
• Are you answering the question(s) asked?
Preparation for this category, as in all others is very important. Perhaps you
could get others to rehearse with you, the On Stage Category. Perhaps you can
emcee a show as often as possible. While it is recognized that sometimes you, as
the contestant, might experience “stage fright” during On Stage Question, the
more experience you have as an emcee, the less likely you are to “freeze” during
this category.
In summary, the On Stage Question category, though very simple in description
can become quite complex, considering your question is unknown therefore you, as
the contestant are encouraged to become well versed on many issues, to better
prepare you for this category. Again, we recommend that you gather a group of
individuals to assist you with preparation for On Stage Question. This is just
one of five categories in which you must score well, in order to become the next
Miss Gay America, therefore we suggest that you begin your preparation today, in
order to realize the success in scoring that you would like to see from good
communication through the On Stage Interview category….
Until next time…
A Note From The Editor
The Excellence strives to be an informative newsletter delivered to the promoters of the Miss Gay America Pageant System throughout the year. Should there be any issue or topic of discussion a promoter would like to see addressed (or to write an article to be published) in a future newsletter, please contact the editor via
Email.
Please note, any article, comments, or opinions faxed, mailed, (postal or electronics),
or otherwise sent to any of our "addresses" become our property and carry an implied consent of publication should we choose to do so. No articles will be published in which one or more of the following occurs:
- complete identity of the author is not known
- plagiarism
- defamation of an individual or company
- false or misleading information (as we are able to determine)
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