|
| |
April 2008 Edition Of
"The Excellence"
Mikaila's
Mirror
 Finally
after all my anticipation and waiting and waiting, pageant season has EXPLODED
into full gear. We have three prelims under the belt so far as we held Miss Mid
America in Memphis on March 14th. Congrats to Sasha Nicole, our new Miss Mid
America 2008 and to our first alternate Sasha Leigh Chambers as they will both
be going on to the nationals in
St. Louis
in October. We are so proud of the Sasha’s LOL! Double mint twins even! Thank
you Ma and Pa for letting me grocery shop and use my catering skills to help the
day move along. You both had me at such ease and made me so relaxed and helped
so much... I’m truly grateful.
Between Miss Mid America and Miss Keystone I had been doing small tours in my
area spreading the news that Miss Gay America is in full gear, finding new
promoters and letting the kids know what Miss Gay America is all about. Miss
Keystone was right around the corner before I knew it. They had an amazing turn
out with four lovely contestants. I must say that by my second prelim, I was a
lot less nervous and felt more comfortable. I’d like to send a huge thank you
to the promoters Brian and Travis…”Let me borrow that top…SHOES!” You
Rock. Congrats to Tiffany Deveraux our new Miss Gay Keystone America 2008 and
her first alternate Victoria Barrera Jaymes. To our other contestants Lady Lords
and Charity Saude, congrats to you both as you did an amazing job and I’m
proud of both of you xoxo. All four contestants each won a category… you go
girls! It was so nice to see a lot of promoters out to support Brian and we
always love that. Thank you Sabrina White as well for being such a great help
and an amazing head judge.
I then jumped in a car filled with four people and what felt like 4 other people
with the amount of suitcases MD and myself had. Then headed to Delaware For Miss
Gay Delaware. I want to say a big shout out to MH, Dimples, and MD for making me
laugh and carting me around all the rest of the weekend. Miss Gay Delaware went
off kicking in high gear as we had three great contestants running for the title
and a lot of great entertainment. Thank you to the staff and management of the
Christiana Fire Hall for allowing us to use your space to pick our next
representatives. Congrats to Karyn Thomas our new Miss Gay Delaware America 2008
and her first alternate Sierra Spaulding, also a huge congrats to Deception as
you did an amazing job, so keep up the journey and dream, ladybug. Thank you
again to Scott & Barry for everything this past weekend. It was greatly
appreciated xoxo.
Now onto what April holds!! I am super busy in my area this month with traveling
from show to show and having Phoenix Gay Pride next week which I’m super
excited about. GO
Phoenix
Phollies! Our next prelim is Miss Gay Maryland America in
Baltimore
April 19-21. I love going to that area of the world as it is so saturated with
Miss Gay America respect and love for the system. It’s going to be at the
Hippo (home of many of the prelims this year). They have a huge group of
contestants and I look forward to who will be our next representatives at
Nationals.
On a side note, I’m interested in traveling between prelims, so promoters and
show directors, lets get to know each other before your prelims. Contact me via
email at Misskaymga2008@hotmail.com
That about raps it up.. so my advice from Mikaila’s Mirror this month is this:
Never let ANYONE bring you down. You are your own person and you know what you
believe in and what is true to your heart. Hold your head high and even through
heartbreak, struggling and strife, you can rise above it all and be that
shinning diamond in the pile of coal. Stay in constant contact with your
promoters as well for they will be the ones standing behind you and making sure
your night goes above and beyond what it can be. Never stop searching and
reaching for your dream.
Much Love
Mikaila
Kay
Miss Gay America 2008
 From the desk of Larry & Terry
A “Trendy” Competition…
Just because a
contestant scores well with a particular competition presentation, does not mean
that what works well for some will work well for others…
In fact, if you choose a competition package (i.e. style of gown or
talent) based on the success of someone else, you should probably reconsider
whether or not, the presentation is actually “you”…
Some contestants may attempt to imitate, in some way, the successful
competition package of another contestant, only to find that they may not score
as well. Contestants are urged to be original and not to pursue a competition
package that has scored well for someone else.
We are seeing and hearing that many, when considering a competition
package, are considering what has been done before, that has worked well for
others… then, when they do not score well, they immediately become confused as
to why they did not score well… Judges continue to demand that the talent
presentation is entertaining and gowns are elegant…
Not all contestants possess the same level of talent as others, nor do all
contestants look the same in a particular style of gown… This year has early
indications that contestants continue to increase their preparedness of what
they bring to the competition stage and just as in prior years, there is no such
thing as an “easy win” and there is no guarantee that what has worked well
for some, will continue to work well with others. Contestants should solicit
various opinions of those who will be honest, based on the category
descriptions. It seems that more often than not, the “entourage” of the
contestants are not very honest with the contestant, which can be harmful.
Sometimes, though it might hurt at the beginning, being brutally honest, will
only make the contestant grown stronger in their competition package. Success in
competition, comes from being prepared and having great supporters that can and
will be honest. Contestants cannot always see past ego’s and their perception
of what might be good for them therefore, seasoned opinions, from those well
versed in the category descriptions, can prove to be very beneficial.
We realize that preparing for competition is difficult but it is key to success.
Listening to critiques of the unbiased panel of judges will be instrumental in
preparation for the next level of competition, therefore, as contestants qualify
for the national competition or even when they don’t, the opinion of the
judges should be embraced and deeply considered when preparing.
Contestants who select the
“trendy” competition package, that is, packages that have typically scored
well, may not completely feel confident in their presentation, and will have
tendency to buckle under nervous pressures therefore one should be original and
choose category presentations that suit
the contestant and not other people…
On a side note, we plan to, in the near future, view the documentary
(“Pageant”) and look forward to posting our opinion of the project.
Until next time…
Larry and
Terry
From the
Promoters Perspective
An
article by Daniel Eckstrom-Co-Promoter of Miss Gay Arizona America and the Miss
Gay Western States America (nominee of
the Miss Gay America 2008 Pageant Season Regional Preliminary of the Year Award)
“Changes”
I am so honored again to have been asked to write an article for the April
edition of the Miss Gay America Excellence Newsletter.
First of all I would like to say how extremely happy I am to have been at
Miss Gay America this year. Not only
did I get to see Luscious, Miss Gay America 2007 and Miss Gay Western States
America 2006 step-down but I also got to witness my first alternate
representative for Western States, Mikaila Kay be crowned Miss Gay America 2008.
I am very proud of Luscious on an amazing reign and of Mikaila, who is
starting off his reign with amazing grace and style.
To have two winners back to back is not only amazing but a very humbling
experience and I will always cherish those memories watching my former
titleholder crown my representative…memories that will last a lifetime.
Miss Gay America 2009 season is fast approaching and many things are changing.
Sometimes change is a good and welcomed thing and sometimes change can
get the best of us all. I want to
take this time and say that sometimes we all need a little change in our lives.
Before preliminaries start, take some time to step back and think to
ourselves what we need to change. This
business is all about change and making yourself better.
Take some time to go out and make yourself into a better, more
well-rounded, person.
Go and take a yoga class, go hiking, go to a good concert, go and help a
homeless kitchen, just go out and make your life meaningful.
This will not only make you a better person, it will help you to prepare
for competition. Another important
thing is to listen. Listen to your
heart and most of the time it will not lead you in the wrong direction.
If being Miss Gay America is your dream and passion, never let that be
taken away from you. Strive to reach
your goals and listen to those you trust and value.
At this time I would like to take the opportunity to say how very proud I
was of the talent that was showcased at Miss Gay America this year.
I am very proud of all 4 of my representatives as well as the other 47
men that graced the stage that week. Keep
up the good work. I would also like
to give a big shout out to my fellow promoters.
Our job is not an easy one. I
love being a part of such an amazing group of promoters.
I would also like to take this time to welcome some new faces into my two
preliminaries. First I would like to
welcome Laura Nichols and Shelly Roberts into the Miss Gay Western States
America family. These two ladies are
amazing and will help me launch Western States into the next year!
Also, I would like to welcome Fernando Trinidad (Phaedra, Miss Gay
Arizona America 2001) and David Dawson as my co-promoters for Miss Gay Arizona
America. We have some great things
in store for both pageants and hope to keep the momentum going.
I look forward to seeing a lot of you on the road.
Let’s all keep up the good work and most importantly, have fun!
Best Wishes for an amazing season!
Daniel Eckstrom
Promoter,
Miss Gay Western States
America
Regional and Miss Gay Arizona
America
Daniel
Eckstrom
Miss Gay Arizona America Co-Promoter
Miss Gay Western States America Co-Promoter
A Note From The Editor
The Excellence strives to be an informative newsletter delivered to the promoters,
contestants, audience and other supporters 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:
|
