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October 2009 Edition Of"The Excellence"
When you wish upon a star… it makes no
difference who you are. When you wish upon a star… your dreams do come true.
As we all know, this is one of the infamous lines from the wonderful world of
Disney- I am a true example of this. It has been just short of one year since my
dream came true. So much has happened in this year; I have traveled to twenty
three prelims across the country and still have three more to go. I have been
away from my home more than I have been in it, but yet, I will not complain! I
have learned so much from so many different people who have encouraged me to be
unique, but to cherish the many things we have in common.
As I look ahead to MGA 2010 it has been difficult to process the fact
that the end of what I consider “a year to remember” is approaching quickly!
It’s kind of scary to think that my journey is over in the sense that I will
not compete on a national level anymore. I have always been accustomed to
preparing for competitions that now I feel as if I do not have anything to look
forward to, however I know that is not the case. The thrill, challenge and
anticipation of competing for the title may be gone, but the honor, happiness
and feeling of pride will never leave me. This
has been the best year of my life and I am saddened to see it go but I look
forward to working alongside L&T, as well as all the formers, but to think
that my crown and tiara will now sit in their showcase makes me want to start
all over again! I have had the opportunity to talk to all
of you and witness first hand your desire to become MGA. It is a surreal feeling
to be someone who people ask direction from. Every one of you have been an honor
to not only work with, but witness first hand, the talent you possess. I love
seeing the ambition and drive in all of you, it makes me feel proud to be MGA
and secure in the fact that my new sister will continue to take our system to
new levels of excellence. You all have prepared competition packages that get
bigger and better every year- you have raised the bar for female impersonation
competition. Miss Gay America 2010 will mark Thirty
Eight Years of Excellence. It is the oldest pageant in the U.S. history of
female impersonation, and in the world today we face many different options in
life, we are now free to express ourselves in whatever way we choose. Our
country has come such a long way in nearly forty years! As this year has passed
I have sat in on nearly one hundred and fifty male interviews. One of the most
frequent questions asked was “What makes MGA different from all of the other
pageants”? Although every
contestant that answers this question has a different answer, one theme remained
the same: Miss Gay America prides itself on the fact that “boys are boys”
and female impersonation is an art. I feel sometimes that because we are so
structured, many people feel as if they can’t express themselves in our
system-this is not true! It takes a person who has the knowledge to be creative
but while upholding the rules and regulations of our system. In no way does our
system limit us to be great entertainers because we are men. It is actually the
hardest competition to win because we still have to follow the general rule of
illusion and the fact that we create something that really isn’t there. I
applaud you for keeping the original art form alive, as well as setting the
standard of what female impersonation is. The sky is the limit! My travels have been so exciting and with
each trip I am more and more amazed that I am living the dream of being MGA.
Several months into my role as MGA, (before the craziness started-LOL) I thought
maybe I would be ready to give it up when it came down to the end- I find that
was just wishful thinking. Unfortunately, I was unable to fill everyone in on my
last trip in August, so I have added it to this month’s article. And what an
amazing trip it was! I got to travel to “The
Queen City”- I know, how ironic was it for Miss Gay America to land in such a
place? The city was Charlotte, North
Carolina and it was spectacular! I was greeted at the airport by Michael Wynn
(The Man in the Red Hat) and we were off to the mall to shop while only making
one quick stop at Starbucks along the way. After shopping for a while we headed
back to the hotel to meet up with the promoter of Miss Gay Mid-East, Michael
Rhinehart. With him was my newest girlfriend Della, we hit it right off! We all
put the judges’ books together and enjoyed the time.
That night we went out for a bit to see the venue where the pageant was
going to be held- OMG can I say beautiful! The newly remodeled night club
Scorpio was exquisite! I have always heard so much about it and it was a
pleasure working there the whole weekend. Friday marked the day of competition
and there were four lovely contestants, which all did an amazing job! Kristina
Kelly, Crystal Chambers, China Collins and Tatianna Voche’ worked their tails
off for this competition. Dominique
Sanchez, Maya Montana, Brian Alexander, Michael Wynn and Trent Thomas
did a lovely job judging. Tatianna Voche’, who rocked it out, was
crowned Miss Gay Mid East and China Collins placed First Alt. All of the
contestants did an amazing job and this was one competition I would not have
wanted to be in-LOL! This pageant was special to me because I
got to work with one of my MGA sisters that I haven’t seen in a long time-
Tiffany Bonet’ was back and I was so ecstatic see her! Back in the days of
competition, she was one of the gals that inspired me; something about her voice
on the mic has always brought me great joy. Also in attendance were my sisters
Rachael Erriks and Luscious and of course, the china doll Mya Montana- it was
amazing to work alongside of them. Another gal that graced us with her presence
was Miss Gay DC Jessica Jade, she also rocked the house down. It was great to
work with so many people that weekend, Tiffany Storm, Coti Collins, Emery Starr,
Brooklyn Dior (thanks for the ring), Gypsy Starr, Kasy King and Jessica Rayenes
Starr- thanks for being so welcoming! Thanks to Basil, Bret and all of the staff
of Scorpio for making my trip memorable- I can’t wait to be back for Miss Gay
North Carolina. Miss Della, thanks for being a part of the week it was truly a
great time getting to know you and becoming friends (thanks for the tickets to
The Color Purple third row seat style) -it was wonderful and I thank you from
the bottom of my heart. Last, but not least, I would like to thank Mike
Rhinehart for his support this year of my reign. Mike has traveled to nearly ten
prelims this year supporting me, as well as the MGA system. It is great having
you in the system not only as a promoter, but as a friend. On Monday I returned home for a work week
of both the landscaping company and the salon. It’s hard to believe that after
November 1st I will have nothing to do but bang some hair, it’s going to be a
bit shocking because landscaping will be winding down for winter and MGA will be
over. What will one do with all this
time? LOL! My next stop was to Being gone from home so much in the past
year has made me feel a bit out of touch with my own city. So, the next prelim
was one that I was looking forward to because it was in my own city. I was so
excited to get to work as Miss Gay America in my own city so all of my
“peeps” could see me in the official capacity as MGA. Miss Gay Tri-States
was a fun pageant with four lovely contestants vying for the title; Déjà
Brooks, Kate Spade, Fanta Cee and Tammy Tarmac had a throw down for the crown.
Terry Eason, Mike Divoky, Loretta Martin, Mike Rinehart, and Jim Van did a
wonderful job judging. Thanks to Reba, Belle and Brad for putting on a great
event, your organization was key to your success! Thanks for my framed poster I
will hang it with pride. Congratulations to Deja Brooks for capturing the title
and to Kate Spade for placing first alt.-knock em’ dead girls at Nationals!
Thank you Channing Larue for all of your help, I’m glad that you were there
with me. So the very next morning I was off to
Springfield Missouri for the rebirth of Miss Gay Central States put on by our
newest promoters Shane and Steve. It was in a lovely hotel ball room-way to go
boys for putting on the Ritz! The cast was endless, including Tumara Mahorning,
Robyn Hunter, Erika Leigh Foster, Krista Versace (judge), Mariah Candy and Catia
Lee Love, who also served as the lead judge. Also judging were Monica Clay,
Marney Rae Holiday and Latesea Moore. It was very enjoyable catching up with all
the girls. The pageant included three lovely contestants;
Nikki Stevens, WOW! This month has truly been a busy one,
I can’t believe that it is already the end of the month. The countdown to MGA
2010 is rapidly approaching! But, there was no time to dwell because I next
found myself at Miss Gay Texas in Dallas. What a blast this prelim was!
The pageant was held at the famous Rose Room which is a beautiful and
perfect show bar. The girls in Dallas are so lucky to have a place like this to
showcase their talents. The new promoters Tim Smith and Marcus Hood are heading
the pageant in the right direction, it is always so nice to see new promoters
putting great effort and paying attention to detail into their pageants. The
contest included eleven contestants; Natasha Parson, Apen Tyler, Trecenia St.
James, Lenze Serell, Alexiya Nycole Davenport, Riley Moore, The Contessa
Piranha, Heather Skyy, Matie Madison, Onyx and Jordan Sinclair. The girls worked
it out Texas Style! I also had the pleasure of working with Charity Case, Tara
Dion, Claudia Foster, Sweet Savage, Josephine O’Hara, Valerie Lohr, Ashley
Cole, Alyssa Edwards, Chanel and Lala Larue. The judges were Tasha Kohl, Alina
Maletti, Raquel Chevalier, Nathaniel Shell and Doreen Rue. They had their job
cut out for them and selected Onyx as Miss Gay Texas 2009 and Trecenia St. James
first alt. -they both were amazing! I wish you the much success at Nationals.
I would like to thank the city of Dallas for being so welcoming to me. A
special thank you to Richard and the staff and management of S4 and the Rose
Room for letting our pageant showcase in your venue. I hope to be back real
soon! So, the pageant ended about three in the
morning and I had to be back at the airport at seven a.m. to head to Phoenix for
Miss Gay Western States. I arrived and Mr. Kenneth Blake had the Starbucks in
hand and I was grateful to receive some energy. The pageant was held at the
Windham Hotel in downtown Phoenix. Wow- this place was incredible!
I felt like a movie star in this venue! Two thumbs up guys for having
your event in such a first class place. The pageant was blessed with two
contestants Sache’ Van Cartier and Dottie Pepper who decided they still wanted
to battle it out for the crown. It was so nice to work with people I haven’t
seen in a while like Truly Fabu, Alina Maletti, China Collins (who was the
reigning), Angela Dodd, TC Taylor (MGAA), Maya Mackenzie, and Lucinda Holiday.
The judges included: Mikalia Kay and
Mark. A special thank you to Mary Ann and James for your help with the
festivities. Congratulations to Kenneth and Lee Revelle
for doing such an amazing job. We are truly honored to have you both in
our system and look forward to working with you again in Las Vegas next year.
Also, I would like to add that those of you who are inspiring to be MGA missed
out on a great prelim as well as an awesome prize package! Congratulations so
Sache’ who captured the title beautifully and to Dottie first alt. Let em’
have it at Nationals Gals! The next morning I had to be up at six
a.m. to catch my flight to Orlando for Miss Gay Florida. Thank goodness it was a
four hour nonstop flight so I could catch up on some much needed rest-LOL! When
I arrived I was greeted by the new promoter Will Pappas and we headed to the
famous Parliament House Resort. The first night we attended the Tea Dance at the
resort and lived the night right! The next morning it was time to gear up for
Miss Gay Florida America; Monica Moore, Jalitza Fierce and Kinden all arrived
with the will to win! The judges were Dominique Sanchez, Zena, Jay Taylor and
Rais Jackson who all did a great job! It was nice to get to work with Coco
Montrese, Chantel Reshae, Mercedes Alexander and Daphane Ferraro who I haven’t
seen in years. Also, it was a highlight to get to work with Crystal Chambers,
who was giving up her title. The
opening production of Wicked was amazing! In the end, Monica Moore sealed the
deal on the crown and Jalitza Fierce placed first alt.-great job ladies and we
will see each other real soon. Well, once again this month has quickly
come to an end leaving only four prelims. I hope you all are enjoying your time
preparing for MGA, it is going to be a blast to join together and celebrate
another great year of pageantry. Remember that the sky is the limit and Miss Gay
America is not a cookie cutter system! Use your knowledge, as well as the rules
and regulations to bring our art form to the next level. Enjoy the moment and
remember that “dreams do come true”. Until next time, Victoria DePaula MGA 2009
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.
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From the desk of Larry & Terry
