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August 2011 Edition Of"The Excellence"
My Life On The "E" List
July
started out with a bang in Kansas City. Reba sure knows how to put a
pageant on... Contestants from all over the country battled it out while Tanisha
Foxx took top honors with Sparkle Iman as his 1st alternate. Larry and
Terry attended this event. It was a success from start to finish... They sure
know how to treat a MGA. On a side note, it was a blessing to spend time with
Reba. I think we are dangerous together… Just sayin... There
was no time to unpack as I was headed off to Texas. Aaron Davis invited me along
with Erica Andrews and Tommie Ross to perform in the beautiful town of Corpus
Christie. With a cast like this, you can imagine how amazing the show turned out
to be. Aaron and Erica kept me laughing all night while Tommie and I had several
moments I will never forget. Thank you so much for including me in this
incredible event.... There
was no time to sleep as I headed straight to Harrisburg PA for the Miss Gay
Pennsylvania America pageant. With contestants all over the state, Domiana Dupre
St. James took home the crown with Ashley Lynn as his 1st alternate. Eric has
been so dedicated to his pageant and I want to thank him for treating all his
contestants and myself with love and respect. He put his heart in this pageant
and it showed. I can’t wait to come back to Harrisburg as it is such a fun
place. Why
rest now? I'm on a roll… I caught a flight to Orlando Florida for the
Miss Gay Florida America Pageant. It was a delight to see that Florida America
was alive and healthy. With an amazing contestant base, Zhane' Kennedy took top
honors and Jessica Deveraux as his 1st alternate. This pageant kept me on the
edge of my seat. There were so many new blessings this week for me. After the
crowning in Florida we packed up and headed to Gulfport Florida for the Miss
Gulf States America Pageant. The theatre was sold out and the event was
amazing. At the end Victoria Dupuis was crowned and Blair Williams took spot as
his 1st alternate. This was emotional for me because both contestants came back
to the system after a long absence. Miss Gay America has definitely benefited
with their return. For the promoters Ron and Mark, what can I say... I
didn't know them before my trip but what a blessing. I didn't want to leave.
Your dedication to the MGA Pageant system is overwhelming. Thank you for
allowing me into your lives and I'm sure we will have many more happy times
together. This
I know for sure....
This
month has been one of the most humbling months in my life... This
month I am proud to interview someone I’ve looked up to for many years....Miss
Gay America 2000 Catia Lee Love has set the bar for being Miss Gay America... I
hope you enjoy it as much as I did.... Miss
Gay America 2011 Coti Collins: How did you get introduced to the MGA system? Miss
Gay America 2000 Catia Lee Love: My introduction to the America system came only
a month after I started doing drag. At the time, I was living in Houston, TX. I
had started in a small Talent night, and after being put into a cast, my
drag mentors decided I should try out a pageant. They knew I had been a
competitive dancer and felt I would be ideally suited for one of these. They got
me pulled together and sent me off to San Antonio, TX, and I entered Miss San
Antonio America. I wound up being 1st alternate, which I was so excited about
since I had just started in drag and had no clue how the pageants worked. LOL as
each category would start, my mentors would tell me what was about to happen,
then they would literally say go and pushed me onstage. It was like a crazy
comedy movie, but oh so fun. Sadly, the girl who won passed away less than a
month later, and I found myself being crowned Miss San Antonio America '94. It
was then I found out I would now be heading to Miss Gay Texas America. Foolish
as it may seem, I had 0 knowledge of the pageant system nor the fact that there
were levels to it until that point. So off to Miss TX I went. Excited and wide
eyed, I embarked upon the pageant path and found myself in the top 12 at my
first state pageant. At that point, I knew I wanted to be Miss America. My eyes
had been opened to the excitement, dedication, and spirit of the system and it's
participants. I saw how revered the Miss Americas were and how they could both
entertain and motivate those around them, and I knew this was the mark I wanted
to be able to leave on those around me. Miss
Gay America 2011 Coti Collins: How was your experiences with MGA before being
crowned? Miss
Gay America 2000 Catia Lee Love: My experiences were very informative and
positive. I had ups and downs on my path to MGA. It took me 4 years to make it
to MGA. I tried three times to be Miss TX and then moved to OK where I won Miss
OK and went on to my first MGA. Those pageants helped me mold my knowledge and
hon my skills so that when I hit the national level, I was able to rapidly move
up the ranks. These skills are still what help me to succeed in every area of my
career. My experiences with MGA have been so enlightening and empowering from
the first pageant, through my reign, and even more so after my reign. Miss
Gay America 2011 Coti Collins:
During your reign as MGA, what was your defining moment? Miss
Gay America 2011 Coti Collins: If you could change anything about MGA, what
would it be? I
hope that you have enjoyed reading this article as much as I have enjoyed my
sincere friendship with Catia. As August proves to be the busiest month yet, I
look forward to reporting the events of the month to you in the next edition… In closing, I challenge each of you to follow your dreams. Never let
anyone determine your self worth.......
From the desk of Larry & Terry
Is it August already? Time flies
especially when it is seemingly a great pageant season. Each and every year, the
pageant season seems to fly by and this year is no exception.
Pageant after pageant, this season, Miss Gay
America 2011 Coti Collins validates that the contestants are better
prepared than ever. Coti has
mentioned that it is already difficult to narrow down who, in her opinion, will
likely earn a Top 10 spot… and there are still approximately 11 pageants to
occur between now and the conclusion of the preliminary pageant season.
Coti has been very impressed with several “new” contestants as well
as some of those deemed to be a “blast from the past”… this is what makes
pageantry so exciting is that there is so much unknown and anything can happen
at the national competition. In fact, as we continue to say, all 54 contestants
have the exact same chance to be the next Miss Gay America. What they do with
the odds is up to the contestants. Some contestants will buckle under the
pressure while others will thrive in the pressure. We think that all five
categories are designed to identify the well rounded contestant. Granted the
physical and emotional strains from the week of competition are overwhelming
however a very focused and prepared contestants will stay strong during the week
of competition. There are always those that are “there for the party” but
those who are serious about becoming the next Miss Gay America usually stand out
amongst the crowd, especially in competition. Our biggest fear is that a “pageant
girl” will be crowned Miss Gay America and then the experience deficiencies of
travel, wardrobe, costuming, entertainment ability and overall look will make
the year somewhat of a struggle for her. The staples of a good entertainer
(looks, talent and personality) is the foundation of what Miss Gay America
should be. If the staples are present, then the rest of requirements including
the strong emphasis on administration will be much easier to realize. Our goal
for the new Miss Gay America is to adopt appropriate practices that will make
the year as Miss Gay America much more enjoyable. The last thing we want is that
at the end of the reign, that the reigning Miss Gay America is ready to
relinquish the title, in fact, our goal is quite the contrary… we want the
year of Miss Gay America to be so incredible that they do not want the magical
ride to end. It is then that we know that all in all, the year has been
rewarding. We hope that the judges are able to see through a “pageant girl”
and identify weaknesses that show during competition that will be obstacles
during the reign. The year as Miss Gay America is certainly filled with
pressures and it is heartbreaking to witness the greater than normal stress, all
because the judges selected a candidate that was “not ready” to be Miss Gay
America. Usually the tell-tell signs prevail and when a contestant is not ready
to be Miss Gay America, there is most always obvious flaws in the competition
that are seemingly unattractive to the panel of judges. Thus the importance of a
well informed panel of judges who are clearly aware of the job description of
Miss Gay America. The largest injustice that can occur to a contestant is for
the judges to award the crown of Miss Gay America to someone who is not prepared
to be Miss Gay America. There are times when a judge may be “conned” but
more often than not, the signs will be present and it is up to the panel of
judges to detect such flaws. Granted, no matter who is crowned, L & T
Entertainment is committed to getting the new Miss Gay America ready to reign.
We will provide them with every tool we can to ensure that they have the tools
necessary to have a great reign…but the rest is up to them. We will mold and
school the newly crowned Miss Gay
America to be what the country expects but we can only do so much to ensure a
quality reign. We are fortunate this year that once more, a seasoned entertainer
and well rounded individual was selected to be the “Symbol of Excellence”
thus making the year much easier to endure for not only the reigning Miss Gay
America, but also for others including L & T Entertainment ,
promoters, contestants and audience members. It is that time of year when we
begin to get nervous thinking about the possibilities of who could become the
next Miss Gay America. As the preliminary pageant season is still in full
motion, the contestant crop is still in the harvest phase so there is still so
much unknown, which is somewhat scary considering that in just over 75 days, a
new Miss Gay America will be crowned. But, as we are in process of educating the
panel of judges, we begin to get nervous wondering about the quality of the
coming year. To the contestants who have qualified and to those who have not yet
qualified, we encourage each of you to know what you are volunteering for… it
is a job but can also be the most rewarding time of your life, therefore it is
imperative that you prepare for the job including getting wardrobe , jewelry,
hair and costuming together for as soon as the crown goes on your head, the
whirlwind of a year begins and we want you to enjoy it… So to Miss Gay America
2012, we look forward to working with you and hope that you can continue the
incredible legacy left by Miss Gay America 2011 Coti Collins. Coti is living her
dream and it is our pleasure to be part of her dream.
As we just published the advertisement poster for the Miss Gay America
2012 pageant, we tend to reflect, during this time of the year, on the quality
of the year and look forward to the coming year. It is during this time that we
are very thankful when there is a good person in reign and we are truly thankful
to be a part of this amazing journey that Coti is living… Until Next Time…
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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