Against my mother’s better judgment, my sister and I made the unchaperoned public transport to New York City to attend the Miss New York pageant. And I am so glad we did!

The three of us arrived at the pageant, Picked up our tickets, took a bathroom break, and found our seats. They were great seats! Front right, 3rd row! I can’t help but thank my friend Michael, not to be confused with the Michael pictured above, for scoring us such great seats! Michael pictured is a student at RPI, and close friend of Adrienne’s. He attended a handful of locals, and agreed to be out City Tour Guide (and bouncer) in exchange for tickets to the show. I can’t thank him enough. Lauren and I are both fairly decent, ok we are just slightly decent, at public transportation after travelling abroad. But being alone, together, in the Big Apple for the first time could have been very overwhelming and it was great to have a familiar face. Our mother legitimately warned her not to push me into the tracks, and forbade me from speaking to homeless people.

Opening number started with a handful of girls, including Amanda A. (Mohawk Valley) front and center, in a vogue. They wore blue sheaf single shoulder dresses.

The dance was very dance-y (not just walking patterns and simple steps) and had quite a hip hop flare. Snap and drop. True story. Desiree (Empire Rose), Acacia (New York City) and Christina (Kings County) stood out to me. The other upstates I had to look for. Katie (Greater Gotham) messed up her introduction. She said “Katie Ford, uh, Berry”. She goes to Fordham University, must have been over thinking and jumped the gun.

Top 10: Desiree (Empire Rose), Camille (Finger Lakes), Nora (Liberty New York City), Teresa (Five Boroughs), Amanda M. (Manhattan), Nina (Syracuse), Acacia (New York City), Kira (Cosmopolitan), Katie (Greater Gotham), Christina (Kings County). Victoria (Adirondack) got People’s Choice and joined as Top Eleven. Her title was a big deal for upstate.

Then Mallory, Miss America, came out and waved. Very exciting!

The princess portion was pretty lame. They came out, Shannon (Miss New York) sang Children Will Listen from Into the Woods. Then she tried to talk to them, but they didn’t want to talk. Lifestyle & Fitness was lime green suits.

Victoria was very fit. Great body, but seemed a little too rehearsed, like she was counting her steps. And she had a butt smile tan line. But overall she was very good. Desiree had great hair and made great eye contact with the judges. Camille had a great body. Very toned, but curvy. Her shoes were a bad choice and she couldn’t walk well. Nora wore a one piece, which is a bold move. I didn’t like the suit, but of course she didn’t have a choice in that matter. She looked very nervous and jerked around a bit. Teresa was very awkward looking. At some points she looked like very fierce but at other times she just didn’t flow naturally. Amanda M. was very energetic, but she kept whipping her sarong over her shoulder. It showed personality the first time, but then got really old very fast. Nina had huge hair. But she stared down the judges. She made everyone look at her. Acacia was adorable. Shes very genuine and effortless.

Kira was very happy. She looked innocent. It was like she was just walking around. Oh hai, I’m here. Katie was super ridged and nervous and appeared very rehearsed. Christina had a great smile. She made you want to smile. But she took really big steps, and it was distracting.

Standouts: Desiree, Camille, and Acacia

Then we met the Outstanding Teen delegates. Three of them go to my high school. I thought that was a great representation.

Shannon Oliver was introduced again by Kaitlin Monte (Miss NY 2011) who said “If you’ve heard her sing before, you know shes good. But if you haven’t heard her, here’s your chance.” So I was all “Bro, we all heard her sing before. Ten mins ago…”

Talent:

Victoria was nervous, with reason, but it was very obvious. She had a great outfit that was pageant appropriate and fit the song choice. But in truth, the song choice wasn’t great. She performed Man in the Mirror by Michael Jackson.  Desiree danced to Halo by Beyonce, and wore a very similar dress to the one see myself wearing when I perform that song. She had high energy. Camille rocked it. She wore a bangin’ pant suit, got the audience involved; plus her hair was amazing. Nora tried to double dip. She was playing the violin and the track played was herself on the piano. Her dress was very cute. It was like a pink sparkly romper with a train. She was very entertaining, with great movement. She literally shredded her violin bow. Teresa played Flight of the Bumblebees on the keyboard. It was slightly disserning that she couldn’t play n a piano. I felt like at a theater like that, they should be able to pull out a baby grande. The talent itself was great, but she has terrible stage presence! Amanda sang opera. I know very little about opera. It was loud. But I honesty don’t think it was fantastic. The host, Leigh-Taylor totally butchered the pronunciation in her introduction. Nina was adorable. She did the same song as before, but had a different costume. She also sang along (without a mic) which added a high energy level. Acacia didn’t pop out. She had great facials and looks very genuine, but she was not very powerful. She did a ballet routine to Black Swan, which is very emotional and strong. She didn’t bring that to the stage.

Kira perfomed the Cup Song. Originally performed around campfires, and later recorded by Lulu and the Lampshades, the song was made famous by the movie Pitch Perfect. She wore yellow skinny jeans, barefoot, and a white lacy top, and sat on the floor and while clapping and tapping. It was good, but it was nothing special. In truth, it looked like she was just doing it for fun. Her voice was good but it was the wrong song. She needs a real song if she hopes to win. Katie was very vacant. She was not focused. Her ballet was great and she used a fan for a prop. The entire performance was super high energy and fun to watch. Christina dominated the stage. It was very evident that she was confident, and powerful and loves to dance.

Then Shannon Ryan came out and step danced; her talent at Miss America’s Outstanding Teen last summer.

Mallory Hagan’s family had flown up from Alabama to watch the pageant. It was very cute, and the hosts recognized them. It must be incredible to be the parents of Miss America.

Mr. New York performed. OHMYGOSH. He was FANTASTIC. Each contestant at Miss New York brings a male counter part to compete in a fundraiser “pageant” to help raise money for the Miss New York scholarship fund. He then gets to perform again at the Miss New York pageant. Frankie is a YouTube sensation. He even posted a vlog about winning Mr. New York. The piece he performed, titled I’m Too Pretty, explained about why he does not and will not, work in the service industry. He is full package, and going places. His sister, Ariana, is also going places. That family should adopt me.

Evening: There was lots of red. And solid jersey knit dresses (with no rhinestones or glitter), and lots of the same dresses! Katelynn and Teresa had the same dress. Ironically Teresa’s talent dress was very similar to Katelynn’s evening gown from last year, which was also Victoria’s evening gown. Camille and Christina also wore the same gown, although they looked very different as a result of different body shapes.

Victoria needs to pull her shoulders back. She was slouched at times, but still very elegant. Her smile appeared fake though. Unfortunately, it seemed as though she had given up. Desiree had good eye-contact. Her dress was pretty, but a poor choice for her as it was a funny shape. Camille looked great in a red full sequin 20s style gown with a collar and low sloop back. Her walk was weak. Nora wore a very interesting silver dress. She was too relaxed, and looked awkward with her hands on her hips. Her shoes were a poor choice. Teresa walked with her hands on her hips (no-no) and her chin was way too high. She reminds me of me. Amanda was way to edgy looking. It looked like she was walking the streets of Manhattan. Like arrogant. She totally ignored the walking patterns. Nina wore a solid jersey yellow dress with a low V and an interesting open back. She didn’t shine to me, but I still thought she was great.

Acacia had a great nude/silver dress with a lace looking sequin overlay. She was very natural. Kira wore a blue velvet gown with a silver shoulder accent. She didn’t stand out. Katie wore the same gown as last year, which I liked last year, but I would have switched it out. She totally blended in with a fake smile.

Christina was good. Great smile and hair.

Teen Top Six:

• Joelle (Thousand Islands & Peoples Choice)
• Emily (Fulton County)
• Ashley (Staten Island)
• Marisa (Manhattan)
• Sarah (Long Island)
• Krysta (Empire Rose)

My Top Five Predictions were Desiree, Camille, Nora, Nina & Acacia.

But instead it was Acacia, Desiree, Teresa, Amanda, and Nina.

Three out of Five isn’t too bad.

Awards

• Miss Southern NY, Madison: Academic Award, $1000 scholarship. She was BAWLING afterwards. She was not expecting it. It was very heartfelt and genuine.
• Miss Richmond County, Allysa: Community Service Award, $1000 scholarship
• Miss Adirondack, Victoria: Miracle Maker Award, $1000
• Miss Liberty NYC: Highest Preliminary Score for a 1st Timer
• Miss Staten Island, Amanda Lee Alicea: Non-finalist talent, $200
• Miss Bronx, Delesia Watson:  Non-finalist Interview, $200