by KELLI FONTENOT
Published Feb. 4, 2009 by The Current Sauce
Five of the 10 Lady of the Bracelet pageant contestants met on a Thursday night to make plans for the hectic rehearsal schedule, discuss pageant rules and regulations, and of course, practice answering interview questions.
"What is your favorite book and why?" was one classic.
"I actually really did like Dante's 'Inferno,' but I don't think that will go over really well," junior liberal arts major Shanice Major said.
Sitting around a table in the Student Activities Board office, the contestants laughed and chimed in with some of their beloved titles.
"Somebody's going to say 'Twilight,' I just know it," freshman hospitality, management and tourism major Melanie Kay said.
"I'm in love with Edward Cullen," freshman Brittany Pippin joked. "I would marry him."
"OK, ladies," said Julia Anderson, the pageant coordinator, a patient reminder that they should be concentrating on the work at hand. She announced the dates and times of upcoming rehearsals and committee meetings as the girls pulled out their cell phones.
In jeans and sweatshirts, the girls didn't appear to be organizing a pageant. They were just hanging out, giggling, joking around.
But the contestants have a hand in preparing for - and even publicizing - the event. At the committee meeting, they made lists of locations for posters and attached stickers to gold wrapped mints to promote the event. The girls also composed their talent introductions and folded up T-shirts to sell as promotion for the pageant and Children's Miracle Network.
At the top of Anderson's list was a trip to the Cane River Girls' Home. The contestants decorated gift bags to bring to the girls, which included free tickets to the pageant.
Anderson also discussed a few pageant particulars, including the appropriate attire for escorts. Each contestant is supposed to request that an "important male figure" in her life escorts her at the pageant, Anderson said. They are not required to wear a jacket or tux, but some things are off-limits.
"Absolutely no cowboy hats," Anderson said.
The girls joked around in their down time, but with the coveted Bracelet and a full tuition scholarship on the line, they are taking the competition seriously.
The pageant
The Lady of the Bracelet pageant, a preliminary for the Miss Louisiana pageant, has been an NSU tradition for 50 years. In addition to showcasing the contestants' talents, this year's pageant will include appearances by other performance groups, including a jazz ensemble.
One student - the LOB committee chair - organizes every meeting and rehearsal with poise behind the scenes. Julia Anderson of the Student Activities Board has been working with the contestants since last semester. Anderson, an AOII alumna, said she plans to graduate in May with a bachelor's in social work. She is also working full time as an intern, working part time at Trail Boss and taking 21 hours in addition to working with the pageant contestants.
The pageant includes several competitions, including talent, evening gown, swimsuit and interview. Some contestants acknowledged the division of the intellectual and physical aspects of the pageant.
While the interview portion counts for a large percentage of the overall score, the contestants also dedicated a significant amount of effort to looking good.
One contestant, Bethany Frank, said she thinks that intelligence is beautiful, and that the pageant should be taken seriously.
Lady of the Bracelet Contestant and junior liberal arts major Sara Mayeux put it best when she likened the pageant to another situation.
"The synthesis between the two is that you're interviewing for a job. I might go into a job interview and give a brilliant interview, but if I'm not presenting myself well, they're not going to hear what I have to say. If I walk into an interview for Johns Hopkins medical school in pajamas, it doesn't matter if I made a 45 on the MCAT and have a 4.0 GPA and speak six languages. I'm not going to get the slot."
Mayeux said the pageant is not so much about "the look" as it is about applying for the job of representing Northwestern State at the Miss Louisiana pageant in a classic, respectful and professional manner.
The ladies
Ten NSU students will be competing in this year's Miss Northwestern LOB Pageant. This year's contestants include Mayeux, Frank, Major, Kay, Pippin, senior music major Jessica Lopez, sophomore music education major Katie Stockton, freshman business administration and family and consumer sciences major Jordan McLamore, sophomore theatre major Phylicia Felix and sophomore theatre major Halli Hickman.
Some of the girls said they are not the contestants people might be expecting.
"I know I don't give off a pageant-girl vibe," junior liberal arts major Shanice Major said, citing her blue jeans, T-shirt and loud voice as evidence. "I think that's a welcome change in the pageant community."
Major, a Louisiana Scholars' College student, has never been in a pageant.
"I've always wanted to do pageants, but I've done sports all my life, and that's kind of a weird combination," Major said. "I mean, basketball and ballroom gowns don't really go together."
Major said she was a point guard and captain of her girls' basketball team in high school. She also played softball, ran the 1600 and 3200 for track and served as a volleyball statistician.
Major said she has learned how to carry herself intellectually and has been exposed to many different personalities as a student at the Scholars' College. She hopes to spread that knowledge with the help of the pageant.
"I want to show that Scholars' College has a very diverse population," she said. "They're very social, approachable people."
Melanie Kay, a freshman hospitality, management and tourism major, also noted that the pageant is a chance to show off diversity and originality.
"I've always wanted to model, but since I'm not exactly a size two, that's something I've never really done before," Kay said.
Senior journalism major Bethany Frank said she has had a busy semester working as Editor for the 2009 Potpourri yearbook, but that she is definitely looking forward to the pageant.
While getting her hair done, Frank explained that she is not "society's beauty queen" and has never been in a pageant before. She said she does not expect to win, but that 16 hours of practicing how to walk across the stage is worth it if she gets to wear the Bracelet and support Children's Miracle Network.
Frank plans to write a personal account of her experience for the yearbook.
"Back in the day, the editor would crown Lady of the Bracelet, and I just think it's a neat little twist that now, the editor's trying for the crown."
The Interview
In preparation for the grueling 10-minute interviews each girl must face with the group of carefully selected judges, the contestants practiced during "mock interviews" last semester.
After mock interviews, judges told Kay she gave good responses, but needed to act more formal.
Kay said she thought the interview portion would be a chance to get to know the girl vying for the bracelet, so she treated it like a conversation and didn't try to put on a facade.
"Apparently, I have to go in there and be like a robot, like, 'World Peace,' and that's not who I am," Kay said.
Kay explained that while she respects the judges, she truly felt that her behavior in the pageant should represent her genuine personality.
"When I was little I looked up to pageant queens like Miss America. I thought that was so cool," Kay said. "I think it's important for young girls to have a role model."
Contestants for the pageant have to keep their cool under pressure, and the questions will cover a wide range of topics.
"They ask you everything from 'What's your major?' to 'How do you feel about the bombing in Gaza?' You have to be ready," Major said.
But according to some contestants, the interview is not the most daunting challenge of the competition.
The Swimsuit
During one portion of the pageant, each contestant must walk onstage in a bathing suit under A.A. Fredericks' unforgiving lights and the scrutiny of both judges and the student body. Mayeux has competed for the Bracelet and title twice before. She also competed in the Calcasieu Cameron Parish Fair and the Iowa Rabbit Festival pageant when she was in high school. She said she is not excited about the swimsuit competition, but that she passed on valuable knowledge to the other girls - including a special glue that keeps swimsuit bottoms from riding up.
McLamore, who has never competed in a pageant before, explained she is normally comfortable in a swimsuit at the beach or the pool because other people are in similar attire. For this competition, though, she thinks the reason for nerves is that all eyes will be on her. McLamore,
Mayeux, Kay, and Frank all confessed to being nervous about the swimsuit competition. Major agreed, adding that she does not think the swimsuit portion of the competition is particularly relevant.
"I feel as though it - not intentionally - but it discriminates against women who are a bit curvier," Major said.
Major and Frank both commented that because the bathing suit competition does not showcase intellect or personality, they do not emphasize it as much as the interview and talent portions of the pageant.
The Talent
Eight contestants plan to sing during the talent portion of the competition. McLamore's selection is from the song "Popular" from the musical "Wicked." Kay said she plans to don a white dress with a blue satin sash to sing "My Favorite Things," a song from "Sound of Music."
Only two contestants chose to deviate from vocal talent - one dancer and one bassoonist.
Frank said she has focused on her talent more than working on her abs or interview strategies.
"I think it's kind of contradictory to go out there and change who I am just because I'm going to be onstage. So, I go out there, and I practice my piece every day," she said.
Frank will play "Piéce" by Gabriel Faure. She has been playing bassoon for 12 years and now has a music scholarship at NSU.
The evening gown segment of the competition is another part that many of the competitors are anticipating eagerly. Some girls tried on dozens of dresses to be ready for the big night.
All of the contestants interviewed, however, agreed that the most important part of the pageant is its cause.
The philanthropy
Kay and Mayeux chose Children's Miracle Network as their platform to carry on the tradition of the reigning Miss Northwestern, senior theatre major Mandi Ridgdell. "What could be better than helping kids?" Kay said.
Other contestants chose new platforms that reflect their personalities. McLamore chose "Dress for Success," an organization that donates business suits to unemployed women who are attempting to find jobs.
Major chose a college-specific issue as her platform - STD Awareness in Minority Communities.
"I wanted to narrow it down because I don't feel that the message is reaching minority communities," Major said.
Major speaks passionately about her topic, even noting that she applauds condom companies for warning people about STD dangers in their commercials.
The platforms each girl chose speak volumes about their diverse personalities and perspectives. Students who present their current NSU IDs can get in free to the pageant, which will take place Saturday at 7 p.m. in A.A. Fredericks.
Students will have the opportunity to vote for the People's Choice award - and, of course, learn about their future representative.
"She's our Miss Northwestern," Anderson said. "So, why shouldn't we get to know her?"
