Miss New York Workshop 2010

Workshop! Hooray!

The Miss New York State workshop was this weekend and boy was it a busy day!

The day started with turning in paperwork (which always makes me anxious...no more drafts! What's done is done! ahh!) and meeting the other contestants. This is my third year at Miss New York and I was thrilled to meet the many new faces.

We jumped right into activities for the day, sharing our talents and receiving constructive criticism. I performed my talent, a vocal of "Astonishing" from the musical "Little Women" with a new cut. As soon as I began performing I instantly knew the new cut was not going to work and have decided to go back to an old cut I was previously rehearsing. That's what is great about workshop-you have the opportunity to work out the kinks in a sense in a safe and supportive environment.

And while I am on the topic of talent at Miss New York may I just say that the 2010 class is such a talented bunch! WOW!

After our talent presentations the Miss contestants enjoyed a fantastic lunch. Thank you so much to the Miss New York board for putting together such a lovely meal!

After lunch we returned to work! Paul Brown, the Miss New York Director of Operations, had a very special announcement to make. He told the Miss New York community that there was a new executive director who was unanimously elected to serve over the Miss New York Organization. I am thrilled to extend a huge congratulations to Kenny Mack our new Executive Director! I have worked with Kenny the past two years at Miss New York and have enjoyed every minute of it. Kenny has worked so hard for this organization and is a true professional with a fun loving, friendly, and kind hearted spirit. I have no doubt that Kenny, in conjunction with the rest of the fantastic Miss New York Board of Directors, will do an absolutely outstanding job!

Paul and Kenny continued to fill in the contestants and directors on the busy schedule for pageant week. I am SO excited for pageant week! The Miss contestants have a ton of appearances and plenty of rehearsals to look forward to!

After we finished discussing pageant week the Miss contestants departed for some preparation on the art of Interview. We had the chance to watch Miss Georgia 2008 and 1st Runner Up at Miss America 2009, Chasity Hardman's Miss America interview. What an articulate and well rounded young woman! It was easy to see why she has been so successful. Miss New York 2009, Alyse Zwick, gave us her own opinions and pointers in interview preparation as well. It was a very informative session!

We returned to the theatre to meet with Kent Parhman who is the mastermind behind all things performance at the Miss New York pageant. Kent began teaching us the choreography for the opening number and giving suggestions on how to improve our walks and turns. I have enjoyed working with Kent the past two years at Miss New York immensely; his candid comments, constructive criticisms, and positive attitude have allowed the contestants to be shown in the best light possible each year. Our organization is so lucky to have him a part of the pageant! I am truly looking forward to working with Kent again this June!

After rehearsal we changed into our swimsuits to work on our fitness preparation and discuss healthy eating and active lifestyle habits. Alyse, who was a preliminary swimsuit winner at Miss New York 2009 and Miss America 2010, gave us some fantastic pointers.

The day was coming to an end and it was time to draw our contestant numbers! I am contestant #10 (out of 20) and will be the last contestant to perform talent before intermission at prelims. Hopefully I will be able to deliver a strong closing to Act 1!

My Executive Director, Calista, and my sister Queen, Miss Genesee Valley Chelsea Prophet, and I all got in the car for the drive home to Rochester. We chatted and discussed the day's events and remarked at how tired (and hungry!) we all were.

Needless to say, it was a very busy and exciting day! I really enjoyed meeting all the contestants and am looking forward to getting to know each of the girls better during pageant week in June.

And I am SO excited for the Miss New York Organization because I think it is safe to say there are 20 remarkably talented, intelligent, and beautiful young girls all vying for the Miss New York 2010 crown-the judges certainly will have a tough choice on their hands!