As patrons filled the seats at the National Cultural Center on August 17, 2011, excitement filled the air as they prepared to watch what has been proposed as the best pageant in local history. At around 8:30, the National Anthem (first and last stanzas) was sung by a local boy group, officiating the beginning of the Miss Jamzone International Pageant – Part 1. The reigning queen, Ms. Lesa – Gayle Tom, was brought in by oiled, buff young men to the beats of African drums, as she introduced herself and spoke about her past year on a voice – over recording. She strutted from end to end of the stage, while letting the gathered subliminally know that the next winner has enormous shoes to fill.
It was after this that the delegates danced their way to center stage to the melodies of African music as they introduced themselves. Naturally, Miss Brazil and Miss Venezuela both had translators, since they speak Portugese and Spanish respectively. However, their translator did not do them justice as she failed time and time again to relate the statements and questions by our MC’s throughout the show. We at Guyanalive.com hope she wasn’t paid, since that would have been a waste of money. The 11 delegates were; Ms. Latisha Greene of Antigua and Barbuda, Ms. Kenlly Aranguren of Venezuela, Ms. Rhea Cummings of Barbados, Ms. Deandra Doyley of Jamaica, Ms. Davia Chambers of Trinidad and Tobago, Ms. Patrish Lionel of St. Lucia, Ms. Fatisha Imo of St. Kitts/Nevis, Ms. Ellen Lima of Brazil, Ms. Marcia Baptiste of Dominica, Ms. Stacey Norine Ceder of Suriname and Ms. Jovan Wilson of Guyana. From the inception, the crowd’s favorites were all the delegates except Ms. Brazil and Ms. Barbados. We then met the MC’s for the evening, the beautiful and intelligent Ms. Tamika Henry, a former Miss Guyana Universe, and Mr. Godfrey Munroe, a National Table Tennis Star and a horrible orator. He stuttered, slurred, fumbled, rarely looked up at the audience or the cameras and had poor choices of words. He was tolerated for the first half of the show but the audience became annoyed by the second half. After we got to know the evening’s MC’s we then saw a vibrant African dance by the Classique Dance Company, who is set to embark to the United States of America very soon to put on a grand show. At this interval Ms. Henry decided to inform us that the theme for the show was “African” in nature, since this is The Year for People of African Descent, but there will be other cultural pieces. We then had an opportunity to meet the judges of the competition: Mr. Kemraj Persaud, Mr. Alan Donovan, Dr. Ingrid Cox – Pierre, Mr. Gordon Mosely, Mrs. Patricia Woolford and Mr. Ramesh Geer, who we do not envy since their task before them is one of great proportions.
It then came time for the Swimsuit Segment of the pageant and their jealous eyes and wagging tongues. The suits, designed by local fashionista Pat Coates, fit the ladies superbly and they wore them with sheer grace and pride. That being said the masses’ favorites were Ms. Brazil, Ms. Dominica, Ms. Guyana, Ms. Suriname and Ms. Trinidad and Tobago. There were cheers and groans as each contestant came on stage and showed their curves (of their smiles and their bodies) but those mentioned ladies received a more favorable response. Following that epic segment, we were all thrilled by an amazing Indian dance by a local group called the Dancing Delights. They swayed and shook to the sounds of cultural Indian song and the crowd roared with appreciation. Let us just say that we think the Miss Jamzone International Pageant had the best lighting, sound and special effects of any pageant we have seen in some time (and we have seen quite a few), despite the audio glitches which at times became frustrating. Many blame the staff and equipment of the National Cultural Center, but we refuse to speculate.
The MC’s returned on stage to welcome the Whaul Sisters. They are a group of African singers who did a wonderful song and dance. Some persons even stood and applauded upon their completion, even though the song’s name (Patta Patta) received some, uh, interesting retorts. Then, there was the Cultural Presentation segment. After explaining that Ms. Brazil could not do her piece due to technical difficulties (yeah, right!) they decided to have her come on stage and do a short dance while the translator brutally chopped the words of her beautiful language. What a shame. Most, if not all the ladies did their poem and song/dance describing their country and its rich heritage, except Ms. Barbados. Now we at Guyanalive.com think that she was feeling the most pressure (even though we are not sure why) and as a result, was nervous beyond comprehension. She fumbled and provided long, awkward pauses that made the crowd uneasy. After the delegates did their thing, Ms. Henry announced that she has a surprise for the ladies in attendance but before she can continue, out comes Jamaican superstar Christopher Martin! Imagine the screaming and pandemonium of the females when he just said a few words to one of his hit tracks. The reason for his presence was to inform everyone that he will be performing at the after – party at club Mojo’s and he really wants them there. He even gave us a little insight into who his favorites were, that’s right, you guessed it, Ms. Guyana and of course, Ms. Jamaica.
We are not sure of the Cultural Center’s seating capacity but during the 15 minute intermission we noticed how large of a crowd there was. Patrons of all ages, well dressed and seemingly excited crowded the halls of the nation’s largest indoor cultural gathering place. When we reacquired our seats the god – awful Godfrey Munroe announced that the Evening Gown Section is up next. What we saw took our breath away. Eleven ladies in exquisite attire, draped from head to toe in garments and accessories that showed the quintessence of pageantry and style. Again, Ms. Barbados did not work well with the audience, for some said her dress was a little over the top with what looked like feathers. Nevertheless, she wore it perfectly. Subsequent to this section, the Personality Segment came (our favorite!), where the contestants were required to answer two questions asked by Ms. Henry. The ladies, even Ms. Barbados did splendidly, but Ms. Brazil again was constricted to the mediocre interpretations of the translator.
The masses booed and performed rants of disgust and Guyanalive.com is not sure, but we think even Ms. Brazil expressed her frustration with the translator. So, by that time we had already picked our favorites; Ms. Jamaica for her command of words and her poise and cool demeanor, Ms. Dominican for her shy but graceful approach to everything she does, Ms. St. Kitts because she is very easy on the eye and makes you smile with just her presence, Ms. St. Lucia because of her elegance and very astute confidence, and of course, Ms. Guyana. Why? Because we love her and because she is, in our eyes, the epitome of a queen!
The segment brought the first half of this show to an end. Let us remind you that the second half comprises of a fantasy swimsuit competition and other events that will help to determine the winner. This happens on Sunday August 21, 2011 at the Splashmins Fun Park and Resort, where the new queen will win over G$2,000,000 in cash and prizes and bragging rights for a year. This event earns an 8 out of a possible 10 on the Guyanalive.com scale but we are very eager to complete our grading come Sunday. Good luck to the ladies and especially the judges, and thank you Hits and Jams for entertaining us once again.
View Pictures from this event at –> GuyanaLive.com Gallery
By – Patrice Wishart