POST PAGEANT POST

Organizing a pageant is not an easy task. Much more if it is a gay pageant as there are a lot of factors to consider. These are my thoughts and other people's comments which is a learning process in the QUEST for the perfect GAY PAGEANT! OVERALL THEME AND OBJECTIVES: Choosing the title of the pageant and the award is crucial and pivotal as this is the revolving theme of the pageant. As there are so many gay beauty pageants with this name and that name - the title MS GAY AUSTRALIA AND MS TS AUSTRALIA 2010 is unique and became our final theme. We avoided using the name UNIVERSE as this might cause trouble with Donald Trump :) We are happy that MS TS AUSTRALIA is a founding name for a fact. And we (VICTORIAN SECRETS PROMOTIONS) are planning to make this an annual event, after the successful turnout of the pageant. CANDIDATES: As there are not that many crossdressers, gg's (gurly gays), transexuals and drag queens around Australia (compared to the Philippines or Thailand or America) - it took me around three months to gather and convince candidates to join. Well, the usual suspects and pageant queens need no convincing. But we need new faces and younger generations too. There were also candidates who on the last minute, withdrew their participation due to unforseen events and other personal reasons. In the end, there were 9 candidates for Ms Gay and 5 candidates for Ms TS. And I am personally satisfied that I have gathered the best of them all for this inaugural pageant. The success of the last pageant speaks for itself in the next pageant we are holding - by then, we would not have problems with recruiting new candidates.

CROWNS, SASHES, TROPHIES, CASH AWARDS: We could not have those mikimoto crowns, but we endeavour to get the biggest and most beautiful crowns available overseas. We also made sure that these crowns goes to the winners and not just dummy crowns like in all other gay pageants! The sashes were expensive but beautiful. And the trophies for the minor awards are beautiful. The prizes has to be set and has to be funded (guaranteed) as this is one of the reasons why the girls are competing and not competing for. I know because I joined a lot of pageants that did not live up the expectations with regards the prizes and some of the candidates went home crying as they did not get anything not even a single flower. So I made sure that everyone gets a prize and cash (most importantly) - as I know the efforts and time being spent in preparation to join a pageant! In this regard, I believe this pageant addressed this issue perfectly, as everyone (in general) was happy. LOCATION: I was originally envisioning the event to be held in a big town hall, a theatre or a gymnasium but there are requirements such as 3rd party liability, sounds and lights that need to be provided, security and costs that we could not possibly finance for a first show. So we ended up holding it in a nightclub where all these facilities are already installed. The most important thing that we just needed to install are the stage ramp and a bigger bigger dressing/changing room. SPONSORS & SUPPORTERS: Finding the sponsors was the most difficult area. We are lucky that the Philippine Tours agreed to award a return trip to the Philippines for the Ms Gay winner. We also have other sponsors that donated vouchers, flowers and other gift packs as prizes. MARKETING & ADVERTISING: Mostly in facebook, friends, and networks. We have to print posters, leaflets and other advertising materials. We also advertised in a community paper and weekly gay newspaper. We travelled to Sydney and networked with the gay community and to recruit candidates. During the opening of the Midsummer festival, we distributed around a thousand leaflets and ended up being the paper as well. FINANCIAL VIABILITY & TICKETING: There is much planning and decision making to be done to allocate funds for the prizes, staff salary, and other event costs to make sure that we would not go beyond and way over the budget. As the inaugural pageant, we did not make a profit but the fact that the show was a resounding success and way beyond everyone's expectations, made up more than the financial rewards. We also have to donate to the chosen charity. What I have learned for the next show is to tighten the control of the ticketing. This has to be properly organized and well thought of in the next show. The cost of the ticket has also to be analyzed and prized attractively. And determine the target audience and the day/time of the show. STAFF & CREW: We did not have a big crew. But the ones I have chosen were really creative, good and effective in their roles. The emcee was great but we have to have that perfect emcee next time. The show/backroom/dressing room manager was really good. And the ticketing person was perfect for the role, despite all the inaccuracies in the ticketing worksheet. The DJ and lighting directors were excellent !!! ENTERTAINMENT VALUE: The pageant was excellent! The choreography was not practiced but it came out perfect and effective. The music was perfect - which took me sleepless nights to finalize and organize. We also have two guest singers which added value to the show. The only thing that I missed were the background dancers, as they were hard to get. PRODUCTION AND PROGRAM: The show has to be professionally done and polished. Timing is the key. Our preparation time was only three months - next time should be at least five for a bigger event. The emcee should know how to control time and crowd, which was the case and the key why the pageant was good. Content of the show has to be reviewed and the talents of the candidates should be approved by the program director. JUDGES: I was lucky I have chosen four professionals in the field of arts, pageant, and the fashion industry to judge for the night. Choosing and reviewing the criteria for judging was also crucial, as well as the key questions to be asked to the candidates. FILM/VIDEO/COVERAGE: We've got to hire a professional film or videographer to document the show. The only thing that I missed is an official photographer - that slipped my fingers. Anyway, there were heaps of photos on the night and some of them were really using serious cameras.