Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country
Founded 05-05-05
March 22, 2007 issue
2nd Annual Western North Carolina Cinderella Preliminary Pageant March 31 in Spruce Pine
Story by Sam Calhoun
Easter dresses, tots on boxes answering questions, sportswear, lighthearted interviews, pajama parties, talent shows and all the cuteness anyone can handle will be featured at the 2nd Annual Western North Carolina Cinderella Preliminary Pageant.
The pageant is open to any girl in North Carolina from infants to age 26 and any boy from infants to age 6 and will decide who goes to the state Cinderella Pageant in June in Charlotte. If a child wins a contest at the Charlotte pageant, s/he is invited, fees paid, to the international pageant in Las Vegas where the winners take home college scholarships.
Last year, the inaugural pageant was a success.
“It was great. We had great feedback,” said Patti Jensen, pageant director. “The kids and parents all felt like it was a different feeling than you normally have at events like this. The kids just have fun and they make new friends. It’s a real low-stress event.”
No pageant experience is necessary to participate in the event. Participants have already signed up from Lumberton, Lenoir, Spruce Pine and surrounding counties. Jensen would like participants to apply by calling 828-467-0173 or 828-284-2541 by this Friday, March 23, but said that she would continue to take applications after that date.
The pageant consists of two days of events. On Friday, March 30, at 6:30 p.m., the pageant directors will host a PJ Party at Harris Middle School in Spruce Pine for all participants. At the PJ Party, former state queens will teach pageant participants dances they will perform during Saturday’s show. Jensen said that the PJ Party is all about creating friendships among the participants while preparing them for what’s ahead.
“It lets kids come and have a good time—it builds their confidence,” said Jensen.
On Saturday, March 31, is the pageant, also at Harris Middle School. Interviews for participants ages 3 and up will begin at 10:00 a.m. and the actual pageant begins at 1:00 p.m., starting with infants and working up to the older age groups.
A simple dance will begin the show and every participant will receive a matching T-shirt for the number. Immediately following will be a beauty competition where the girls will wear Easter dresses and the boys will dress in their Sunday best.
“The girls will dress all natural—not glitzy. Cinderella is based on the natural child. Kids look like kids,” said Jensen.
Following the beauty competition will be a sportswear competition and a talent show. Then comes the top personality contest for the tots in the group when the tots will sit on a box on the stage while the master of ceremonies asks them simple questions.
“It’s hilarious,” added Jensen.
The pageant will include special entertainment from visiting queens and from dancers from the Dance Center of Spruce Pine.
Participants need to bring clothes for the beauty competition, as well as a casual outfit, whatever they need for the talent show and a picture of themselves for a photogenic contest.
Everyone who enters the 2nd Annual Western North Carolina Cinderella Preliminary Pageant will walk away with gift bags—the infants even get sand buckets full of toys.
The cost to enter the pageant is $90 per child with additional $5 to $10 fees charged for additional/optional categories such as best dressed, best personality and interview. Participants also have the opportunity to sell ads in the pageant’s program to cover the cost of entry.
For more information about the pageant and/or how to sell ads to cover the entry cost, call Jensen at 828-467-0173 or Ciji Boone at 828-284-2541. For more information on the pageant, click to www.nccinderella.com.
To enter the pageant, email cinderellamiss@bellsouth.net or call Jensen or Boone.
Want To Go?
Date: Saturday, March 31
Time: 1:00 p.m.
Location: Harris Middle School, Spruce Pine
Cost: Free admission/$90 per contestant plus $5 to $10 for additional contests