With just one week left before the staging of this year’s Mother and Daughter pageant at the National Cultural Centre, the contestants are undergoing vigorous training and they are excited about the big night.
The mothers and their excited daughters are now going through their routines on a daily basis to ensure that they are coordinated when they hit the stage next Saturday night.
Pageant coordinator, Ingrid Fung told The Scene that there are seven pairs of mothers and daughters in the junior category; ten in the middle and nine in the senior category.
She said that practice started several weeks ago and the participants are filled with anticipation and the competitive spirit is clearly evident.
According to Fung, there will be the father and daughter dance as well as performances from members of the National School of Dance.
The pageant committee will be giving away 17 prizes to the audience during the show.
Fung explained that last year, for the pageant’s `Sweet Sixteen’ celebration, 16 prizes were given away to mark the occasion. She said that this year there will be 17 prizes consisting of pieces of jewellery, gift sets and other tokens.
Asked about the choosing of the contestants, Fung said some of them were approached while others responded based on the articles they saw in the media.
Asked about the genesis of the Mother and Daughter Pageant, Fung said she was basically living on the stage in the latter part of the 70s into the 80s. Her first experience being when she took part in the stage play of For Better For Worst held at the National Cultural Centre.
She said she also took part in the first five Link shows and participated in productions with several Theatre Companies in the Caribbean.
“Every year [of this pageant] brings with it special excitement. It is the same but there is always something different,” she said.
According to the pageant coordinator, getting things in place is hard work especially when it comes to asking organizations that have helped out in the past to donate prizes. However she said, she doesn’t let any obstacle hinder the staging of the pageant.
She recalled that her daughter Sulan was around five years old when she first went on stage to open a Mother and Daughter pageant and all she could have said was “Welcome all”. Today that has changed considerably, as Sulan now writes the welcome speech.
She told The Scene that she always remembers, Andre Sobryan and Gyn Wiltshire, when the pageant comes around each year, as when they were alive they were with her every step of the way.
The Mother and Daughter pageant she said was a vision created by Wiltshire and herself as something for the entire family. It caters for contestants from ages four to the 70’s.
Some of the contestants were gathered at the St Joseph High School on Thursday, for practice and The Scene had a preview of what can be expected on pageant night.
Over the next week, the training will intensify and when Saturday night has come and passed, many especially the mothers will be relieved.
The show begins at 8 pm and tickets are on sale at the National Cultural Centre, at a cost of $1,500 for the auditorium front; $1,200 for the rear and $1,000 for the balcony.