In the eighteen years that it has been staged, the Supa Stylistics Mother and Daughter pageant has developed a sense of efficiency and an expected taste of good family entertainment.
This year’s instalment, held on the eve of Mother’s Day, offered no less: a regular dose of enthusiastic girls and their moms; from the tots to those about to blossom into young women and the older, more graceful girls and their equally stylish moms.
Catwalk model attitudes were very evident in the junior category where the children were the least self-conscious and a delight to watch.
The beauty of this pageant, held this year under the theme ‘Love Roses… Coming of Age’, is that it allows an open window, though brief, into the bond a woman shares with her daughter from the earliest years to the tougher ones. This year’s pageant was entertaining and skillfully executed as promised.
Coordinators, Ingrid Fung and her daughter Sulan routinely deliver a show worthy of watching. They manage to recruit good pairs and usually prepare them well for the show, despite the obvious slip-ups and at times, excessive delays that occurred this year.
However, what is appealing about the show is that after 18 years it still has that magnetic pull, arousing curiosity as to what the pairs are likely to wear, how well they will they relate to each other and which pair will walk away winners in the respective categories.
The show also offers an insight into those childhood years when girls are bold, precocious and blissfully unaware of that thing called public scrutiny. The girls onstage on Saturday night last in the junior category were adorable and simply fun to watch.
The junior category boasted a line-up of beautiful little misses and their moms in vibrant colours and playful designs. While the misses bounced around on stage displaying their outfits, and stealing the spotlight away from their mothers, one particular tot added a different touch.
Little Tyanne, modeling with her mother Tikesha Sullivan-Elias, had the entire National Cultural Centre behind her as she flounced on stage. Throwing an excessive amount of bounce into her walk and swaying her body in various directions, Tyanne easily won over the crowd. And she modelled well, displaying her outfit with ease. Her mother managed to keep up, but was clearly unable to match her daughter’s zest.
In the end, Tyanne and her mom captured the top spot, followed by Donna Wong and Aliya and Sacha Paul and Katana. With trophy in hand, title already bestowed, little Tyanne gave the audience one last taste of her unforgettable walk as she exited the stage, mom following behind in broad smiles.
The middle category was not as exciting. Though the designs were creative and the pairs competing tried to arouse interest, the audience was largely not as interested as they had been in the earlier category.
Yvonne Vickerie and daughter Amina emerged winners in this category. This mother and daughter duo’s interesting outfits could double as skirt suits and Capri pant suits. Ambika Persaud and her daughter Nadia came second, while Donna Edghillo and her daughter Akesia placed third.
The senior category was the most anticipated and it lived up to the hype, featuring a line-up of mothers and daughters eager to reveal the bonds they share. From the opening pair of Gem Sandford-Johnson and her daughter Anastacia, the tone was set — graceful steps and playful moments coupled with stunning outfits.
Gem and Anastacia were stunning in Olympia Small-Sonaram designed outfits, and the brief while they spent on stage revealed an enviable closeness between mother and daughter. The two women hugged and kissed and shared light moments of laughter while displaying their outfits. It was a moment worth watching and it was adored by the majority of those in attendance. Not surprisingly, they emerged winners in the category.
Closely behind the winning pair were Phillipa Amsterdam and her daughter, Amanda, who looked royal in purple. The NCC was in uproar when Phillipa mom took the stage, some initially believing that she was the daughter, but then a younger version of her waked out. Mother and daugher looked lovely, and the audience clearly was behind mom.
Tracy Junor and Tremane, and Patricia Helwig and Delicia were the runners up in the senior category.
(ianaseales@yahoo.com)