A total of ten young ambitious Guyanese will be competing in ten international pageants in five countries around the world.
The pageants, which will be hosted in Indonesia, Miami USA, India, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago, and also virtually from right in Guyana, will see five young women and five young men between the ages of 17 and 28 competing for title. The ten pageants and their respective participants are: Miss Teen Universe – Crystal Alphonso; Miss Teen Glocal International – Navita Gunraj; Miss Glocal International – Mariam Alexander; Mr Teen Glocal International – Jose Roberts; Mr Glocal International – Paul Dwarka; Miss Empress – Floretta Spooner; Miss Top Model – Lisa Narine; Mr Elite – Joshua Bascom; Mr Grand International – Alejandro Haniff; and Mr Model of Tourism World – Luis Salloum.
The first two pageants under the category of Glocal are expected to be done virtually sometime in August, while the others will be done in August and November.
The young people, who were recruited for the pageants, were involved in a presentation where they had to achieve a required pass mark. They were then crowned and sashed on July 8, 2022 at the Theatre Guild. During that event, they also participated in five separate competitions which were the presentation of a national costume, talent, the runway competition, evening wear and the question and answer segment. They were also trained in numerous areas such as posture, speech, etiquette and much more.
This is Guyana’s second foray into these international pageants. Last year, Guyanese representatives won the Mr and Miss Model of Tourism World and placed first runner-up in the Miss Glocal International; they also won other awards.
According to Assistant Director of Elite Pageant Company Roshini Boodhoo-Persaud, the pageants are a way of showcasing the diverse talents of each individual and helping them build their self-esteem. They also aim to portray cohesion and encourage young people to fight against the odds.
“The big message that we want to get over for the Elite Pageant Company Guyana… is that we don’t have discrimination when it comes to anyone. We also encourage young people to fight against the odds to show up because challenges are inevitable” she said.
As the participants gear up for their international pageants, the committee expressed gratitude to everyone who has participated in their journeys so far, including sponsors and tutors, along with the people who lent a helping hand such as Director Jeewanram Persaud, Creative Director Paul Burnette, Photography and Videography Director Phillip Drayton, Filisha Singh for hair and makeup, Adri’s Decor and Dr Paloma Mohammed and other executive members of the Theatre Guild of Guyana.
