Dressed in sparkling ball gowns and wearing full head pieces made of peacock feathers, 10 men dressed as women gathered at the Tempe Center for the Arts Sunday night to compete against each other for the chance to be crowned Miss Gay Arizona USofA or Miss Gay Arizona USofA classic.
The annual pageant, which was put on by local Valley bar owner Mike Fornelli, is a chance for drag queens in Arizona to make a name for themselves within the gay community. The winner of the pageant gets to go on to compete at the national level this May in the Miss Gay USofA pageant in Dallas.
By: Blake Wilson
Miss Gay USofA is one of the many different pageants under the umbrella of USofA national pageants. Other pageants include: Mr. Gay USofA, a competition for gay men who do not dress in drag, Mr. and Miss Black Gay USofA, a pageant specifically for African-Americans, and Mister USofA MI, which is for drag kings, or women who dress up as men.
Fornelli, with help from local promoters such as ArizonaDrag.com, Phoenix Pride and ION AZ Magazine, has been hosting the pageant since 2008.
Courtney Merjil, one of the coordinators of Sunday’s pageant, said the pageant is not only something fun for the contestants to participate in, but gives them a chance to help out with a charity they like.
“The winner has the responsibility to help a charity and they must hold a benefit for that charity during their reign,” she said.
The masquerade-themed pageant had six contestants competing in the Miss Gay Arizona USofA portion and four contestants competing in the Miss Gay Arizona USofA Classic, which is for participants ages 40 and up. One contestant from each section was crowned.
Contestants had to compete in three categories: An evening gown competition, a talent competition and a personal interview that was conducted one on one with judges before the pageant.
Winners received a crown, jewelry, a sash, flowers and money to help them pay for competing in nationals, Merjil said.
The first-time winner of Mr. Gay Arizona USofA, who performed a song and dance at the pageant, said it’s not unusual for a contestant to spend up to $5,000 to compete in a pageant.
“Sometimes you spend more money than you make,” he said.
He believes that the pageant is a great way to give people in the gay community a voice.
“The more recognition that you get, the easier it is to reach out to people,” he said.
The pageant had several performers throughout the night, including a rendition of a song from Hairspray by drag queen Pandora Destrange.
Destrange said he thinks having a pageant for drag queens is great because drag is a big part of the gay community and because it gives people a chance to loosen up and have fun. He pointed out that almost all of the drag community in Arizona was participating in Sunday’s pageant.
He said he began his life as a drag queen at an early age. When he was a child, he was obsessed with Cher. Destrange fully embraced the drag queen lifestyle by age 17.
Even though it takes him typically two hours to get ready, it’s worth it to get the chance to make people happy.
“It’s all about making people smile,” he said.
Reach the reporter at danielle.legler@asu.edu
