The First Night of Preliminary Competition is Behind Us!

Congratulations to all the contestants and principal performers as they gave us a fabulous show last night! The first night of preliminary competition can be nail-biting for everyone, but the show turned out great! The Teen contestants joined the Miss on stage for the opening production number, and the first group of Teen contestants competed in the evening wear competition. Great job Teens!!

We know there was some confusion as to why they did not announce the Teen evening wear winner last night. So to clarify, the auditors for the teen contestants were not present at last night's show. The winners will be announced at a later time during the week.

We have two preliminary talent winners from the Sigma group to announce this year-- Miss Jackson, Mary Bauer was named the Rookie Talent Winner and Miss Metro St. Louis was named Preliminary Talent Winner. Congratulations to both girls!! Both the Rookie and Preliminary Talent winners for the Alpha group will be announced later tonight.

This morning, the Alpha contestants traveled to McMillan Elementary in Mexico to speak with the students while the Sigma contestants practiced their evening wear and on stage competitions. This afternoon, the Alpha group is rehearsing their talent on stage in preparation for tonight's show. Everyone is doing a great job! What a talented group of contestants we have!

We want to wish all the contestants the best of luck as we continue the preliminary competitions. We are looking forward to another fabulous show tonight!

All the best,

Jamie and Lindsay

Whew! Sorry we are late!

Last night's rehearsal was so time consuming we didn't even post! Yikes! Well, today, we are back bright and early to post for the last 24 hours. Dress rehearsal last night went long, but it was a productive evening. Today the girls are working on their swimsuit walks and the evening gown production. For the production number each girl chose a black dress of her choice, and it is so fun to see the various wardrobe choices and how each girl expresses her personality!

John Sawyer is in town and rehearsing production with the contestants - he really brings a WOW factor to the stage! We are thankful to have him back as a principal singer in the show each night.

Today the second half of contestants have their interview with the judges - good luck ladies! It is hard to believe we are already at the first preliminary night of competition! Somehow this week always flies by - it will be Saturday before we know it.

The girls have an easy production rehearsal today, as they need to save energy for tonight's show. I hope everyone has their tickets - it is going to be a fabulous production!

On a side note - today's weather is 65 and slightly rainy. The air conditioning feels grand, but it is hilarious that for the first time in almost a decade we have an under 70 degree day - AND we have air conditioning for the first time in Miss Missouri history!

Come one - come all - we are going to crown a Miss Missouri in 4 days!

Cheers,
Lindsay and Jamie

One day closer to preliminaries...and interviews begin!

Today's schedule includes interviews with the judges and a full dress rehearsal.

Bright and early the contestants rehearsed through the production numbers today. We have a full day - with half of the girls having their interview with the judges this afternoon! We held a swimsuit walk "clinic" having the girls practice their best swimsuit walk. We are, after all, getting away from the robotic pageant walk of previous decades and moving toward a much more relaxed, runway approach to the swimsuit competition. Besides, with such cute swimwear this year - they should show it off! After a good hour of runway walking, the girls headed off to get ready for interviews and to rest. Take a breath ladies - this week will certainly fly by!

Is everyone getting excited for preliminaries???!!!

Cheers,
Jamie and Lindsay

Evening Rehearsal Update!

We are back! The contestants spent all day rehearsing the production numbers on the new stage today. We are making the usual changes for spacing, etc, but overall the production is running smoothly. The girls had a break tonight and dined at the Historical Society this evening before rehearsals. Now that they are back, we are prepping for a long night of rehearsals – we are looking forward to being polished for the audience come Wednesday!
Hoping this finds everyone well, the girls send their hellos and appreciate your support!
Cheers,
Lindsay & Jamie

June 1, 2009 - Welcome to Mexico!

Whew! I do have to say it is very fun to be on the OTHER side of the contestants! Stacie, Jamie, and I worked with the girls yesterday on opening number and evening gown production choreography. The contestants are picking up the moves quickly – kudos to them! We are moving on to swimsuit choreography today, which is going to be done to Circus by Brittney Spears. The modern music is accompanied by modern swimwear from Lori Coulter in Saint Louis, and is a sure sign the Miss Missouri program is moving forward with the new Miss America trends! Each girl will be wearing a black swimsuit of her choice, and I cannot wait to see the individual swimsuits, it really is an expression of each contestant’s personality!

Lest I remind everyone that while being in shape is part of the competition, it is called Lifestyle and Fitness, and is often won from the neck up! So ladies – remember to smile and be the confident women we know you are! The ladies will all compete in swimwear on Friday night, as the top Teen contestants compete on the Miss Missouri stage!

Well, fully caffeinated and ready to go, I am off to rehearsal! We will post thoughts on this afternoon and evening’s rehearsals. The stage is ready ahead of time – so we are shifting onto it this afternoon!

Warmest wishes,

Lindsay & Jamie