Several years ago, when "The" Donald took over the MIss Universe and the Miss USA Pageants, he meant Business. Mr. Donald Trump wanted to modernize the pageants. Thankfully, my close friend and the Co-Executive Director of the Miss California USA Pageant(http://www.misscaliforniausa.com/), Keith Lewis (on the right at the Miss California 2011 pageant) was on the same page as Mr. Donald Trump. In the past few years, we've gone from "Old School" Beauty Pageant look and feel. to "Hello Bombshell!" alla Victoria's Secret Runway show: Cue Me to teach them "The" Walk they need to Stand out, because among 400 contestants you need everything you can possibly think of to, well, Stand out! ALL these girls are beautiful, ALL these girls have nice figures, but not ALL these girls have "the" Stage Presence, "The" Walk that that I learned during the training I received when I was a Miss Venezuela contestant. We were blessed this year with absolutely GORGEOUS weather in Palm Springs. This was outside the McCallum Theatre days beore the Pageants. Here I am with some of the girls that took my Stage Presence, Runway Modeling Classes this weekend. Last year, it was very cold and windy..our poor girls were in outside tents blowing away as they tried to get dressed, do their hair and makeup blattling the wind! Not so this year, thanks to a change in venue. The McCallum Theatre was home to 400 contestants battling for the coveted crown of Miss California and Miss Teen California USA. They rehearsed their choreography and I showed them how to be a Stand Out on the Runway, Miss Venezuela style!Nerves at an ALL time high backstage! and two Winners are chosen! Below, with Alexa Jones, our new Miss Teen California USA, who I'm so happy is one of the girls I Coached! the Best Swimsuit Winner, below: was also one of the girls that took the "Private" Group Lessons that I gave! With one of the MOST Beautiful inside and out, our 2011 Miss California, Katie Blair. and with our very first Miss California 2011 who went on to become Miss USA 2011, another exquisite beauty, inside and out, Alyssa Campanela (below at when Alyssa won last year.) Verreos of NIKOLAKI designs.)As with everything in life, there comes a time for change. In this case, an exchanging of Crowns..and the winner is....Miss Hoag Hospital, Natalie Pack (also a fellow Reality Show contestant! : America's Next Top Model 12) I want to close out giving a very SPECIAL thank you to Christine Atrache and Dany Atrache of Dany Atrache Haute Couture http://www.danyatrache.com/ for choosing me as a model for one of their exquisite gowns! Fellow Fashion Designer, my brother Nick http://www.nickverrreos.blogspot.com/ paid me the HIGHEST of compliments when he said I reminded him of our mother during her days as Diplomatic wife. Our father was a Diplomat with the US State Department in the 60's.
Thus ends my 8th consecutive year as the Stage Presence/Runway Modeling Coach for the Miss California USA Pageant. I'm so BEYOND grateful to my dear friend and Co-Executive Director of the Miss California Pageant, Mr. Keith Lewis, for continuing of have me on his Expert team. Thanks to God, once again, putting me at the right place at the right time when I was a Judge, alongside Keith at the Miss Texas USA pageant in 2003. That sparked a friendship, which, btw, is also what put me in the path of Ms. Erika Shay, Casting Agent for The Amazing Race and SURVIVOR. Your destiny will find you in the MOST unlikely places! Speaking of unlikely places, this weekend, at the "Meet & Greet" we had for the contestants and their families at the Renaissance Esmeralda who "housed" us for this weekend: I ran into a friend and work colleague from my days as Intern for the Feature Film Production company, Interscope Communications. He was the 1st recording artist we signed when we added Interscope Records http://www.interscope.com/ to the company. ORIGINAL Sexy Latino was my friend, Gerardo, the ONLY "Rico Suave!" I bumped into him at the "Meet and Greet" He was there because his daughter was Miss Chino Hills Teen!In 1991, Interscope Records was just a room. It's grown to what we all now recognize as one of the Top 3 Record labels representing artists such as Eminem and Enrique Iglesias.
I'm wearing a gown designed by my brother, Nick, of NIKOLAKI designs:www.nickverrreos.blogspot.com
Michael & I were dinner neighbors at our Director's Meeting the night before the Pageant...I was surprised to see him eat only ONE Entree..I was expecting to see him down about 3-4 Entrees! LOLLast year's Miss California Pageant was also star studded, btw. The multiple Olympic Gold Medal Winner, Michael Phelps attended to support his then girlfriend, our Miss California USA 2010, Nicole Johnson.SPECIAL thanks, also, to Mr. Todd Levine: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Todd-Levine-Presents/241864059182996 for arranging for me to wear the Dany Atrache gown!
* Ahh, relief for my aching feet after teaching these amazing girls "The" Walk..LOL
Jun 28, 2012
United States
Open
