Could you be the next Miss Teen Bermuda?

If you think you’ve got talent, poise, confidence and a caring heart then you could be the next Miss Teen Bermuda.

Orientation and registration for the competition takes place at the Bermuda Industrial Building, second floor, tomorrow from 5:30pm.

The pageant is celebrating its tenth anniversary at the Fairmont Southampton Resort on August 7 and will be inviting a host of former Miss Teen Bermuda winners and other title-holders to make the event extra special.

Miss Teen Bermuda 2001 Whitney Morfitt (the first winner under TE’EL Productions) and Miss Teen Bermuda 2003 Sahshay Johnstone will be hosting the event.

The pageant is back after a break last year due to lack of entries.

Contestants compete in five categories for the crowning title — Miss Teen Talent, Miss Teen Photogenic, Miss Teen Supermodel, Miss Teen Congeniality and Miss Teen Sweet Charity.

The winner will go on to compete in the Miss Talented Teen Haynes Smith Digicel Pageant in St Kitts on December 29.

Terry Smith, producer and director of the pageant, said: “This is our tenth anniversary pageant so we plan to make it very grand. We are going to be featuring as many as possible of the former winners as part of the pageant.

“All the title winners will be invited back to the pageant and will create a welcoming door which — they will be there to meet and greet the guests. There will be at least 20 of them.”

Speaking of the benefits of the pageant, Mr Smith said: “Over the last ten years, Miss Teen Bermuda as a pageant has been instrumental in helping a lot of Bermuda’s young ladies become positive characters in the community. They learn so much about themselves, a lot about personal development, they learn about being young ladies as opposed to being girls and we give them tools they can use for the rest of their lives.”

Alexa Lightbourne, Miss Teen Bermuda 2007, was second runner up in the international pageant in St Kitts. She has been producing shows here in Bermuda and was responsible for bringing the hugely popular BB and CC Winans to the island.

Gaynetté Edwards, who won the title in 2002, went on to become one of Bermuda’s top models while Ashley DaCosta, first runner up for Miss Congeniality 2002 has been pursuing a medical career.

Mr Smith described the various categories of the pageant: “The Miss Teen Sweet Charity is a very passionate title because that goes to the girl who has already been involved in charitable work and so these are the ones who are eligible — they already have to be involved. Previous winners have been mentoring or candy striping at the hospital. We have had girls who have worked with Big Brothers Big Sisters.

“In Miss Talent, previous winners have performed ballet recitals, there has been singing, there has been a dramatic performance and a combination of modern dance and ballet. One contestant did magic so there is a lot of diversity.

“Miss Congeniality is chosen by her fellow contestants. The winner is the girl the contestants feel was the friendliest young lady, the one they enjoyed meeting and getting to know and looked forward to remaining friends with.

“For the Supermodel category, each girl has a boutique they go to and the merchants will pick her clothes for them — they have no say in what they wear.

“They are judged on their performance, their walk, their attitude and their general presentation and whether they own the outfit and the stage.

“For Miss Photogenic, this is purely on her ability to pose, how she photographs and her confidence. It is not a body pageant — we are looking more for substance of the young ladies. We have had plus sized girls do very well in the pageant.

“Miss Teen has to have a platform. When they are being interviewed by the judges they have the responsibility to get their platform out to the judges. Their platform should consist of things like the importance of abstinence, education…Alexa Lightbourne who was the winner for 2007 — her platform was based on respect in the community.”

Mr Smith said there may be room to extend the deadline for orientation and registration but that he would like to see the majority of girls tomorrow at the BIU.

For more information call 337-5552 or email [email protected].