Twenty-two contestants will vie for the coveted Miss Ball State University crown Saturday.
A future Miss America just might be gracing the stage of Emens Auditorium Saturday night.
The winner of the 47th-annual Miss Ball State University pageant will have a chance to go on to compete in the Miss Indiana pageant, the winner of which will represent Indiana in the national Miss America pageant.
The prize for the winner of the Miss Ball State pageant is the year's crown, a $1500 scholarship, a $500 book scholarship and a $200 wardrobe allowance.
The Miss Ball State pageant has been held in Pruis Hall for the past 10 years, according to program director Carol Kosisko. But due to the increased number of contestants this year, the program has been moved to Emens Auditorium. This year, 22 women will compete for the crown, compared to last year's 14.
The contest was originally held in Emens, but due to a decrease in the number of contestants, the pageant had been moved to Pruis.
Kosisko said she is anticipating around 500-600 people will be in attendance. She credits the enthusiasm of the contestants for the high expected attendance.
The women compete in several categories during the contest.
First, each contestant is interviewed by a panel of seven judges during the day leading up to the pageant. This accounts for 40 percent of each contestant's final score.
During the program, the contestants compete in a swimsuit competition, a two-minute talent, a casualwear contest, answering a question drawn from a hat and an eveningwear contest.
The talent section will vary for each contestant. Kosisko said that this year's program will features dance, vocal performance, violin, piano, poetry and monologues.
The casualwear section is new to the contest this year. In the past, the contestants were asked the random question during the eveningwear section of the pageant.
"It was just so the judges would be able to see another side of the ladies," Kosisko said. "It helps them to be more relaxed, so they don't have to concentrate so much on not tripping on their skirt tail. It helps them to be quicker on their feet."
The finale of the program is a dance number featuring all of the contestants. The scores will be tallied, and following the finale, the top 10 will be announced. The current Miss Ball State, Allison Saul, will then give a short presentation. Immediately following, the top five will be announced, and finally the winner of the Miss Ball State crown will be announced.
The program will also feature a presentation and vocal number by the current Miss Indiana, Sarah Wiley.
A contestant representing Indiana has never won the Miss America pageant.
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