Get Out! GAY Magazine – Issue 457 February 19, 2020

I am the 4th Miss Gay
America to have won on
her very first attempt.
I competed and got
qualified for the national
competition as the first
alternate representing
Miss Gay New York
America. (The winner
and first alternate get to
compete at Nationals.) I
was able to secure and
keep the crown in New
York City for the second
consecutive year, after
Andora Tetee (Miss Gay
New York America 2018)
took home the national
crown last year as Miss
Gay America 2019.
The national pageant
was held in St. Louis,
Missouri, in October
2019. There were 37
contestants from all over
the country representing
their state preliminaries.
I performed a tribute to
my idol, Broadway legend
Chita Rivera, for my
talent portion. I produced
and choreographed my
talent number myself,
and brought my dance
students (from my dance
classes I teach at Steps on
Broadway) to dance with
me. I won Overall Talent,
Presentation (with my
female robot looks) and
Evening Gowns. I placed
second in Male Interview
and third in Onstage Q&A.
What makes this whole
week at the national
competition so special and
the most memorable for
me is that my mother, my
aunt and my sister flew all
the way from Thailand to
come cheer me on (with
their light-up LED signs),
and it was their first time
seeing me compete in
drag.
Who are your greatest
influences and why?
Jennifer Lopez. I related
to her a lot, because she
is a minority and trained
dancer who got her start
in New York City. She has
big dreams and works
very hard. She was one
of the very few dancers
that have crossed over
into film, TV, music and
fashion. Her work ethic is
commendable. She always
ventures into learning new
skills and is fearless when
it comes to fashion. Plus,
she’s humble and never
forgets where she came
from.
If you could perform
anywhere in the world,
where would it be and
why?
On Broadway, eight
shows a week. Broadway
musicals ignited my
passion for dancing and
performing. Getting to
be a part of the bigproduction
musicals in
Thailand had led me to
make a huge life decision
and move to New York
City to pursue a dancing
career.
What do you enjoy most
about performing live?
As a performer, I feed
off the energy from the
audience. Their reactions
and the joy in their eyes
make me happy and fuel
the fire in me to keep on
spreading the joy of the
dance.
Do you have an ultimate
fantasy performing in
drag?
My ultimate fantasy
performing in drag would
be to perform for or to
share the stage with my
idols (Chita Rivera, Jennifer
Lopez, Christina Aguilera
and the Spice Girls).
PHOTO CREDIT: SCOTTY KIRBY
GOWN BY THOMAS OGDEN