Twenty-one-old Miss Eastern Dakota Emily Burkland glided across the stage of Empire Arts Center on Thursday night, her beautiful smile wider than ever, modeling the Miss North Dakota pageant gown personally designed for her by Caroline Hayden.
Burkland's fit and flare gown of stretch liquid sequins in ruby red with cap sleeve and plunging V-neck fit her like a glove. One of her fellow contestants described its look precisely and succinctly: "Va-va-va voom."
"You don't want to be literally sexy, you want it to be, 'There's something intriguing about that girl,' " Hayden said as Burkland practiced her evening gown pageant walk.
Thursday night was a practice run for Burkland, Miss Grand Forks Beth Dennison and Miss Empire Stephanie Erickson, all of whom won their titles Jan. 16 at the Empire, and will be competing for the Miss North Dakota title June 12 in Williston, N.D.
They and two Miss Teen winners, Miss Grand Forks Outstanding Teen Grace Sproule and Miss Eastern Dakota Outstanding Teen Carlie Meehan, practiced in swimsuits (and for the teens, aerobic wear), ran through their talent numbers and had final fittings for their gowns under the direction of Hayden, of Crookston.
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Hayden, a former pageant winner herself, has a business creating pageant gowns for titleholders from around the country and in Canada and has become the Miss North Dakota Scholarship Competition director in Grand Forks and a major promoter and supporter of the Miss Grand Forks pageant.
Attendance at Thursday night's event was limited to the titleholders, a few family members and friends, Hayden, pageant seamstress Karen Martin and a couple of reporters. The atmosphere often felt like a slumber party with the contestants teasing each other, joking around, and discussing the upcoming pageant.
Make no mistake, Dennison said, each of the three women wants to be the next Miss North Dakota. But they have developed camaraderie and a bond because each knows the hard work and dedication that goes into preparing for competition.
No matter how good a figure you have, it takes a lot of confidence and nerve to walk across the stage in a two-piece swimsuit and to answer random questions from judges, they said.
Burkland, a dancer for North Dakota Ballet Co., has been working with a personal trainer. But more than lifting weights, Burkland said, she regards preparing for this contest not so much as changing who she is as enhancing who she is.
The three women who will represent Grand Forks in the Miss North Dakota contest have brains and plenty of other accomplishments to go along with their beauty. Burkland, a Thompson, N.D., native, attends UND and is majoring in English, music and honors with a minor in nonprofit leadership. Her competition platform is about advocating for the arts, which she says were a major positive force in her life.
Erickson, 20, of Fargo, is an electrical engineering major at North Dakota State University who just ran her first 10K during the Fargo Marathon last weekend. She grew up in a home with 14 foster children, which led to her competition platform about mentoring. Her pageant gown is flowing emerald green silk satin from India with some crystal and beaded bling at the neckline.
Dennison, 21, of Grand Forks, is studying to be a nurse at UND and works with the Helping Hands program in the Grand Forks Public Schools, which was the catalyst in her choice of "a child's guide to volunteering" as her campaign platform. Dennison said her gown was white with a halter top. She would see it for the first time Thursday night, she said.
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The Miss North Dakota Outstanding Teen pageant will be June 5 in Williston.
Reach Tobin at (701) 780-1134; (800) 477-6572, ext. 134; or send e-mail to ptobin@gfherald.com .
