BACOLOD CITY ,Philippines -- The 10 finalists of the 2011 MassKara Queen pageant were presented to the local media last Monday morning at the L'Fisher Hotel in this city.
The candidates are Alexis Danica Drilon, Allysa Marie Villarico, Kathleen Matillano, Abegail Rose Valdez, Giah Elaine Sumalde, Jelliane Rose Dinorog, Anastacia Concepcion, Alona Jabaybay, Rose Valerie Lapuz, and Rexie Lyn Lim.
From the University of Saint La Salle (USLS) are Drilon, 20, a Biology student and Sumalde, 20, an IDS student;
From the University of Negros Occidental-Recoletos (UNO-R) are Villarico, 19, a Mass Communications student, Jabaybay, 19, an Accountancy student, Lim, 20, a Nursing student, and Lapuz, 20, an HRM graduate;
Other candidates are Dinorog, 18, a BSEd student of the Colegio San Agustin-Bacolod; Concepcion, 18, a Hospitality Management student of West Negros University; Matillano, 17, from Brgy. Punta Taytay; and Valdez, 19, from Brgy. Handumanan.
The finalists were chosen from several screenings conducted in different school campuses in Bacolod, and from studio screenings of ABS-CBN Bacolod, the official production group for this year's pageant, held last August 15 to 24, according to pageant's executive producer Carmela Arcolas-Gamboa.
The candidates will have TV guestings in the station's Kapamilya Mas Winner Ka on Oct. 1, The Morning Show on Sept. 9, and Mag-TV na Amiga on several episodes, and will participate in Bantay Bata Medical Mission in 888 Chinatown Square on Sept. 8, she said.
Swimsuit pre-pageant will be on Sept. 20, Fantasy make-up on Sept. 25, Talent Night on Oct.1, Ramp Modeling on Oct. 7, and Interview on Oct. 9, while the grand coronation night will be on Oct. 17, Gamboa added.
The MassKara Queen pageant is one of the highlights of the MassKara Festival from October 1 to 19.