Dance V Me Academy held a virtual kickoff of the Magical Kingdom-themed Little Miss & Mister Malaysia 2021 that got the Princes and Princesses fired up for the children festival and pageant.
Its founder and CEO Jessie Foo said due to pandemic lockdowns and related restrictions, the main competition will take place virtually from August 10 – September 18, 2021.
“Little Miss & Mister Malaysia is more than just a pageant. It is designed to promote and instil social awareness, cultural and family values to our children.
“The two main highlights of this festival are the talent show and the fashion show during which finalists get to showcase their best talent and their runway skills,” said Foo, founder and president of Little Miss & Mister Malaysia, at the virtual press conference via Zoom on August 6, 2021.
Foo said the winners will earn the right to be Malaysia’s delegates to the Little Miss & Little Mister United World 2022 finals to be held in Antalya, Turkey.
“We recently announced our theme for 2021’s festival – The Magical Kingdom. Magic and fairy tales bring positivity and hope, joy and happiness to all children and their families.”
“Believe in our children and nurture them with love, care and social values and we will witness their magical qualities unveiling. Remember big dreams start small,” she said.
Also present at the virtual conference were Natalya Kovalyova, founder and president of Little Miss & Little Mister United World; Tyra Angel Odeny, 2018 grand prix winner and UNESCO Ambassador from Kenya; and Srisupa Kesawapitak, 2019 grand prix winner from Thailand.
Little Miss & Mister Malaysia is a children’s festival of social, arts and culture that brings together talented children from all over the country. This annual national festival is open to children of different ethnicities and cultures, aged between 4 and 15.
Foo said the festival will also includes enrichment programs for both children and their family. Professionals and master coaches will conduct virtual live sessions covering various topics that include personal grooming, make-up, catwalk and posing, public speaking, dancing, photography, and social and cultural awareness.
The finalists will meet for friendship building and discussions on projects from August 10 -15. Finals requirements and submissions of projects and video submissions will take place from August 16 – 31. Enrichment workshops along with live talks will be conducted from August 20 – Sept 8, followed by live judging from Sept 10, culminating in the awards ceremony on Sept 18.
In 2019, Malaysia made big impact on the world finals. Seven-year-old Elyn Loh won the Mini Miss United World 2019m, whilst her elder sister, Ilyn Loh, 11, won the Silver Prix International Model 2019.
Another Malaysian winner Jarellyn Cheong, 9, won the Little Miss United World 2015.
Foo thanked all of the contest participants for entering as well as sponsors.
“Thanks to our generous sponsors, delegates stand to win scholarships awards and prizes worth more than RM 100,000 at the festival this year. This is a massive increase compared to the previous years.”
Main partners and sponsors to this year’s competition are Ampang Glasshouse (official supporting partner), Jeong family and Vivian Lai Aesthetics (platinum sponsors). Gold sponsors include Mega Music World, Hair Atelier and Alist Academy.
The international children festival “Little Miss & Little Mister United World” was founded by Natalya Kovalyova in 2000. Participating delegates from all over the world would gather at the annual children’s festival to strengthen the friendly ties between their countries, get acquainted with the cultural heritage of the world, show their talents and join forces in an effort to make the world a better, cleaner and kinder place.
Little Miss & Little Mister United World has been held annually since its establishment in 2000, and has been become somewhat of the world’s biggest and most prestigious children’s festival of arts & culture with delegates from 65 countries having participated.
