What’s behind the Philippine obsession with beauty queens?
- A shallow, exploitative spectacle in an image-obsessed society? Or a valuable opportunity for young women to get ahead?
- Love it or hate it, the beauty pageant has deep roots in the Philippines, combining regional pride with glitzy spectacle
It’s nearly showtime at Manila’s Araneta Coliseum, where the annual Binibining Pilipinas beauty pageant is entering its decisive final stages. Fans have travelled from all over the country to an event where ferocious regional pride and shimmering spectacle intersect.
“It’s my first pageant but I’ve watched on YouTube many times,” says John Adriana de Ocampo, a 23-year-old make-up artist who has travelled to Manila from Laguna, waiting in line outside. “I’m so excited – I can’t wait to see the national costumes and which of them has the winning walk.”
Tonight is the penultimate round: there’s a sponsored fashion show that pays the bills before the main event, featuring the contestants in their “national costumes” – elaborate gowns designed to tell a story about the contestants’ home provinces while infusing proceedings with the heady rush of couture glamour.
