The first round of the Miss Italia nel Mondo (Miss Italy in The World) beauty pageant included 13 contestants from the New York area. The winner was Christina Marracini, 17, whose grandparents were born in Agrigento, Sicily.
On Sunday evening, the exclusive hot spot Nikki Beach in midtown Manhattan hosted an event celebrating Italian-American beauty: thirteen charming young women of Italian heritage competed in the first round of the Miss Italia nel Mondo 2009 pageant.
A cheerful and excited crowd attended the event which was generously supported by the Comitato degli Italiani all’Estero (Committee of Italians Abroad) and the Commissione Giovani NY (New York Youth Commission), an organization that brings together young Italian and Italian-American professionals with the aim of promoting and preserving Italian culture and values abroad.
After this first round, the winner will compete with the other finalists at the end of March on board the luxurious cruise ship MSC for the title of Miss Italia USA 2009. In June, the winner will compete in Jesolo, Venice against 49 other contestants from all over the world to be crowned Miss Italia nel Mondo 2009.
Christina Maraccini, 17, is the winner of this first round. Her family hails from Sicily; her grandparents were born in Agrigento and then immigrated to the States. She has a broad smile, blue eyes, and blond ringlets which make her look like a Norman beauty.
Christina, though, keeps her feet on the ground: her dream is to graduate and establish a recreational center for kids. Her soft spot, as she openly confessed, is her passion for the Italian soccer player Luca Toni.
The event’s MC proved to be a perfect choice and a real professional. Graziano Casale, the President of the Commissione Giovani NY was the evening’s brilliant host. “When I was in Italy for several summers I worked as a tourist entertainer,” he told us. “The feeling of being on this stage, though, is completely different. The presence of such a large audience is just fantastic! Everything worked out well with no problems at all. […] Our organization was founded four months or so ago. It was between the end of August and the beginning of September. The fact that we managed to plan and coordinate the entire event is a source of great satisfaction for us. In this regard, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who contributed to this effort: Giovanna Loiotile, Back Stage Manager and Co-Host; Fabiana Mazzocco, Event Producer; Lisa Capezzuoli, Art Director; and Carlo Scotto, Head Judge. A special thanks as well to Fabio Tonelli and Marco Montefiori, and to the The Sunday NYC group, with whom we collaborated to organize the show.”
Maria Teresa Sansalone, stylist and hairdresser for Più Tono,, skillfully perfected the girls’ look.
The jury included Francesco Belcaro, event organizer and founder of Made in Italy NYC; Barbara Baldieri March, musician; Cesare Casella, internationally renowned chef; Lorenza Cerbini, journalist for America Oggi e Radio Icn; Carlo Mantica, entrepreneur; Alessandro Marini, event organizer and co-founder of Ibiza Networking; and Michael Max Knobb, Executive Director of BronxNet.
During the evening the audience was also entertained with a performance by the Mediterranean singers Gaetano Fava and Greta Panettiere.
The judges interviewed the contestants before announcing their selection. The young women answered several questions ranging from their conception of globalism and localism to a description of their ideal man.
Marco Alberti, the Italian Vice Consul in New York, was deeply satisfied and pleased with the event. He was visibly glad to represent the Italian government on this festive occasion, and in his speech he stressed the importance of enhancing the spirit of “italianità” abroad. “Italy is surely a great example of beauty. However, it is still very important to represent other aspects of our country. This is why two Italian singers are here with us this evening to perform a selection of contemporary and traditional melodies. This is why we are serving Italian food. This is an opportunity to present and promote ‘italianità’ in the world.” The Vice Consul answered his critics who point out that some of the contestants don’t know how to speak Italian: “Next year it will be mandatory for all of the contest participants [to speak Italian].”
After Christina Marracini was crowned, New Yorkers continued dancing all night long in the nightclub that hosted the event. “Miss, my dear miss,” as the famous Neapolitan comedian Totò used to say...
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