Mr and Miss Gay Pride Pretoria Crowned

The new king and queen at the Mr and Miss Gay Pride Pretoria were crowned last week.

On Saturday, Marco Prins and drag artist Larissa-Vee Jones were crowned Mr and Miss Gay Pride Pretoria at the Barnyard Menlyn.

The event was followed by an award ceremony on Thursday, September 22.

Larissa-Vee Jones, Miss Gay Pride Pretoria 2022

By day, Wesley Rudd is a dance teacher and gymnastics coach, by the evening he transforms into Larissa-Vee Jones, a queen with a passion for education and the queer community.

Jones made her debut while working as a dancer on a cruise ship after studying at the Waterfront Theatre College in Cape Town. She travelled the world, but when the pandemic hit in early 2020, she found a new path.

She moved to Alberton, where she now works as a dance teacher and gymnastics coach while performing drag shows across the country.

“It’s important for me to represent the queer community because I’m a big believer in education, not just to the outside world, but also educating the people in our community and about the difficulties we as members of the LGBTQ+ community are experiencing.”

She said drag artists put everything into their art to try to bring the queer community together and to bring attention to the problems the community faces to fight for fairness in the world.

“The world out there is already such a nasty place and we as drag artists are just trying to put a smile on people’s faces and make them feel like they belong somewhere.”

One day, Jones hopes to open her own cabaret theatre and devote her time to starting programmes to teach people that using arts can help them heal from traumatising events like bullying and the violence the queer community has to face.

“I believe God made us all different for a reason. Our stories are not supposed to be the same, He made you to be you.”

She wants to remind people to always tip their local drag artists. For many drag performers, these contributions are their bread and butter and show them that their effort and investment are worth it.

Marco Prins, Mr Gay Pride Pretoria

Just a small-town kid is how Marco Prins describes himself, after growing up in Klerksdorp where he said he never got to see any sort of queer community. “I’m not used to seeing people like me. Only a year ago I found a whole community waiting for me,” he said.

Originally, Prins wanted to move to Cape Town, thinking that this was his way into a community he was looking for. Instead, he moved to Centurion, where he was surprised to find a supportive and growing community of people like him that quickly accepted him.

“I realised that I had a shot to show that a small town guy can have something to say too. I realised I can represent the people from small towns, that there is a community waiting for them.”

Prins wants to show people that there is a space for queer people in Pretoria, no matter how they present. “I am masculine, but I will walk in heels and a skirt if I want to, that’s just who I am. Those heels make my calves look freaking great.” He said that finding his community has made him very happy. “I just want to stay here and grow. I want to focus on the present and chase my goals.

“I was so surprised on the night of the crowning. I didn’t think I would win, I was so emotional. I want to thank the people that took part with me, honestly. We became such good friends and we support each other through all of this. I am hoping next year will have the most contestants the crown has ever seen.”

Prins entered the competition with his boyfriend, Angelo Morgan, who placed in the top three. In an emotional response to one of the questions, he thanked his family, but also his chosen family, the support structure that helped him get where he is today.

The Mr and Miss Gay Pride Pretoria pageant was established in 2014 and has grown from strength to strength. This year they brought in sponsorship of over R850 000. The pageant wants to grow the organisation to ever greater heights. “We are working in conjunction with Bruce from Pretoria Pride to build the brand to be recognised on international platforms.”

The pageant is a non-profit event with sponsorships and prizes being equally and fairly distributed between the winners and attendees of the Mr and Miss Gay Pride Pretoria pageant.

The board of Mr and Miss Gay Pride Pretoria expect the winners of the pageant to use it as a platform to create awareness and make use of the opportunity to promote equality.

The winners will be expected to become ambassadors for the brand of Mr and Miss Gay Pride Pretoria to achieve their goals for 2022 and 2023.

“They are given a platform to achieve their dreams and goals for their own vision within the LGBTQI+ community.”

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