Thuy Phan/Nguoi Viet
WESTMINSTER, Calif. ― Ashley Hoàng is proof that you don’t need to spend a lot of money to win a pageant. In her case, all it took was an old ao dai, her high school prom dress, some luck and an appreciation of where she came from to take home the title of Miss Vietnam Southern California 2016.
2016 MVSC Queen Ashley Hoang. (Photo: Fule Photography)
The pageant, which was held in Costa Mesa at the OC Fair and Event Center over Valentine’s Day weekend, is one of the highlights of the annual Tet Festival run by the Union of Vietnamese Student Associations. There are 20 contestants who enter from colleges and universities across Southern California and compete in the pageant during the annual Tet Festival.
Hoàng, who is in her final year at UC Irvine, plans to attend pharmacy school after graduation this spring. She wasn’t raised on the pageant circuit and only decided to participate after visiting Vietnam for a summer internship, she said.
“I was in Vietnam for two months and learned a lot about the work culture and my roots,” said Hoàng, 21, a resident of Tustin. “When I came back, one of the other contestants persuaded me to join the pageant with her. I saw joining the pageant as something to gain.”
Ashley Hoàng competes in the evening gown competition. (Photo: MKS Photography)
It was an entirely new world for her, however. She needed to learn the pageant “walk,” hone her performance skill and develop a platform.
Hoàng credited guest visitors at rehearsals— which included past title holders — with helping her improve how she walked in preparation for the pageant.
“I didn’t know how to walk, I never wore heels and every time (the visitors) came, they would give me some comment that would help me improve my walk,” Hoàng said. “It helped me a lot.”
MVSC Pageant Advisor Victor Nguyen-Lieu said the pageant has come a long way since its inception.
Linh Vu and Ashley Hoàng wait to hear who will be queen and who will be 1st princess. (Photo: MKS Photography)
“The MVSC pageant of today is much different from the pageant that existed a decade ago,” Nguyen-Lieu said. “Over the course of the 10 years that I’ve volunteered with the pageant, we’ve added additional segments such as the talent competition. We’ve tightened our prerequisites and eligibility requirements to make sure that contestants truly represent the Southern California student population.”
Hoàng said she chose to play the dan tranh, a plucked zither instrument of Vietnam, for the talent portion because she used to play it at church while growing up. Hoàng switched things up by playing a contemporary song, “See You Again” by Wiz Khalifa and Charlie Puth, on the traditional instrument.
“At first I wanted to play a Vietnamese song but I thought it might be generic,” Hoàng said. “Then I had this brilliant idea to play an American song, and ‘See You Again’ is one of my favorite songs. It is my theme song with my friends who I don’t get to see that often. I also think it sounds really nice with dan tranh.”
Top 20 lineup. (Photo: Nam Le)
As if renewing her playing of the dan tranh weren’t enough, Hoàng struggled with finding her platform and what she stood for throughout the training phase, she said. Hoàng said she is working with UVSA to decide which organizations she can align with during her tenure.
“Everyone says to be yourself and for me, I struggled with, ‘Who am I?’,” Hoàng said. “Everyone walks into the pageant with something that they stand for, but for me, I didn’t know at the beginning what I stood for, and what I would do with my title. I went through a lot of phases. I’m very shy and I accepted these things that I considered were weaknesses. I think I was denying all these things I didn’t like about myself and through the process, I accepted who I was.”
MVSC 2015 Queen Nguyễn Thị Kiều Diễm passes on her title and crown to MVSC 2016 Ashley Hoàng Thủy Phuong Anh. (Photo: MKS Photography)
The top prize for winning the pageant include a $1,500 scholarship from UVSA, $500 from Wells Fargo, and a round trip flight to Southeast Asia. Competing was a nerve-wracking experience for Hoàng , who said it was a big surprise that she made it so far.
“I thought everyone had a really good chance,” Hoàng said, adding the pageant was “a really good experience for me and I just want to keep it in a little jar.”
Hoàng is introduced to the Vietnamese community in the Jacky Tài fashion show on the final evening of the Tết Festival. (Photo: MKS Photography)
After winding down from the whirlwind of activity and midterm exams, Hoàng said she is ready to enjoy her reign and soak in the joy of winning.
“Miss Vietnam Southern California is something the entire the community looks up to,” Hoàng said. “Since this has been an opportunity for me to reconnect with my roots, I want to use my title to give back and help UVSA with everything they hope to do and shed a good image on the Vietnamese community.”
Complete list of winners:
MVSC Queen: Ashley Hoàng Thủy Phuong Anh, UC Irvine
1st Princess: Vu Hoàng Phuong Linh, UC Irvine
2nd Princess: Judy Châu Thụy Phuong Thảo, UC Riverside
Miss Áo Dài: Elizabeth Vu Long Liên-Hà, UCLA
Miss Photogenic: Ngô Ngọc Quỳnh Trân, UC Irvine
Miss Congeniality: Daisy Đoàn, La Quinta High School
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