In 2005, Deja’Nique Navarro was crowned Carnival Princess. In 2010, she was a first runner up in the Junior Calypso competition. Saturday night, the now 18-year-old Charlotte Amalie High School senior added another feather to her decorated Carnival cap, winning the title of 2014 Carnival Queen.
When the Choice Wireless Queen Selection Show wrapped up around 12:30 a.m. Sunday, Navarro had taken four out of six Queen Show awards, including Best Cultural Costume, Best Evening Wear and Miss Intellect. Her court includes two other CAHS seniors: 17-year-old Madainia Tavernier, the second runner up, and 17-year-old Aliyah Dessout, who was selected first runner up.
While the Lionel Roberts Stadium on St. Thomas may not have been as packed as organizers hoped, the crowd that came out for the queen show was enthusiastic. Those sitting on the field grouped themselves into cheering sections for each contestant, while those on the bleachers made themselves heard by blowing air horns and banging pots.
And the competition was stiff, especially during the talent, cultural costume and evening-wear sections. The awards for Miss Cooperative and Best Talent this year went to Dessout, who charmed the crowd with her smooth singing voice. Navarro’s act was also popular: the former junior calypsonian sang, but switched to acrobatics mid-way through the number and spent several minutes twirling around a set of pink ribbons dangling from the stage ceiling.
One of the highlights of the Queen Show is the cultural wear segment, and Navarro earned top points from the judges with a costume that showed off the historic fabrics of the islands, from gingham to madras. The back of Navarro’s skirt was adorned with a model of the island’s old textile factory, which was located in what is now the Curriculum Center in Estate Anna’s Retreat.
Jumping around the stage, Tavernier also won the crowd’s support with a pepper jar costume that opened up and transformed Tavernier into Sanderilla Thomas, whose Saturday market stand "always had the ingredients needed" for a good hot sauce, according to her announcer.
Dressed as a sparkling but stately brown and green mahogany tree, CAHS senior Tori Huyghue spoke about the significance of mahogany within V.I. culture, while 18 year-old Tayhira Richards – the only contestant this year from Ivanna Eudora Kean High School – showed off a seafood callaloo costume that had everything from lobster to corn. Richards won this year’s Miss Congeniality award.
Huyghue performed this year with a broken arm and was, during the talent section, still able to play her piano and steel pan one-handed.
While Navarro also won Best Evening Wear for a turquoise couture gown dressed up with sequins, rhinestones and crystals, Tavernier’s gold gown also caught the attention of the crowd. Tavernier is a major with CAHS’ Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps, and her costume was a tribute to the troops, according to her announcer, symbolizing freedom.
Navarro cleaned up during the question and answer segment, when she spoke about her platform and how she would promote it after winning the crown. Navarro said she was advocating the promotion of the territory through social media, which she called a successful marketing strategy, and discussed a three-step approach to boosting local tourism through social media.
Each contestant spoke passionately during this segment, with Dessout discussing mental illness, Tavernier speaking about verbal abuse, Huyghue advocating against domestic violence and Richards educating the crowd about the consequences of childhood obesity.
