A little back story to this awesome event...
The "America's Next Top Model" (ANTM) franchise not only produces a television series by that name, but also sponsors a travelling road show which visits major North American cities and pairs up its venue with domestic event organizers, merchants and service providers who cater to the local fashion industry to put on major fashion extravaganzas.
Toronto was a destination for one leg of that tour this spring, and what piqued my interest in it was the fact that transsexual contestant Isis King from ANTM Cycle 11 was going to be part of that show. Not only that, but rather than downplaying her TS status, the event's promoters openly acknowledged that fact - but in such a way that it was positioned as being no big deal and just a part of her bio the way other participants had specific highlights of their careers flagged.
Having become familiar with Isis' story after having originally watched ANTM Cycle 11 on television (she was still pre-op back then) as well as her follow up appearances on the Tyra Banks Show where Tyra put her in touch with Dr. Marci Bowers and helped facilitate her subsequent SRS, this was an opportunity that I just couldn't miss.
Better yet, the local show even had a provision for VIP tickets, where for a premium price one could actually get to meet the ANTM models in person after the runway show. Given that, I bought my VIP ticket on line a couple of months ago for the Friday, May 4/12 evening show, and was immediately filled with great anticipation for this special event.
I also resolved to go in full "Leslie" mode, selected one of my favorite outfits that I thought would be very appropriate to wear for that type of venue, and made an appointment with my special make up artist/friend Kelly for a full makeover the same day, secure in the knowledge that after she had subjected me to her magic, I would feel very comfortable blending in with the rest of the fashionistas that I expected to encounter there.
The whole evening ended up being just spectacular, and exceeded even my high expectations. The runway part was amazing, and started off with some gorgeous local girls strutting their stuff on the catwalk. Then came the ANTM models with their haute couture fashions, and Isis was prominently featured within that group. But what really blew me away was the very positive reception that she got from this largely young and heavily GG -weighted audience. Each time that Isis appeared on the catwalk, a loud cheer went up - to the point were I actually began to feel sorry for her GG model counterparts as she seemed to be drawing the lion's share of the attention during that portion of the event. Even better - Isis looked gooood...even by any other yardstick, and that included some lingerie modeling as well.
When the time for the meet-and-greet came, we were all ushered into the VIP Lounge, where the ANTM models eventually appeared to mingle with their fans. As before, Isis was a major attraction, with nearly everyone vying to include her in a group picture. I hung around in the background at first, hoping to catch her eye at some point so that I could say a few words to her. When that time came, I called out to her, she flashed me a warm smile, and walked right up to me. I began by telling her what a huge fan of hers I was, her story, and the courage that she had demonstrated in taking her life as far in this direction as she had.
After exchanging a few pleasantries of her own she then reached out to hug me, and I seized that opportunity to whisper in her ear that I myself was transgendered, and what an inspiration she was to people like us as well. She then asked me my name along with a few other questions about myself and my particular background, and seemed genuinely touched to have made this personal connection with another TG individual amidst all the other hoopla surrounding us. She then reached out to me again, pulled me into another warm embrace, and wished me well as the crowd surged forward to swallow her up for another round of group photos.
Needless to say, I was overcome with motion afterwards. Not only did I get to see Isis in person, I even made a brief - yet very profound - connection with her, and she actually HUGGED ME! TWICE! It was truly a life-altering experience for me on so many levels: I was dressed to the nines in my "Leslie" mode that night, I was surrounded by gorgeous GG's and fashionistas all evening, blended in completely, and even interacted with a few of them, gathering up a number of compliments on my outfit in the process.
But best of all, I, too, basked in the lingering glow of all that love, respect and admiration that had been bestowed upon Isis that night, and took a piece of that away with me to cherish forever. The only regret I have is that I didn't have the foresight to bring my camera along with me to capture this moment for posterity, although the memories of that special event will be indelibly etched in my memory forever ...
