Dr. Patricia Celan spends her days working with psychiatric patients in her postgraduate medical training, but takes her vacations in the world of pageants. She has recently competed in two of the top Mrs. pageants in the world: the Mrs. World and the Mrs. Universe pageants.
Although she says that the primary reasons she participates in pageantry include sisterhood and sharing her platform on domestic abuse awareness, Dr. Celan acknowledges, “Just like any other feminine woman, I love an opportunity to get all dressed up. Knowing I’m going to be watched on stage also motivates me to take good care of my physical health.”
She prepared for the Mrs. World swimsuit competition with her fully plant-based diet, regular long-distance running, and daily hot yoga and fitness classes. She shared that the bright orange swimsuit wasn’t her usual style though, and she dyed it black after the pageant. “I feel a little bit like Wednesday Addams in the scene where Christina Ricci is wearing black next to all the other little girls in their orange swimsuits. There’s just something about painting it black!”
Similarly, she dared to bring the taboo of a black evening gown to the pageant stage when she wowed the Mrs. Universe audience with her dazzling appearance. According to an article in HP Magazine from February 20, “I was inspired by Taylor Swift’s latest album, Midnights. In the music video for her song, Bejeweled, about halfway through she is seen wearing a black bodysuit with a sweetheart neckline, and it slowly becomes covered in sparkling multicoloured jewels with a matching necklace. I love Taylor Swift and I love the message of the Bejeweled song, so I was inspired to wear a black, sweetheart gown covered in multicoloured rhinestones. I also feel that evening gloves are incredibly elegant accessories, and they are rightfully making a comeback, which is why I decided to match my gown with satin black evening gloves.”
She made the right choice – even in black, Dr. Celan proves to be a trendsetter.
