Friday night will see the crowning of Mr. Gay China at a groundbreaking event for Beijing’s gay community. The winner will go on to represent the mainland in Oslo, Norway, at the final pageant for the crowning of Mr. Gay World Ambassador. On the eve of the this milestone for Beijing’s gay community Dan Edwards spoke to Ryan Dutcher of Gayographic, the local group that has organized the event.

Is this mainland China’s first gay beauty pageant?
As far as we know. It is certainly the first international gay beauty pageant that will be sending a winner to compete on the world stage. But this is much more than just a “beauty pageant”. We will be seeking the best candidate to represent the face of gay China, which goes far beyond just a being pretty face.

How did you become involved in the event?
We actually became involved purely by chance. We bumped into the organizer of Mr. Gay Hong Kong when he and his boyfriend visited Beijing. They were actually at one of our gay nights at Lantung. We were introduced and I told him about Gayographic. He was intrigued and mentioned that the Worldwide Mr. Gay organization was looking for the right people to organize the mainland’s first Mr. Gay China pageant. He thought we had the right stuff since we have been so involved organizing events for the gay community over the past year. He recommended us to the global organization, and before we knew it we were organizing Mr. Gay China. This was in November last year.

Unfortunately, the final event is in February 2010, which only gave us three months to organize. But through a lot of hard work we pulled it off and we are confident it will be a fabulous show.

It wasn’t so long ago homosexuality was classed as a “mental illness” in China. What’s been the reaction to the Mr. Gay Pageant from authorities and the general public?
Surprisingly, we have not received any reaction from the authorities over this event. We have refrained from reaching out to the local media to prevent any scrutiny, but the local media caught wind of it nevertheless and have asked to cover the story. We assume that the authorities are aware of us, but it seems they are taking a hands-off approach, which is a positive step considering the past. As for the public, they have been extremely supportive of this event with many people writing to us saying that this event will be extremely beneficial for the Chinese gay community.

Who is on the Mr. Gay China jury?
We wanted to make the jury as diverse as possible. We’ve even included two straight people! The other judges include famous gay author Xiao Jie and Queer Comrades host Xiao Gang, who hosts China’s first and only gay talk show.

What are the key qualities the judges are looking for in Mr. Gay China?
The judges will be looking for the candidate who will best represent the face of the Chinese gay community. This person will be much more than just a pretty face. This person will need to be intelligent, have a firm position on a number of important issues, and have an open mind to new cultures and ideas. This person will need to have the same qualities as any ambassador, because this person will be exactly that.

What does being crowned Mr. Gay China mean for the winner?
The winner will go on an all-expenses-paid trip to Oslo, Norway to compete in the Worldwide Mr. Gay competition. This will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and offers the chance to become the global face of the gay community. But above all, the winner will become a role model for millions of gay Chinese youths as they struggle to come to terms with their sexuality. It is a painful process, one which we hope will become a little easier if they have someone to look up to.

What can audience members expect to see at the pageant on Friday?
They can expect to see many great things. In addition to the competition, there will be drag shows and other surprises. The event will culminate with the audience voting and selecting the first Mr. Gay China. It will certainly be a gay old time!

Mr. Gay China, Lan Club, 8pm, Friday January 15. RMB 150 (VIP, includes two drinks)/100 (regular, includes two drinks), tickets available here.