Miss Gay America 2020: 46 Photos from the Mother of All Drag Pageants

Established in Nashville in 1972, The Miss Gay America Pageant is the world's first, longest running and most prestigious nationwide female impersonator (aka drag) competition. Earlier this month in St. Louis, New York City's Pattaya Hart was recently crowned Miss Gay America 2020.

Known as the "Symbol of Excellence," Miss Gay America winners represent the utmost in professionalism and entertainment in the art of female impersonation. Each October, dozens of contestants from over one hundred city, state and regional preliminaries across the country compete over four nights for the Miss Gay America crown.

Winning on her first attempt, Pattaya Hart is the second consecutive winner to be from New York City, following in the footsteps of Manhattan entertainer, Miss Gay America 2019, Andora Te'tee. Also from New York City is the Miss Gay America 2020 Fourth Alternate, Fifi DuBois.

This is not Pattaya Hart's first drag title. In 2017, she won Miss'D America, the campy but classy fundraising drag show that has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for LGBTQ causes. Fifi DuBois was Miss'D America 2015.

Pattaya Hart is Methawee "Plu" Sayampol, a native of Thailand who moved from Bangkok to New York City in January 2009 to study dance at Steps on Broadway, where he is now a faculty member, teaching jazz dance classes.

Plu's mother, sister and aunt flew all the way from Bangkok to St. Louis to cheer him on and watch him compete for the very first time. "Having family in the audience, supporting you, is such a wonderful feeling, he says. "I was so happy and grateful I got to share this incredible moment in my life with them and show them my hard work that I take so much pride in."

The Miss Gay America 2020 winners (last photo) are L-R: Fourth Alternate Fifi DuBois (Miss Gay Midwest America 2019), First Alternate Dextaci (Miss Gay Mid-Atlantic America 2019), Miss Gay America 2020 Pattaya Hart, Miss Gay America 2019 Andora Te'tee, Second Alternate Ivy Dripp (Miss Gay Louisiana America 2019), and Third Alternate Truly Fabu (Miss Gay New York America 2019).

Follow Miss Gay America on @missgayamerica.

Photos courtesy of BjKj Illusions.
TABER Productions courtesy of #Boom Magazine