By DAVID NAHAN/Sentinel staff
OCEAN CITY – Antonella DiAntonio won the first pageant she ever entered. It led to an “amazing” two-year reign as Little Miss Ocean City. On Friday night, she’ll be sad to see that end as she crowns her successor.
DiAntonio, 13, has worn the crown since winning it in August 2019. Her reign was extended an extra year when the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the pageant – and just about every other Ocean City event – in 2020.
When she decided to compete for the crown, it was pretty much done on a lark.
“It was my first-ever pageant and my first-ever time doing Little Miss,” Antonella said. “I thought it would be a good learning activity and I also thought it would be fun making new friends and having fun times golfing and going to the water park with other contestants,” she explained. “I was in it for fun and I made the best memories with those girls.”
She said she was “overwhelmed with excitement” when she won, but she realized being Little Miss Ocean City came with responsibilities.
“What being Little Miss Ocean City meant to me was always setting a positive example for other community members and of course representing such a wonderful town,” she said.
Despite her young age, DiAntonio is an experienced dancer. She used that as her talent on her way to winning the crown.
“I’ve been dancing basically my whole life,” she said. “I’ve been dancing like, since I was a year old, so a long time, since I was a baby. “
What she enjoys most about dancing “is expressing myself through music and really having fun in all the events and competitions and even conventions.” She does all styles of dance, from ballet to hip-hop, musical theater to ballroom and contemporary, modern and jazz.
“My favorite is ballet and I also really love jazz,” she said.
She performed in “The Nutcracker” the past two years with the Atlantic City Ballet and now trains at ProDance Academy in Northfield.
Asked if she’s considering broadening her stage talents, she demurred. “My singing in the shower is scary and I never thought about acting. I took a class before, but my main interest has always been dance.”
Just entering eighth grade at Ocean City Intermediate School next month, she is far from decided on a career, but figures dance will be in the mix somehow … “even if I get to own my own dance studio. Who knows?”
Her dancing and duties don’t leave her a lot of free time.
Asked about her hobbies, she laughed. “My other hobbies are dance, eating, sleeping and of course, going to my Little Miss events.”
The pandemic canceled a lot of events during the height of the pandemic, but she and her “crown sisters” – Miss Ocean City Mary Grace Jamison and Junior Miss Ocean City Natalie Argento, found ways around that.
“It was obviously crazy and there were tons of things going on,” she said. “What really got me through it was adhering to the new normal on Zoom. We got to do various activities, such as baking, making crafts and I even got to read story times.” That type of socializing helped her, she said. She read “The Princess and the Frog” on Instagram Live for other children.
When things got back to normal, Antonella said her favorite event just took place in July – riding a boat during the Night in Venice parade through the lagoons and back bays.
She liked “waving to all of my friends and family from the boat and definitely staying out late for the fireworks.” The trio also had a blast singing and dancing to the music on the boat.
Asked if she has advice for the 13 contestants looking to take over from her at Friday night’s pageant, she kept it simple. “Advice I would give to the contestants this year would be to be themselves and to have fun. That’s the most important part – just to have fun because it goes by so quick.”
Daughter of Angelina and Anthony DiAntonio of Sea Isle City, Antonella will say farewell in the pageant in which her younger sister, Arianna, 11, is a contestant.
Antonella is not ready for it all to end.
“I’m definitely not ready to move on at all,” she said. “I’m going to be happy for the next girl who gets crowned but it’s definitely going to be a sad day.”
She has loved her time as Little Miss.
“I’d just like to say how much I’ve enjoyed this opportunity and it truly is amazing. I just loved my reign, everything about it was amazing.” That goes right down to giggling with the younger children at Wacky Wednesday events and spending time with her crown sisters.
“It is all a blessing,” Antonella said.
Little Miss 2022 is Friday night
The Little Miss Ocean City 2022 Pageant is at 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 20, at the Ocean City Music Pier. The 13 contestants will compete in interview, talent, gown and on-stage question. The interview will be done before the pageant. The pageant is for girls 8 to 11 years old who live or whose parents own property in Ocean City or its school sending districts of Upper Township, Sea Isle City and Longport.
The 13 contestants are Amelia Hayes, Arianna DiAntonio, Brooke Delanzo, Gia Ermilia, Giselle Ardelean, Grace Kane, Kippin Halliday, Lyla Clark, Megan Buck, Mila Delanzo, Sarah Smith, Stella Fleming and Tierney Kane.