On April 22, 2010, at 7:00pm, the Verizon Wireless Arena will overflow, inundated by piqued spectators and hairstylists from across the country in a glam dash for the top prize of $7,000! Not only will we see stylists representing New Hampshire, these devotees of coiffure will be flocking to Manchester from Michigan, Rhode Island, New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Maine, Texas, Connecticut and beyond, seeking the ultimate venue to display their hairtistic abilities!  This revel of a runway show comes all trussed (or is that tressed?) up, with spotlights, beats and beautiful models, and every red-headed cent goes to help fund the Food Bank’s fight against hunger across New Hampshire.

Do you have your ticket yet? Special: While supplies last, buy 4 or more tickets through the Food Bank for just $25 each!  Email adalton@nhfoodbank.orgThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it to claim yours today!

When you make your appearance at the arena on the eve of the show, you’re swept into the arena down to your seat (right on the floor if you’re a VIP ticket holder, so close those trusses might just tickle your nostrils), you’ll witness the tension, the mood of the pre-spectacle: the darkened stage, awaiting the amazing grace of immaculately conceived miracles of hair art.

When the clock strikes 7, it’s showtime; the lights turned way down low, music swelling to fill the air, and the models descending from the firmament to bless the catwalk.  Their towering trusses, elaborately constructed coifs, and looming locks will turn your view of gravity upside down, make you crane your neck so much you might get whiplash, and enthuse you to unfurl your own sails and set off for the Port of Call (the creative theme for this year’s show) each design pays homage to.

Our tenacious stylist contestants spend hundreds of hours and dollars to concoct, distill and refine their entries.  They swoop into the arena by 9 on the morning of the grand exhibition, and work frenziedly and hurriedly splitting hairs until their pieces become piece-de-resistances.  As you boggle at each entry and ogle the close-ups on the gigantic screens flanking the runway, you might find yourself particularly wrapped up in your favorite designs – maybe even literally, if you’re lucky – and pulling for your favorite ‘do to win (though I’m sure the models would prefer the pulling to remain figurative)!

After you’ve been brought back from the transcendent tresses by intermission, you’ll get shot to the moon by a rogue’s gallery of fabulousness once again as all of the models own the catwalk at once, one more time.  Here’s hoping you skipped the manicure, because you’ll be chewing on your nails as you await the judges’ final verdict, the tension of the stylists and models melding with your own as you await the MC’s announcement.  Then, the crescendo, the elation of the winners as they are announced, their triumph electric in the air, the jolt cascading through the judges, models, stylists, and you in the audience.  Of course it’s never just about the money; victory represents a vindication of the stylist’s artistry, verve, daring and talent.

Basking in the afterglow of the show, you’ll find your way across the street to the post-show party in Café on the Park (right inside the Radisson Hotel), where you’ll get to gawk at the designs at ground level, and express your awe at the aptitude and beauty firsthand.  Share a drink and a tale with a model and stylist; you might learn a thing or two about their struggles under the dim lights that wouldn’t be revealed in the floods.  It’ll be amazingly entertaining.

General Admission Tickets

Demographic: Men, Women, Couples, Teens, and “Girls Night Out”.
General Admission tickets to the International Fantasy Hair & Modeling Competition are available to the general public for $35 each.  Tickets can be purchased by calling Anne Dalton at (603) 669-9725 x129 or emailing Anne at adalton@nhfoodbank.orgThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .  Students with proper forms of ID may purchase tickets at the door the night of the event for $20.

Special: While supplies last, buy 4 or more tickets through the Food Bank for just $25 each!  Email adalton@nhfoodbank.orgThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it to claim yours today!

VIP Tickets

Demographic: Men, Women, Couples, Prominent business people and avid Food Bank supporters
VIP tickets are available at a cost of $250 each, and can be purchased by calling Anne Dalton at (603) 669-9725 x129 or emailing Anne at adalton@nhfoodbank.orgThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .  These exclusive seats are located on the floor, directly in front of the stage and include a parking pass for the garage at the Radisson Hotel, 700 Elm Street, Manchester, NH located directly across the street from the Verizon Wireless Arena.  Parking passes will need to be validated at the Post-Show Party, also to be held at the Radisson Hotel in the restaurant Cafe on the Park.  Additional VIP Ticket benefits include:

• Name on the slide presentation prior to competition and during intermission
• Promotion on and website link from www.nhfoodbank.org
• Light crudites and Stinky Gringo Margaritas provided by Perfecta Wine Company to be provided during the show
• Guaranteed admission to the Post-Show Party

Click here to see a list of our current VIP ticket holders!

Hotel Accommodations

100 rooms have been set aside at the Radisson Hotel directly across from the Verizon Wireless Arena for a special rate of $116.  This rate includes an overnight parking pass.  You may reserve your room online at www.radissonhotel.com/nhmanch and use the code HAIR10 to obtain this special rate and parking pass; or call the hotel directly at 603-625-1000 and mention that you are a contestant in or ticketholder for the International Fantasy Hair & Modeling Competition.  You will be responsible for your own charges.  The hotel will hold rooms until April 1, 2010.  After that time, rooms booked will not be offered the special rate.

~~~ Click here to see a list of our fantastic ~~~

~~~ sponsors, media partners, and in-kind donors! ~~~

Our Celebrity Judges:

Our judges come from across the country to witness the amazing designs created and displayed right here in Manchester, NH.  Judges will analyze each entry based on three areas: a maximum of 10 points will be awarded for Creativity, 5 points for Over-All Appearance, and another 5 points for the Model’s presentation on stage.

John Clayton: Columnist, Author, and Emmy Award Winning Television Host

Dale Dees: 2008 Gold Medal World Hair Champion, Owner of Dale Dees, The Salon in Orlando, and the subject of a 2006 documentary on PBS entitled HairWorld: The Pursuit of Excellence

Karrie Fonte: Assistant Vice President of U.S. Education for Matrix Hair Care Products

C. Adrian Morris: Lemon Lime Aveda Lifestyle Salons, Cohasset MA, Gold-Bronze winner of the National Hair Competition, protege to national and international Gold Stylist, National Cosmetology Association and Hair America

Click here to see who has registered to compete for first, second, and third place prizes and bragging rights this year!

Thank you to this year’s Creative Team, who have worked so hard to make this show happen!

Gary O’Neil, O2 Creative Energy

Elaine Krause, Griffin York & Krause

Don Hyde, EVP Creative

Robert Daniel, Robert Daniel Photography

Dennis Gosselin, The Music Factory

John Connors, The Troupe

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