EDITION 84

FEBRUARY 2008

25 years ago ... Maria Teresa Osuna Valdez
Carnival Queen of 1983

By Verena Lord

When Maria Teresa Osuna Valdez was 18, in 1983, she was crowned Queen of the Carnival. Now, in the splendor of her life, she is a wife, a mother, and a professional; everything is beauty and feminine grace. On February 2, the Mazatlan Institute of Culture, Tourism and Art will honor her on her silver anniversary during the coronation of this year's queen, Olga Rodriguez.

Rigoberto Lewis, the Mazatlan artist who built the float for Maria Teresa when she was queen, will also build the float that will carry her down Avenida del Mar, Claussen Promenade, and Olas Altas, as she waves once again to the community that honored her 25 years ago.

Over an aromatic cup of jasmine tea, with her beautiful smile, she says that all the young women of the port dream of carrying the crown of Mazatlan's greatest fiesta. For her, it was a dream come true, a fantasy she had held since she was a girl.

She remembers talking about it with her friends in kindergarten and grade school, when she attended the Remington College. As a junior in high school in the ICO, she enrolled in the recently opened CODETUR (Tourist Promotion and Development Commission of Mazatlan), directed by Ricardo Irvine, to compete with nine other candidates: Justina Urias Romero, Maria Magdalena Fernandez Uribe, Martha Alicia Romero Ibarra, Rosa Isela Vega Urias, Yolanda Osuna Acosta, Lorena Guadalupe Olivas, Laura Delia Mendoza, Anabella Prado Beltran, and Celeste Margarita Ojeda Iñiguez.

It was the 1980s. Madonna, Michael Jackson, Tavares, Gloria Gaynor, Earth, Wind & Fire, Emmanuel, and Raphael were all the rage. Their songs were the background of the election at the Lion's Club. The singer Angelica Maria, "Mexico's Sweetheart," and her then husband, the comedian Raul Vale, came from Mexico City to preside over the jury.

Maria Teresa tells us that in 1983, each contestant had to sell at least 10,000 pesos of votes in order to participate. They also had to prepare very carefully to compete in the three stages of the event.
"In the first stage, you had to wear a formal dress and express knowledge and culture. In the second, you demonstrated talent in a specific area. I danced 'Adeline's Ballad,' a wonderful choreography that I learned from Enrique Loza, who had danced with the National Ballet Company in Mexico City. The third stage was a test of personality, elegance, and stage presence. I modeled a dress made by Delia Leon. Mariano Farriols and Miguel Angel Benitez advised me even before the contest. Aurora Flores, who was the most fashionable stylist at the time, did my hair and makeup. I gave it my all and won the crown," she recalls nostalgically.

Full of satisfaction, she notes that more unforgettable experiences followed the fiesta. After the coronation, she traveled to Mexico City to promote Mazatlan's Carnival. "We were on national television, on Raul Velasco's 'Siempre en Domingo.' Then we went to the fair in Coyoacan and in Leon, Guanajuato. We were a large group, with directors, queens, princesses, folk dancers, some 15 musicians who played tambora, and Ostion Feliz, who was crowned the Ugly King."

She adds that it was a transcendental experience that shaped her life. "I was young, a daughter, and I discovered my personality. I realized I could struggle and achieve goals. I also understood the importance of discipline and that things do not just fall from the sky."

"My father, Procopio Osuna, didn't want me to enter the contest. He didn't support me because he said he wanted different things for me. 'Young girls get confused,' he said. 'Don't be dazzled by the tinsel and forget about what's real.' When I won, he understood that representing Mazatlan required more than beauty, that your conduct and expressions have to give a favorable image of our city. That's when he got excited. He was always the first one at the coronations and presentations that came after Carnival. He was happy every time that CODETUR invited me to represent Mazatlan in an event. And he is still happy. He even encouraged me to buy the dress for the Carnival homage from an exclusive boutique on 5th Avenue in New York."

During the parades on Sunday and Tuesday, she will wear the same royal attire from 1983, which is a replica of the dresses worn by Mary Queen of Scots. Maria Teresa wore the outfit on Saturday, February 12 at the Zaragoza Cinema on Aquiles Serdan Street, the current site of a department store, when she was crowned by Jorge Romero Zazueta, representative of the state governor, Antonio Toledo Corro.

The singer Yoshio, who had just won the OTI Festival, performed at the event, as well as the Italian singer Dorko Messino. During our conversation, all the images came back to her as she described them.

"The float included a royal carriage, a replica of a castle, and a hunting scene with horses, dogs, and guardians. I leaned on a huge crown."
She also remembers the affection of the people of Mazatlan. After so many years they still remember and greet her with the same affection and she returns the affection for everything related to Mazatlan.

Maria Teresa got married 19 years ago, when she was 24, to her grade school boyfriend Mario Alberto Moreno Salcido. "My husband is still my sweetheart," she says. Her two sons, Mario Alberto and Moises, complement the happiness of their home.
"My sons don't think it is very exciting that I was the Queen of Carnival. They're more interested in soccer and baseball, but they are somewhat curious to see me during the homage and the parade."

Before getting married, she studied international relations at the Autonomous University of the Americas in Puebla. Then she completed an MBA in administration and marketing at the Technological Institute of Monterrey. She recently obtained another degree, in psychology, and manages the marketing firm Imark where she helps companies create or improve their image.

I asked her about the differences she sees between the Carnival of 1983 and today's. She says that the fiesta has come a long way in the last 25 years. "Every year it is more professional in the logistics and the promotion. It has improved every year. The best part is that it is no longer organized by a single person," she adds, remembering Hector Diaz y Valdez.

She notes that now the three levels of government are involved. They are evermore interested and aware of the importance of advertising our greatest fiesta in order to promote tourism in Mazatlan and in the whole state.

She is happy to have been part of the evolution of Carnival and that her name is etched in the pages of its history.

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Maria Teresa on the day of her election as the 1983 Carnival Queen

 

 

In the Zaragoza theater with Jorge Romero Zazueta in representatio of governor Antonio Toledo Corro

During hercampaign, students of the Naval School supported her

Promoting Carnival on television show Siempre en Domingo