Miss Alabama 2023 has yet to be crowned, but this year’s competition kicked off Wednesday night with a preliminary round in Birmingham.

A total of 42 women are vying for the state title, along with scholarship money and the chance to move on to the Miss America pageant.

READ MORE: Miss Alabama 2023: Meet 42 women competing for this year’s crown

Preliminary events held this week, Wednesday through Friday at Samford University’s Wright Center, will give each contestant a chance to strut her stuff in talent, evening gown, health and fitness and on-stage interview segments. The contestants also chat with the judges this week during off-stage interviews and showcase their community service initiatives.

Preliminaries also help to determine the semi-finalists who’ll compete on Saturday in the pageant finale. Lindsay Gaines Fincher, Miss Alabama 2022, will crown her successor that evening.

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Wednesday’s preliminary winners were:

• Abby Sosa, Miss Southern Hospitality, earned the top score in the talent competition. Sosa, 19, performed a dance routine to “Stone Cold.” She’s from Cullman and a student at the University of Alabama, majoring in nursing. Her community service initiative is Bridging the Gap, which encourages collaborations between nonprofit organizations and Latino and Hispanic people.
• Brianna Burrell, Miss Baldwin County, earned the top score in the evening gown competition. Burrell, 25, is from Mobile. She’s a graduate of the University of South Alabama, where she majored in political science. Her community service initiative is SAVE-A-STEM, which encourages engagement in science, technology, engineering and math for students of color and underfunded schools.

Wednesday’s preliminary event included performances by Lindsay Fincher, Jamie Langley Henderson (Miss Alabama 2007) and Shannon Camper Chandler (Miss Alabama 2004). Chandler Champion, Miss Alabama 2013, was the emcee for Wednesday’s event.

New this year is a People’s Choice Contest that allows the pubic to vote online for their favorite contestants in advance of the Miss Alabama finals. Each vote costs $1. The contestant with the most votes will earn a spot among the top 13 finalists on Saturday. Voting runs through Friday evening, according to the PageantPlanet.com.

Judges for this year are McNeil Chestnut, Morgan Smith, Chika Kaba Ma’atunde, Nanette Pearson Swenson and Chuck Steelman.

IF YOU GO:

The Miss Alabama 2023 competition is set for June 28-July 1 at the Samford University’s Wright Center, 872 Montague Drive in Birmingham. Preliminary competitions are set for Wednesday through Friday, June 28-30, at 7 p.m. The finals are scheduled for Saturday, July 1, at 7 p.m.

Single tickets are $45-$55 Wednesday through Friday, $63-$75 on Saturday. Season tickets (for all four nights) are $105-$145. Visit the Miss Alabama website or call 205-871-6276 for more info.