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�԰����� senior Rebekah Williams will be one of the Fiesta royalty wearing high heels and sporting a wide smile that says: “I am not in competition with anyone but myself.”

As the First Princess of the 2016 Court of the��Queen of Soul, Williams expects to graduate from �԰����� in May with a degree in theater and a minor in history. She says her dream is to be on Broadway, and nobody should count her out.

She began “acting” when she was three or four years old, according to family lore. Her parents say she would play music from movies such as “The Sound of Music” or “Mary Poppins,” don a special dress, and recite the entire movie line-by-line from beginning to end. She formalized her love for acting in high school at the Design and Technology magnet school at Roosevelt High School in San Antonio.

At �԰�����, she has acted in plays such as “Threepenny Opera” and “Anna and the Tropics” and directed a student show called “Miscast.” She also is in the Mu Phi Epsilon music fraternity, is a hall manager for Residential Life, is a �԰����� Distinguished Representative, and is secretary of the �԰����� Players. Off campus she teaches acting at the Majik Theater and is a house manager at the Majestic Theater.

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A family acquaintance suggested that she consider applying to the Queen of Soul organization for a position as a Fiesta representative. Initially cool to the idea, Williams decided to apply, interview, and see how the opportunity would fit into her school and off-campus acting schedule. “I’ve met lots of lovely black women my age, as well as past Queens of Soul, and it has become a fun and wonderful experience,” she says.

Unlike most pageants that have a reputation for contestant infighting and other controversies, the Queen of Soul event taught Williams that she is not in competition with the other women seeking the crown. “They told us, ‘If you are stressed out, how can we help you?’” Williams says. “The idea is to help each other out, not tear each other down, and to be only in competition with yourself.”

Williams, the daughter of James and Nerryl Williams of San Antonio, said she has enjoyed being part of a group that values its identity and promotes its own culture. “That’s what I love about San Antonio, and that’s what I love about Fiesta,” she says. “We all celebrate our own cultures.”

Trademarks for the Queen and her two princesses are high heels during appearances at Taste of New Orleans, parades, school visits, track meets, and any place their Fiesta itinerary takes them. ��