Two months ago, Bailey Hanks was a little-known Anderson stage actress making the leap to New York City with Broadway dreams. Today, she is recognized on the New York subway and often asked for autographs and pictures.

What’s changed? Bailey, 20, is the most popular contestant on the MTV reality show “Legally Blonde The Musical: The Search for Elle Woods” and viewers will find out tomorrow if she fits that bill.

Bailey has been vying for the role of Elle Woods on Broadway on MTV for the past seven episodes and will compete with two other finalists, Autumn and Rhiannon, in Monday night’s finale (10 p.m., MTV). Though filmed months ago, “The Search for Elle Woods” has been an entertainment topic for Anderson since its June debut. And with Bailey just an hour away from possibly being named the next Elle Woods, friends and family are stoked.

“She has always been one of those who you really know has the ability,” said Robb Alverson, who has directed Bailey since age 6. “She could sing, has great ability and a wonderful personality. She has always been a triple threat.”

Alverson will host the final screening of “The Search for Elle Woods” at the Alverson Center Theatre on Whitner Street in Anderson Monday. It’s his way of supporting the little girl who walked through the theatre doors 14 years ago with dreams of being on Broadway.

For Bailey, the experience — win or lose — of being on the show has been indescribable. Her life has completely changed as she now lives in New York City, is sometimes “mobbed” by fans and tries to put everything that is happening to her in perspective.

“Some girls recognized me in the subway and hollered my name,” Bailey said in her Southern belle drawl. “It scared me, but the girl who came up to me was shaking. It was so weird, but I want to talk to them and thank them for being fans.”

While Bailey has taken to New York, she still misses the little things. She would pay $50, she said, for a Chik-fil-A nuggets, waffle fries and Polynesian sauce. She also misses her friends and family and thanks them for all the support they have given her.

And, she can’t wait for everyone to see Monday’s finale and her expression while performing on a Broadway stage with cast, set and orchestra behind her: the hopeful to soon play the lead in a Broadway production.

“I get speechless when I think about it,” Bailey said with slight tears. “You will totally find out the emotion I was feeling, because it’s all over my face.”