OKMULGEE, Okla.- The College of the Muscogee Nation (CMN) hosted their own talent show on Oct. 19. This showcased different talents such as magic tricks, mimes, and musicians. All current students were eligible to participate in the event. Food and drinks were provided for everyone that came to watch or perform.
CMN recruiter Thomas Berryhill (Mvskoke) helped co-host this event. The talent show helps students not only express their talent, but also helps them become comfortable performing in front of a crowd.
“This is a way for our students to come out and get out of their shell to learn how to get some stage prepareance. A lot of students are very talented so we wanted an opportunity to show off their talents in a safe place where they can feel comfortable showing it off without being scared,” Berryhill said.
The show allowed any student to perform any talent they chose. The show also featured professional performers that showed off their talents without actually competing. Each performer was given a ten minute slot, this allowed some musical artists to sing two songs.
The night’s limit was twelve acts. Each featured performer went through a screening process for safety precautions to make sure their act was not dangerous or contained any offensive material.
There were four judges that involved staff, faculty, and a student. When they judged the winners, they based it off a rating system to see how well prepared each performer was. “Because that’s what we really wanted to make sure our acts are coming prepared and are really showing off their work that they are doing,” Berryhill said.
Prize money was handed out for the top three winners. A $100 prize was given for first place, $75 for second place and $50 for third place. Door prizes were also handed out to members of the audience.
“I want to make sure our youth know that they can, there’s talents that they have and they can keep doing that. It’s good for our students to keep going with their talents. I mean education is just as good but it’s good to have something to motivate you and something to focus on. What we are trying to do is build that confidence, hopefully seeing one of their friends perform will encounter them to practice for next year. That’s our main goal,” Berryhill said.
The talent show initially started last school year during the spring semester and became a popular event. During the fall semester the show saw seven participants. According to Berryhill, due to popular demand, show organizers decided to plan more events.
CMN instructor Eugene Herrod originally came up with the idea for a talent show. He noticed the many talents exhibited by students on campus, and wanted to showcase them. Berryhill helped Herrod with the flyers, funding and venue.
“Last year we had a bunch of family members and community members come out. It was a really fun event and we hope to have this every year,” Berryhill said.
The college is wanting to expand more in the future by featuring more acts with a proper stage to perform on.
For more information, contact Berrhill at 918-549-2860 or tberryhill@cmn.edu.
“As a recruiter I always feel obligated for everyone to come out and tour the campus if they have never done it,” Berryhill said.
Results:
First place: Nikolas Ray, magician
Second place: Lena Still, singer
Third place: Talia Smith, mime
Honorable mention: Deaven Knox and Khi Mayfield, guitarist
