By Angela Brown

Dekker Centre looking for talented performers for Showcase

Dec 20, 2017 | 12:00 PM

The Dekker Centre in North Battleford will be giving area residents an opportunity to showcase their performance skills for an upcoming show for On Stage at the Dekker Centre.

Karen Ulmer, who is on the volunteer board for The Showcase event, said it will be a professional production and all artists as well as the director will be paid a fee for taking part. She pointed out the event is not a talent show, but rather a curated professional production.

“The idea is we want to get all these incredibly talented people in the Battlefords opportunities to perform in public,” she said. “It is a professional-type show. The people who have contributed in the past have gone on to collaborate with other people. They perform all over the city. 

“Some have gone on to do recordings,” she added. “It’s an opportunity for them to perform in a professionally managed show, with lighting and direction, professional sound, and of course at the Dekker Centre which is a fantastic facility.”

To participate in the show, individuals or groups will need to book a time to audition in advance. They can be either amateur or professional performers. 

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“These are often people who are hidden gems maybe we don’t hear as often,” Ulmer said. 

People can audition for a variety of genres – whether they are singers, musicians, or masters of the spoken word for example.

“We’ve had everything from opera to rap,” Ulmer said. “We’ve had dancers. We’ve had people audition who are magicians, everything.”  

The volunteer board will give its recommendations to select the artists for the show, and the show’s director, Matthew Armet, will make the final decision.

Ulmer said the Dekker Centre was fortunate to have Armet take the helm for the production. The professional singer and actor has a wealth of artistic experience, including performances at the Stratford Festival.  

While it’s too early yet to determine how many acts will be performing for the upcoming event, last year the show featured 12 acts.  

The Dekker Centre hopes the Showcase will reflect its mandate to encourage and foster local artists. The event is being supported by a donation from the Rawlinson family. The family previously donated $50,000 to the Dekker Centre, and a portion of the proceeds have been used to found The Showcase. 

The Showcase event will be held March 10 and 11. Auditions take place Jan. 11 and 13 by appointment.

Anyone interested in auditioning can contact the Dekker Centre.

angela.brown@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @battlefordsnow