From April 22 to the 25, various performances were showcased by members of the community at the show, entitled “Portales Showcase: Talent of the Eastern Plains.”
The event, held virtually, showcased different kinds of performances, including a clarinet solo, a piano solo, a tap dancer, a dance troupe, and a mother-daughter duo performing an acting scene amongst other performers. The show began with a slideshow of pictures taken around Portales and other places in the county, set to the song “Streets of Portales” by Andy Mason. Mason is a New Mexico based musician who has traveled across the nation and world performing.
Bryan Hahn, manager of Runnels Art Gallery in the Golden Student Success Center at Eastern New Mexico University, was the master of ceremonies for the event. Dr. Anne Beck, professor of theatre at ENMU, directed the talent show, and Lara Harkness was the stage manager.
The first performer was Rein Anevay, she performed flow art with a hula hoop and rings. Anevay said she has been doing flow art since 2016.
Neil Rutland performed next with a piece called “Beat Poet Parable II: 2021” played on an electric keyboard with the use of three synthesizers. Rutland said the piece was about how we assemble our world and how we experience that world with our own views.
The next performance was by Christian Rushin, doing a clarinet solo titled “The Moon on Thine Wings.”
Following him, the next performance was by the dance troupe Fusion World Dance Company, led by Yolanda Chavez with Alexandria Malone and Katlyn Hatch; they performed a dance number titled “Bollywood.” They later returned to close out the show with a final number titled “Spanish Dance.”
Kyra Gentry performed next, with a musical number on the piano called “Muzurka in B Flat Major.” She later returned with her mother, Cindy Gentry, to an acting performance called “Stella Wind” by Bridgette Dutta Portman.
Next was Jon Barr, chair of the Department of Theatre and Digital Filmmaking at ENMU, doing a magic act. He successfully guessed the card of women he had never met and was able to determine a word that she was thinking during the act before the talent show even began.
The last performance, other than Kyra and Cindy Gentry’s acting performance and closing number by the dance troupe, was Heather Hagler, doing a tap dance. This performance was prerecorded and intertwined with various images of a play and clowns; this was edited by filmmaker Chris Shepardson. She later said that she has been dancing since 2009, when she was in college.
This showcase allowed different talents from the local community to come together and show off their individual artist styles through different methods. It also showed that even small towns are filled with talent.