SALINA – Starting Monday, the 2013 High Plains Showcase will begin receiving entries from performers interested in competing in the event. The Showcase, produced in part by Salina Arts & Humanitiesne, places an emphasis on drawing talent from the western part of the state. In its first year, it will feature satellite concerts in Garden City, Hays, Great Bend, and Colby. Event dates – running from March 23 to April 27 – are staggered so that performers may enter more than one. Some of them will take place in conjunction with already established community events, such as the 18th Annual Central Kansas Spring Expo in Great Bend. High Plains Showcase locations and dates are: Great Bend, Saturday, March 23; Hays, Saturday, March 30; Garden City, Saturday, April 13; and Colby, Saturday, April 27.
“We are excited to see and hear more about all the talent at the upcoming events,” says Brad Anderson, director of Salina Arts & Humanities. “The High Plains Showcase promises to bring an exciting element to Festival Sunday. New groups, new people and new things to do on the final day of the Festival will be a wonderful way to celebrate a great weekend of family fun.”
At each event, entrants will be judged by a panel comprised of local music-scene veterans and Smoky Hill River Festival representatives. The four Showcase concerts will be open genre, meaning that groups performing any type of music synonymous with the family-friendly spirit of the River Festival may enter, using material that is original and high quality.
First- through third-place groups at each Showcase event will receive prize packages valued at $150 or more, with the top band receiving a 45-minute slot to appear at Eric Stein Stage beginning at 1 p.m., on Festival Sunday. The winning act from each city will also receive a performance per diem and two complimentary hotel rooms to help offset costs of traveling to the River Festival.
The Call for Entries form for all Showcase events is available online at www.todayInKansas.com or by calling 785-827-2100, ext. 10. The entry fee per band will be $20 per event. Posters and other promotional tools to promote the High Plains Showcase and Salina to regional entrants and guests are available upon request.
Festival admission buttons will be available to performers and their fans in each Showcase community for the advance price of $10 per person for ages 12 and up, for the entire Festival weekend. Children 11 and under are free at the Festival.
For general information on the High Plains Showcase series or other new features of River Festival 2013, including Artyopolis or the outdoor Sound Garden, contact Salina Arts & Humanities at 785-309-5770 or at info@sahc.org.