The Shane Center is proud to announce our first annual Yellowstone Country’s Got Talent (YCGT) on Saturday, May 31st at 4 pm. The family-friendly talent show will be unlike any other! Singing, dancing, musicians, circus acts and more; ten contestants across five counties compete to be crowned champion. $5,000 in prizes, including a grand prize of $2,500! 

A big thank you to everyone that submitted. The selection committee was blown away by the level of excellence in the acts submitted! It was challenging to decide on the finalists. The Shane Center is grateful to everyone that was courageous enough to audition and hopes everyone will re-submit next year. We are so proud to announce our ten acts for YCGT 2025: 

Nick Epple- musician 

Garnish and the Sauce- band 

GroupHug- band 

Revolutions- aerial/movement 

Arabian Nights- circus/movement 

Meridian- band 

Clayton Oberquell- singer 

Brent Harrison- singer 

Elana Hayden (and the Sugar Daddies)- singer 

Ascend- aerial/movement 

Stay tuned to learn more about these awesome performers! 

Competitors will be judged based on their performance, skill, originality, stage presence, showmanship, and delivery. Featuring special guest judges including Russell Lewis, Tina Buckingham, Joe Robinson, and Bex Frucht. 

A native of Missoula, it wasn’t until Russell Lewis moved to Livingston in 2001 to take over responsibilities as Artistic Director that he realized the sun could actually shine during the winter months. Although still deeply committed to living a life in the arts, Russ takes his greatest pleasure these days from moving rocks out at his “farm in progress.” Having received his Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Montana, Russ is continually thrilled and a little perplexed that he spends what seems like the majority of his working hours as a carpenter, welder, or electrician. 

Tina Buckingham began pursuing a legitimate career in film and commercial production in 1987 as a Location Scout, Casting Director, and Production Coordinator. In the early days of film in Montana, she was one of the few people who was consistently around, so she could work on many aspects of production. She was Location Scout on “A River Runs Through It” and has been Casting Director on over a dozen feature films. She has worked with directors including Dennis Quaid, Robert Redford, Dean Semler (Dances with Wolves) and Andy Tennant (Anna & the King). Tina opened the Montana Actor's Studio eight years ago to teach and inspire actors of all ages and varying career levels who want to learn the business of acting for film. 

Joe Robinson is a guitarist whose technical mastery and magnetic stage presence have earned him international recognition. Robinson blends blues, rock, and fingerstyle guitar to deliver captivating, virtuosic performances. The youngest winner of Australia’s Got Talent at only 13 years old, Robinson has real world experience in talent shows on an astronomical scale. In addition to his skills as a performer, Robinson is also highly regarded as an educator, having led workshops at leading US music schools including Berklee College of Music and Musicians Institute. Joe currently lives on a property outside Yellowstone National Park in Montana with his wife Genevieve, an accomplished illustrator and their son. He spends his time practicing, writing songs, recording, coaching 20,000+ online guitar students and tours his one-man show, where he showcases his impressive musical talents to live audiences. 

Bex Frucht is a self-ascribed “Tumbleweed Queen” whose eclectic personal and professional journey has taken her from the red carpet to the Rocky Mountains. A seasoned performer, Bex was a host, writer and producer for POPSUGAR, but her real true love is storytelling. After successfully oversharing onstage at hit shows such as The Moth (she performed all over LA and won the Denver StorySlam), she created her own wild storytelling showcase TMI Live! as well as the advocacy story series Unplanned Story Party, both entertaining sold-out crowds in LA and Bozeman. Bex also starred in the Verge Theater’s virtual play about air guitar and moonlights as an amateur cowgirl, karaoke professional, rainbow influencer, and unicorn believer. 

Our 10 acts will compete for a chance to win a prize valued up to $2,500 and the prestigious title of Yellowstone Country's Got Talent 2025 Winner with a total of $5k of cash prizes awarded. The top three performers will have a spot to perform at the Sweet Pea Festival in Bozeman this summer! We can’t wait to fill Montana’s newest performing arts venue, the Henry E. Blake Pavilion, with the incredible talent of our community and their adoring fans. Let’s show the world what Yellowstone Country can do! Tickets are available now at https:// theshanecenter.ticketleap.com/ 

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