Auditions Held Saturday for Pickens County Has Talent at Easley High

Roy Costner knows talent.

Costner, who headed up Liberty Idol for a number of years, decided to take the show on the road in Pickens County and help to raise money for the School District of Pickens County.

In the inaugural year of Pickens County Has Talent, Costner said he has seen some incredible talent, and not just among certain age groups, but across the board.

Costner said among some of competitor's in this year's showcase have been a Kung Fu Group, a contortionist, a magician, lyrical dance and tons of singers.

On Saturday, folks in Easley had the chance to show their stuff in front of a panel of three judges at Easley High School. Of those auditioning, 16 acts will make it into the Easley show to be held at 6 p.m. Feb. 18 at Easley High School.

"When I was doing Liberty Idol, I was begging people to sing," Costner said. "But with this competition, we have a lot of students participating, but we do have some adults auditioning, too."

Performers in Pickens and Liberty have already completed their show with the top four winners moving on to the final show to be held at 6 p.m. Feb. 25 at Pickens High.

Easley performers will find out who will advance to the finals on Feb. 18.

Costner said he expects this year's show will raise about $10,000 for the district. It's money he said will help the more than 16,000 students in the district's 26 schools.

"My original idea was to create an event that would raise enough money that it would save a teacher's job, but you can't tie an event to a teacher's salary," Costner said.

Costner said that he has found good volunteers and looks forward to making it an annual event.

Tickets for the Feb. 18 show at Easley are $5.

Tickets for the final show, showcasing talent from Pickens, Liberty and Easley, will be held at Pickens High School on Feb. 25 will be $10.