Brothers Evan (left) and Tristan Delaney of Brookings were the top winners in the Crystal’s Got Talent Show held last weekend and take home the $1,000 prize. Enterprise photo by Cisalie Bechen

The first-ever Crystal’s Got Talent contest was a resounding success for the local Crystal Theatre, as audiences packed the seats for both nights of the show and were entertained by 36 various acts.

Taking first prize and $1,000 was the guitar and vocal duo of brothers Tristan and Evan Delaney of Brookings.

Sioux Falls resident Chris Borchardt, accompanied by Russ Borchardt, took second place and $600 for his saxophone performance, while Tea Area High School senior Jessica Pritchett took third place and $400 for her vocal performance.

“I don’t think we could have asked for any better talent and attendance from the audience,” said Crystal Theatre board member Dan Sutton. “We were at capacity on Friday night and almost capacity Saturday night.”

Sutton said there were around 300 people in attendance Friday night, and about 260 Saturday.

Preliminaries were held Friday night, and 12 of the 36 initial acts advanced to Saturday’s final round. The nine finalists who didn’t finish in the top three each received $25 in Flandreau Bucks.

The acts were given brief introductions to give the audience some background information, as many of the acts included people who hadn’t appeared at the Crystal before. The show included many Moody County performers, but there were also acts from Sioux Falls, Canton, Tea and Brookings, among other locations.

The show was judged by Stuart Melby of Brookings, Barb Hegg of Madison and Dell Rapids resident Carla Schmidt. Sutton said the three had a difficult time deciding the winners.

“The three judges did a fantastic job. They stated time and time again how close it was,” Sutton said.

Sutton said the performers were both talented and diverse. From comedy acts and humorous readings, audience members saw a large variety, including a genre that was a first for the local fine arts venue.

“(Certified Wig Splitas) probably was the first rap ever to perform in the Crystal Theatre,” he said. “And probably was the first time rap was exposed to many of our patrons.”

The winning group was a musically tight duo, Sutton said.

“Their sound quality - harmonizing and vocals and guitar playing - were just very strong,” he said. “They had a strong stage presence.”

The Delaneys played a cover of “If You Could Only See” by Tonic on Friday night. That earned them a trip to Saturday’s finals, where the brothers played “I’ve Just Seen a Face” by The Beatles and “Drive” by Incubus.

Evan Delaney said he and his brother have been playing together for about 10 years

“We came out there and tried to do what we could. I love playing with my brother and it was kind of one of those things that just came up,” he said of the opportunity to play the show.

Delaney said the win was satisfying for him, especially when he saw his brother Tristan’s reaction.

“The thing to me that was the most fantastic about winning was watching my brother’s reaction,” he said. “He was so overwhelmed – it blew me away.”

Delaney said there were many good performers at the show. Asked what might have caused the duo to stand out, Delaney cited their intricately layered guitar work showcasing rhythm and lead guitar parts mixed together.

“We complement each other in our playing so it’s more full and also (play) some really good harmonies together,” he said.

Evan said he hadn’t decided how to spend his share of the money. But his brother Tristan made a predictable choice for a musician, using his share to purchase an American-Made Fender Stratocaster guitar.

Evan said he was impressed with both his fellow performers at the show and those responsible for putting it together.

“It was a cool thing to be a part of,” he said. “It takes a lot more than just performers to make that come together.”

The second and third place winners also have extensive musical backgrounds. Pritchett has been singing since age 4 and plans to attend Minnesota State University next fall and major in music, while Borchardt is a sophomore music education major at Augustana College. Borchardt has been playing saxophone since he was ten-years old.

“The talent was strong from top to bottom,” Sutton said, and the theatre board received a positive reaction from those who competed.

“I would say it was one of our most successful shows at the Crystal Theatre,” he said. “The contestants all seemed to be very pleased with how it was run. We got many good comments from contestants and family members.”

An added bonus was that the board was exposed to many performers who might return for another Crystal Theatre or Park Days performance, Sutton said.

“Our community might have an opportunity to see them on stage again performing and being a part of another big event in our community,” he said.

Sutton said the Crystal’s Got Talent couldn’t have gone as well as it did with many volunteer efforts, and that it likely won’t be the last such event at the theatre.

“I would be surprised if we don’t have another crystals got talent based on the responses that we got before and after this,” he said. “From the board - thank you all the volunteers that helped us to pull this off and committee members. It just couldn’t have happened without all that support.”