Last Year They Brought You “Prancing With the Stars,” This Year Enjoy “American Equestrian’s Got Talent”
Michael Barisone at the 2014 Prancing with the Stars event. Photo Credit: Meg McGuire
Phelps Media release by: Mary Adelaide Brakenridge
Mark your calendar and make your plans now for the new highlight of the winter social calendar in Wellington, Florida. American Equestrians Got Talent will make its debut in 2015 and promises to be a hit, drawing together equestrians from across the disciplines to showcase their non-horsey talents and compete for a grand prize.
Spearheaded by U.S. Dressage Team Chef d’Equipe Robert Dover, American Equestrians Got Talent will serve as the third annual East Coast fundraiser to benefit USEF High Performance Dressage programs through the USET Foundation. After putting on successful events in 2013 and 2014, Dover is planning to take it to the next level in 2015.
“This fundraiser is well underway to becoming our best event yet,” Dover said.
The Grille Fashion Cuisine, centrally located in Wellington, will host auditions every Wednesday evening from Jan. 7 through March 4. Held from 7:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., the auditions are open to the entire equestrian community, including riders, grooms and others involved in any discipline from dressage and hunter/jumpers to polo and Western. Come out to The Grille to audition or simply to watch and cheer for the contestants.
Todd Flettrich puts his dancing skills to the test at the 2014 Prancing with the Stars fundraiser. Photo Credit: Meg McGuire
PSdressage.com is sponsoring prizes of $500 to be awarded to the top performer at each of the nine auditions. A pair of celebrity judges will be on hand each evening to critique the performances, and the audience’s applause will determine who moves forward to the final and who goes back to the barn.
The most popular contestants from the auditions will square off in the final competition, to be held March 15 at the Global Dressage Festival show grounds. They will each take center stage in the international arena and give their all in hopes of walking away with the title of America’s Most Talented Equestrian and the grand prize, valued at no less than $5,000.
Along with the East Coast event, a West Coast fundraiser will be held in California. The proceeds from both fundraisers will go to the USET Foundation to support USEF’s High Performance Dressage programs. If an equestrian from one of the other FEI disciplines wins the grand prize at the East Coast event, 10 percent of the proceeds from the final event will be directed to that discipline’s High Performance program.
Sponsors, led by Kim and Fred Boyer, Equestrian Sport Productions, Tuny and David Page, and PSdressage.com, are already coming forward to support this exciting event. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor, please contact Sara Ike (908-234-1251 or sara.ike@uset.org) or Robert Dover (Rdover2@aol.com).
