FRANKLIN, Pa. (EYT) – Today is the final day of the twenty-second annual Franklin on Ice Weekend.

DiMartino Ice Team Sculptors may be finished with their chisels and saws, but the weekend isn’t over yet.

The Celebration of Talent Competition will be held at 2:00 p.m. today at the Barrow-Civic Theatre. In this competition, twelve contestants, including singers, musicians, and dancers, ranging from in age from 8 to 87, will display their talents on stage in a preliminary round.

At the end of the preliminary round, the audience votes and chooses five of the contestants to perform again in a final round. Winners are determined by a final audience vote and announced at the end of the show.

The First Place title comes with a $500 cash prize. Second Place wins $300 cash, and Third, Fourth, and Fifth Places win $100 Franklin Retail & Business Association gift certificates.

Tickets to the event are $15.00.

Click here to purchase a ticket.

For more information, visit Barrow-Civic Theatre’s website here.

Contestants

 
Ashleigh Bennett, 25, Franklin
 

Ashleigh is an up and coming singer/songwriter located in Franklin. She has been singing since she could talk, and began learning various instruments and delving into songwriting at a young age. She has shared her music throughout the northeastern United States while on tour with RiSE of Clarks Summit University, competed in Franklin’s “Taste of Talent” competition, and is currently performing at various venues across Pennsylvania. She draws inspiration from other independent pop artists, alternative rock and folk bands, and modern piano composers. Her music has been described as beautiful, unique, versatile, and relating to people of all ages. She says her musical style is “a combination of acoustic, singer-songwriter, and indie with a touch of folk and a hint of classical. And minor keys. Lots of minor keys.” Ashleigh will sing in the competition.
 
Ian Best and Rem Slater, 19 and 17, Seneca
 

Ian and Rem are very excited to be apart of this competition! Ian is a freshman at Clarion University, while Rem is finishing up his senior year at Cranberry High School. Ian and Rem have both competed at district and regional choir and have recently been seen together as Gaston and Beast in Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast”. They have both also been apart of multiple choirs together at Cranberry including Chamber choir, Men’s choir, Senior High choir, and their personal favorite, Cranberry’s Barbershop quartet, in which Ian was the bass and Rem acted as the tenor. Ian and Rem are excited to put their own spin on this competition and give the audience a performance that they will never forget! Ian and Rem will sing in the competition.
 
Ashlynne Cornmesser, 16, Franklin
 

Ashlynne is a native of Franklin. Her parents’ decision to homeschool their children has provided her with an environment and opportunity to pursue her musical inclinations. In addition to singing and songwriting, she enjoys acting, sewing, knitting and jewelry making. Recent performances include a role in “An Unplugged Christmas” at Galloway United Methodist Church. Ashlynne has also performed at the Barkeyville Coffeehouse. She is endlessly supported by her family and friends. Ashlynne will sing in the competition.

 
Tim Craver, 27, Franklin
 

Most people call him Tim (or Sam, but only his best friend is allowed to call him Sammy). He says he is “a simple man from Manchester, PA (between Baltimore and Harrisburg)”. He has lived in Franklin for almost ten years, graduating from Franklin High School in 2009. He enjoys writing and singing, especially country. You can normally find him three nights a week out singing karaoke with his buddy, Scott. Tim will sing in the competition.

 
Dancin’ Divas (Casey McVay and Hannah McCarthy), 29 and 23, Franklin
 

Casey and Hannah have both worked on many dance productions in and outside of the Barrow-Civic Theatre. They are musical theater dance instructors for Barrow Theater Institute and choreographers of Off-Barrow’s “Liberty Cabaret”. In the competition, Casey and Hannah take their tap dancing to a new level with “Friend Like Me” from the Broadway hit musical, “Aladdin!”

 
The Grand Ole Radio (Tom Sylvester and Robbie Gifford), 52 and 56, Karns City
 

The Grand Ole Radio is an acoustic duo consisting of Robbie Gifford on vocals/acoustic guitar and Tom Sylvester on bass. They are both lifelong musicians from Karns City, PA and have played together since 1998. After having played in various local bands, they decided to dedicate themselves to preserving what they feel is heart and soul of traditional country music. They draw their inspiration from a wellspring of country royalty such as George Jones, Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash, Vern Gosdin, Willie and Waylon, Emmylou Harris, John Prine, Neil Young, The Flying Burrito Brothers, and many others. They also perform their own original songs. In the competition, they will perform traditional country music.

 
Will Ion , 8, Cooperstown
 

Will currently attends Valley Grove Elementary and is in second grade. Interested in music from a very early age, he enjoys playing his guitar and ukulele and singing. When not doing anything musically, you can usually find him outside playing or spending time at the Barrow-Civic Theatre, where he recently participated in the 2017 FCOA Youth Theatre production of “Wright” and was cast as an Oompa Loompa in FCOA’s production of Randal Dahl’s “Willy Wonka”.  Currently, he is participating in FCOA Youth Theatre’s production of “No Strings Attached: A Pinocchio Story” and Rocky Grove High School’s production of “Shrek The Musical”. In the competition, Will will perform a cover of “Wish You Were Here” by Pink Floyd.

 
Jordan Karg, 23, Clarion
 

Jordan attended Clarion University for Musical Education and is continuing his education online through Berklee College of Music, majoring in Music Production. From there, he would like to go to Duquesne University for Music Performance in Guitar. He likes to spend his free time in his studio, recording, mixing, producing, and mastering. He has made appearances in productions at the Barrow-Civic Theatre, including last year’s “Celebration of Talent”. He also plays in a 2-piece band with Joseph Lillard, who was a contestant for “Taste of Talent” the last 4 seasons. He is an avid gamer and a big fan of the outdoors. In the competition, Jordan will perform a “Godfather” theme instrumental on guitar.

 
Scott Kennedy, 30, Franklin
 

Scott loves to sing and does karaoke every week. He is a taxi driver for Going My Way Taxi Service. He has been in a few singing/talent competitions such as Franklin’s “Taste of Talent” and Moose Club’s “Got Talent”. He is a member of the Moose 83 Lodge and it’s one of the places he goes to perform. His inspirations for singing are Frank Sinatra, Reba McEntire, and his mother. Scott will be singing in the competition.

 
Liam O’Brien, 18, Erie
 

Liam is a native of Erie, PA. At age 11, Liam was introduced to Australian virtuoso, Tommy Emmanuel C.G.P., by his father. He started trying to work out the tunes on Youtube and has been playing guitar ever since. Over the past summer, Liam won a full scholarship to the Rocky Mountian Guitar Camp, where he spent 5 days playing fingerstyle guitar and learning from some of the most accomplished guitar pickers. When he’s not playing guitar, he’s attending college at Penn State Behrend, working as a barista at Starbucks, and working at Oddity Productions, a film/media production business started by him and his roommate. Liam will be playing solo fingerstyle guitar in the competition.

 
Lois Ann Brinkley Schaeffer, 87, Franklin
 

Lois Ann was born and raised by musical parents who fostered her talents. She performed at an early age and trained with several teachers. She attended Pennsylvania College for Women in Pittsburgh where she studied Opera and sang with the Opera Company at Chautauqua. She worked at Polk Center for 35 years, enhancing lives through music. She is a 70+ year member of the First Baptist Church of Franklin, where she continues to provide music. Lois Ann will sing in the competition with piano accompaniment by Mike Burkhardt.

 
Beth Stanish, 43, Oil City
 

Beth lives in Oil City with her husband, Jim, and their three daughters, Carrie, Tori, and Becca. She has worked for Sandy K. Hovis Insurance Agency for the past 25 years. Her hobbies include singing in church and being a Venango County 4H leader. She enjoys time at her family’s farm with her kids, raising their 4H animals, and says that family is the most important thing to her. Beth will sing in the competition.