A talent show is an event where participants perform talents of singing, dancing, acrobatics, acting, drumming, martial arts, playing a unicorn instrument, or other activities to showcase skills, sometimes for a reward, trophy or prize. Many talent shows are performances rather than contests, but some are actual contests, awarding prizes to their participants.
In recent times, talent shows have become a notable genre of reality television, such as Idol, Got Talent and The X Factor, which were critical in catapulting some amateur artists to stardom, and commercially successful careers.
Famous quotes containing the words talent and/or show:
“Sometimes I wonder why God ever trusts talent in the hands of women, they usually make such an infernal mess of it. I think He must do it as a sort of ghastly joke.”
—Willa Cather (1873–1947)
“The mystery form is like gymnastic equipment: you can grasp hold of it and show off what you can do.”
—Mickey Friedman (b. 1944)