Carnival 2021 a Virtual Success

Janine Earney Celebrity fundraiser for DeltaARTS celebrates the local arts with annual event

By RALPH HARDIN

ralphhardin@gmail.com

Another year another successful Carnival for DeltaARTS. The West Memphis- based center for arts education once again raised thousands of dollars in support of teaching the arts to local students and keeping the arts a focus in the Crittenden County community.

For the second year in a row, the Janine Earney Celebrity Carnival and Auction went virtual due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, but that didn’t slow the crew down, with to-do dinners and livestreaming performances from some local favorites, the Carnival was a blast over the weekend.

Who better to open the show than West Memphis Mayor Marco McClendon and his very own “Flavor Flav” in social media director Nick Coulter. McClendon and the City of West Memphis “Supersonic Band” introduced the 2021 edition of the Carnival. “Their life-changing performance must be heard!” said DeltaARTS executive director Alex Smith. “Thank you, Mayor Mc-Clendon and Nick Coulter, for putting this together!”

Smith posted a link to the performance on the Delta-ARTS Facebook page in case you missed it.

“Click the link,” she said, “and get ready to be blown away. (https://youtu.be/ NuKRr-XhSvg) The night’s entertainment was a lipsync contest with folks from the community performing in full-blown costumes with choreographed song-and-dance routines. Congratulations are in order to the winners of the 2021 Janine Earney Carnival Lip Sync Competition: Ann Eaton, Ann

See CARNIVAL, page A3

Photos courtesy of DeltaARTS

Carnival 2021 is in the books. Mayor Marco McClendon opened the show and introduced the all-star lineup of local celebrity performers. The annual event is the biggest fundraiser for DeltaARTS programs.

From page A1

Jarvis, & Jane Grafton, representing Best Beverages of West Memphis. The ladies _awlessly performed some very complex choreography (Emma Crystal, choreographer) for their song, “Meeting in the Ladies Room” by Klymaxx!

Winners in the other categories were:

■ Best Costume: Pretty Kenny Hamilton (Ford of West Memphis)

■ Best Dance Moves: Leah Douglas & Shelby Jo Moore (Fidelity Bank)

■ Most Stage Presence: Chuck Livingston & Tyler Bennett (Premier Bank) “Everyone who performed was awesome and really elevated the show this year!” said Smith. “Thank you to Ms. Trudy Jolly and the Trophy Shop for the amazing trophies and to all of our awesome sponsoring organizations: Fidelity Bank, Premier Bank of Arkansas, Best Beverages of West Memphis, Ford of West Memphis, and Southland Casino Racing. And once again, thanks to all the super talented performers!”

A full replay of the event is available on YouTube. Simply visit www.youtube. com and search for Janine Earney Carnival 2021 Full Production to watch.