Omaha Mobile Stage Youth Talent Show series returns to metro for third season this summer 2025
Free registration now open for youth talent competition series to be hosted in Douglas, Sarpy and Pottawattamie counties
Omaha, Papillion, and La Vista, Neb. and Council Bluffs, Iowa — This summer, Omaha Mobile Stage, in collaboration with its community partners, is hosting a free outdoor amateur talent competition series open to youth ages 3 through graduating high school seniors. Winners from each eligible age division will move on to the Finals, set to take place on July 13 at Gene Leahy Mall at The RiverFront in downtown Omaha.
Youth Talent Show location hosts span three counties and include local governments and important community hubs. The series features three themed showcases—La Vista Days Drum-Off Competition, Dance Night, and Battle of the Bands.
The program is modeled after the beloved Goodfellows Show Wagon, which was an Omaha Parks summertime tradition from 1952 through 2010.
Booking a youth act for this competition is free and open to the public. Attendance at events is free. To participate, each youth act must sign up at www.omahamobilestage.org.
One of the goals of this program is to increase the skills, self-esteem, and confidence of our metro’s youth performers.
“Youth performers grow their creative, improvisational, and problem solving skills through these friendly competitions,” said Jessica Scheuerman, founder of the nonprofit that operates Omaha Mobile Stage. “Participation builds self-esteem and confidence, as well as provides an opportunity for young performers to face personal challenges, such as performance anxiety.”
Competition Locations and Dates
La Vista Days Drum-Off Competition at City Hall Campus on May 31 at 12:30 pm
La Vista Days Youth Talent Show at City Hall Campus on May 31 at 1:30 pm
Dance Night Youth Talent Show at Gene Leahy Mall on June 8 at 6 pm
Council Bluffs Youth Talent Show at Tom Hanafan River’s Edge Park on June 15 at 6 pm
Battle of the Bands Youth Talent Show at Millwork Commons on June 22 at 6 pm
Papillion Youth Talent Show at SumTur Amphitheater on June 29 at 4 pm
Youth Talent Show Finals at Gene Leahy Mall on July 13 at 6 pm
Talent Show Eligibility
The competition is open to all performing arts genres, including music, bands, dancing, singing, drumming, drama, musical theater, comedy, improv, poetry, spoken word, opera, illusion, and puppetry.
Competition is open to ages 3 through graduating high school seniors.
Competition age divisions are: Preschool (3-5), Youth (6-8), Pre-teen (9-11), Junior (12-14), Senior (15-graduating high school seniors).
Acts may be made up of individuals or ensembles. Ensemble acts will compete in the age division of the oldest member.
Contestants may appear in no more than 2 acts per season.
For a complete list of rules, stage sizes and judging criteria, visit www.omahamobilestage.org/youthtalentshow
The presenting sponsors of the 2025 series are Staenberg Family Foundation, Douglas County Visitor Improvement Fund Grant Award, The RiverFront and Millwork Commons. The sponsors of the 2025 series are Mutual of Omaha, City of La Vista, Omaha Public Schools Foundation, City of Papillion, SumTur Amphitheater, City of Council Bluffs, eCreamery Ice Cream and SpeedPro.
“The Omaha Public Schools Foundation is a proud partner of the Omaha Mobile Stage,” said Toba Cohen-Dunning, executive director of the Omaha Public Schools Foundation. “We are thrilled to see so many students showcase their talents with this program. The arts are one of the most important aspects of a child's education."
Sania Taylor singing at the 2024 Youth Talent Show Finals at Gene Leahy Mall at The RiverFront on July 21, 2024.
During the summer 2024, the series attracted more than 2,000 audience members and featured 121 unique youth acts, made up of 213 individual youth performers.
In 2024, the series included 5 community-based outdoor competitions, from which the first-place winners of eligible age divisions advanced to a Finals competition at Gene Leahy Mall at The RiverFront.
“Last year SumTur was honored to be a part of the 2024 Omaha Mobile Stage Youth Talent Show program and hosted some wonderful talent,” said SumTur amphitheater manager Doug Huggins. “Papillion Recreation is excited to continue our partnership with the Omaha Mobile Stage program. This summer, SumTur is proud to again host the 2025 Papillion Youth Talent Show and be able to showcase our area’s most talented young artists.”
Show Wagon History
By the 1970s, Omaha’s Show Wagon program was an annual right of passage for hundreds of young performing artists who competed at local parks throughout the city. The program ended in 2010 due to budget cuts.
The end of Show Wagon left a void in many neighborhoods where the youth competition brought people together.
Scheuerman saw the defunct Show Wagon program as the perfect opportunity to support young artists while building community. “In 2021, we were building the Omaha Mobile Stage to increase access to the arts at the neighborhood level,” said Scheuerman. “We quickly realized neighborhoods wanted Show Wagon back and started building the metro-wide network to host and support it.”
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About Omaha Mobile Stage & Partners for Livable Omaha
Omaha Mobile Stage (OMS) is a community venue for performing artists of all ages and a teaching venue to train the next generation of creatives. OMS is owned and operated by Partners for Livable Omaha (Livable Omaha), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to increasing the livability of communities throughout the Omaha metro (Tax ID 85-4187964).
