On a Tuesday night in October 2023, the Franklin Theater is sold out for a talent show that is quickly becoming an annual tradition.

For the past five years, the Morning Pointe Foundation has hosted the Seniors Got Talent event in Williamson County — a live talent show for contestants ages 60 or older — based on popular television shows like America’s Got Talent, The Voice, or American Idol. Like those TV shows, after each contestant’s performance, a panel of judges gives live feedback. They will be judged on stage presence, technical ability, appearance, creativity and crowd appeal. 

Twelve contestants ranging in age from 62 to 90 years old have worked up acts to share with the lively crowd. There may be more grey hair in this crowd than those you see for American Idol, but one big thing is the same: The attendees are passionate about supporting their favorite acts. Some have even brought oversized poster board faces of one contestant.

Before kicking off the talent portion of the show, Greg Vital, the president of Morning Pointe Senior Living, tells the origin story of this event. What started as a talent program at their Hixson, Tenn., location 14 years ago evolved into a competitive relationship between a couple of their Chattanooga area campuses. Since Morning Pointe’s start in Chattanooga 27 years ago, they’ve grown from one facility to 40 facilities across the Southeast — 21 of those in Tennessee alone.

“And before we knew it, companywide, folks were saying, ‘We need to take Seniors Got Talent on the road,'” says Vidal.

Now, Morning Pointe puts on four Seniors Got Talent events each year across Tennessee and Kentucky.

The event is a moment to feature talented older adults, yes, but it’s also an opportunity for the organization to raise awareness and funds for their nurse scholarship program. Miranda Perez, executive director for the Morning Pointe Foundation, talks about the worldwide nurse shortage and tells the crowd that by the year 2030, there will be 20 patients to one nurse.

“We’ll have a student at Columbia State who’s worried about going back to school and how they’re going to afford tuition,” says Perez. “You’re making it possible because we’re going to help pay for their tuition.”

Between the sponsors and the price of admission to this sold-out event, it’s quite the fundraiser for the foundation.

WSMV meteorologist Lisa Spencer is emcee for the evening. She introduces a panel of four judges, then begins the talent portion of the evening.

As one might expect from the Nashville area, there are many singers and songwriters performing this evening. Dak Alley, 62, opens the show with a heartache song he wrote “a few years back, and they’re all a few years back now.”

Some of the vocalists sing to backing tracks, like 74-year-old Judy Street, who sings her song “What” decked out in a red sequin dress. Street originally recorded this Northern Soul song in 1968, which then became a hit in the UK nearly 10 years later — a fact she wouldn’t learn until 1997.

Brett McCreary, 65, also sings to a backing track. He croons his rendition of Billy Paul’s “Me and Mrs. Jones” to the crowd’s great delight. He pays special attention to the only woman judge on the panel, up and coming country artist Mackenzie Wasner. In her feedback, she laughs as she tells McCreary that his eye contact really made him “go up a lot of points” in her book.

Out of the 12 contestants, there’s only one who isn’t a musician: Belinda French, a 75-year-old flag batonist. The crowd is rapt as they watch her twirl and toss colorful flags up into the air and catch them each time without fail to the tune of Cat Stevens’ “Morning Has Broken.” French receives enthusiastic feedback from judge Jim Hagaman, the mayor of Spring Hill, whose experience as an aviator gives him a special appreciation for this talent.

“I wanted to land on an aircraft carrier,” he jokes.

And judge Alex Tinker IV, an artist, songwriter and podcast host, praises her dexterity and professionalism.

All of the feedback the judges give throughout the night is positive and encouraging. Some of these contestants have made a career in music — like piano teacher Edie Farm or piano tuner and recording engineer Barry Cardinael. But many of the participants only started performing later in life. And, in addition to raising funds for the foundation and nurse scholarships, that is the true spirit of this event. The variety of talents and ages represents that there’s still a lot of fun and life to be lived after retirement.

When emcee Lisa Spencer announces that it’s time to name the winners, the crowd is eager to pat their laps and give her a drumroll sound.

Brett McCreary cleans up, winning both the people’s choice and third place prizes — a plaque and bouquet for each. Judy Street wins second place for her retro hit. And the first place winner, and recipient of a $500 cash prize, is Jack Wise, a 66-year-old pianist.

Playing piano since he was a teenager, Wise found composing later in his adulthood and has self-produced four albums. His performer bio for the evening includes his motivation for making music: “I believe relaxing piano music can soothe and heal. My hope is to connect with others through the language of music. God created this talent in me, and I intend to use it to bless others.”

After the show, 67-year-old Brenda Gibson is surrounded by her fan club who brought the oversized face signs — friends, co-workers and family. The signs were a surprise to her, but a welcome one. This was Gibson’s first Seniors Got Talent appearance, but she can’t wait to perform again. “Y’all save your faces for next year,” she says, “’cause I’m coming back!”

Correction: This story originally misspelled the name of Greg Vital, President of Morning Pointe Senior Living. It also gave the wrong age for contestant Brett McCreary. He was 65 at the time of the event. These details have been corrected.