Idol Watch by Laurel E. Anderson

(as first published in the Kanata Kourier on Friday, June 18, 2004

When all was said and sung, only 32 were left standing as a new round of competition got underway on Canadian Idol 2. And the best news of all is that four Ottawa area contestants have made it to the semi-finals. Rebecca Abbott, Constant Bernard, Annie Lefebvre and Filomena Pasqua have survived several rounds of competition and were chosen by the judges for a shot at the title of Canadian Idol.

Rebecca Abbott is a 19-year old vocal coach and waitress at Kanata’s own Marshy’s Grill. She previously sang in the Ottawa group “factor eight.”
Annie Lefebvre, 21, is a hairdresser and dance instructor from Gatineau. She says that Canadian Idol “is the most beautiful thing that has ever happened to me.” 20-year old Constant Bernard lives in Rockland and was a Top 100 competitor last year. Filomena Pasqua, age 20, lives in Ottawa and studies at Carleton University while teaching voice lessons to youth.

The road to get this far was not easy as we saw in episodes four and five of Idol. Judge Zack Werner tells the lucky 155 that converge on Toronto “it’s like boot camp, it’s just up to us” and with 55 more gold winners than anticipated, the competition gets a lot tougher.

On the first day, ten singers at a time sing a verse and a chorus and then the cutting begins, right there and in front of everybody and at the end of the day, forty plus singers are cut. The cuts are unnerving. They call several competitors to step forward and then announce that either the back row goes home and the front stays, or vice versa, all day long.

Kirk from Newfoundland is an early casualty but his good friend Adam, also from the Rock, does make it to the next round but later that same night, he quits the competition and heads home with Kirk. The singing and slashing continues late into the day and the tension and exhaustion that the singers feel is obvious. But there is no time to rest or celebrate another round of victory as those left after the latest cuts are put into musical groups for the next competition. Their assignment is to pick a song and master it for the next day. Late practices lead to great performances by some while others forget the words and sing off key.

After the group round, the judges make more cuts until the group is whittled down to 85 competitors. It is late and the contestants get together for hugs, celebrations and some tears. But this doesn’t last for long as the next assigned task, singing a duet and solo, is weighing on their minds. These contestants know that they are only safe for now and that they are only as good as their last song. This group will be pared down to 32 in the next 24 hours and no time is wasted pairing up and practicing.

Morning comes and it is obvious that some competitors are sleep deprived and stressed to the max while others are taking it in stride, in an almost professional manner for such amateurs. Theresa Sokyrka, one of my favourites and her duet partner, Mohanza Kelly (another that I said to watch out for) do not disappoint and deliver an outstanding performance. Jacob Hoggard, an interesting performer with a knockout voice, also does well and wows the judges with a unique performance.

It is now final deliberation time and the last time that the celebrity judges will have a say in who becomes Canada’s next Idol. They go behind closed doors to make the final cuts while the remaining contestants sweat it out. There are some strong opinions behind those closed doors and difficult decisions are made.

Sass Jordan tells the competitors that it’s difficult to make these final cuts as they have grown attached to the singers and Farley explains that there is lots of talent in the room and hopes that those that don’t make the final cut will take something valuable about the experience home with them and with that, the final 32 are announced.

One of my local favourites, Anmary Legault, doesn’t make the final cut but Theresa Sokyrka from Saskatchewan and her duet partner Mohanza Kelly of Toronto, do. And of course our local fab four, Rebecca, Annie, Constant and Filomena are well on their journey to becoming the next Canadian Idol and making Ottawa proud. So make sure that you tune in to CTV Wednesday’s at 8 pm to watch Idol and vote for your favourite!

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