The Canadian Reality Report for September 22: Some Dance, Some Chat, And Some Idols

So You Think You Can Dance Canada

As episodes of So You Think You Can Dance Canada air, we are slowly getting to meet more of the judges. In Calgary we were treated to the views of Jeff Thacker, the supervising producer of the U.S. version of So You Think You Can Dance, and Calgary’s own Sean Cheesman. There wasn’t a ton of face time for Sean, working with three higher profile judges, but he did fine in his smaller role.

I was impressed with the superb flexibility exhibited by many of the Montréal auditioners. I was also impressed with the wheelchair dancer in Calgary, Harmanie Shairp. Her statement, “If you have a heartbeat, you can dance!” is so true. Far less impressive was “Tiger” and his hostile attitude.

With the audition episodes over, the Toronto rounds now begin. I liked the way the audition episodes were presented, with less focus on the attention-getters, and more on the true talents. I think the judges have been mighty generous with the number of niche dancers sent directly to the “finals” in Toronto. Some are going to have a tough go of it there, and I think more ought to have been sent to the Choreography round to prove their versatility first.

Rob Mariano Chat

At the premiere of Reality Obsessed, I had the opportunity to spend some time with fan favourite “Boston” Rob Mariano. That’s Rob’s picture with me adorning this article. Although this was formally an interview, it quickly took on the tone of a conversation between Rob, my wife, and myself. Rob was very willing to patiently answer anything we wanted to ask. What follows is a recap of our conversation.

I started by asking Rob what’s new with Amber and him these days. Rob enthusiastically told me that he’s the host of a new reality show! It’s called The Split, and was filmed over six months this summer in Dallas. It combines aspects of reality TV and blackjack.

In The Split, players compete in a series of blackjack preliminaries to define six finalists. The winners get a taste of life as Boston Rob lives it. After a three-day crash course about life in the world of reality TV, there are reality-style competitions, with the last player standing winning a million dollars!

The Split will air in Dallas on ABC, but Rob tells me that, in other areas, it may appear on other stations. Rob says the WWCS website has more information. It’s accessible here. I checked it out and found the link easily, but to go deeper, you have to register at that site. I opted not to, so I’m afraid I can’t report any further.

Meanwhile, Amber is starting up a line of baby clothes she has designed. It’s called “Emu.” The name comes from one of her nieces, who when she was three, couldn’t pronounce “Amber” properly – it came out sounding like “Emu.”

I next asked Rob which of his various reality shows is his favourite. He quickly named Survivor, reasoning it’s because it was his first. He feels it provided the best chances for him to use his ingenuity, and that he thrived there. The wedding show, of course, is also a favourite. Rob also enjoyed, “Rob And Amber Against The Odds,” where he learned to play poker at the highest levels. Rob confesses to being a big poker fan.

I asked Rob if he and Amber still watch reality TV these days. Rob says they do, adding, “We’re still big Survivor fans. The Amazing Race, not so much.

I next inquired which Survivor series was harder, physically. Rob discloses that, physically, it was the second (All-Stars), by far. They expected rain, but none came for the first four days. Without fire, they had no drinking water, and everyone was dehydrated. The producers were ready to call in the doctors. Then, it rained every day after that!

We then segued to The Amazing Race. No, I’m not sure how! Rob explained that they saw it as thirteen separate races, and the key is to not finish last in any of them. Rob revealed that one thing most people don’t know is that when you open the envelopes with the route instructions in them, there’s a second page that has a lot of other rules on it. These are not usually shown being read on screen. You may be limited to only a few flights, connections through certain other countries may be forbidden… things like that.

Rob understands the objective of production is to try and have the teams running the legs together rather than as eleven separated pairs, because the resulting interplay makes for good TV. However, he feels that the advantage he had in finding clever solutions was sometimes limited by these additional rules.

In contrast, in Survivor, there’s just two rules: you can’t cause anyone bodily harm, and you’re not allowed to make deals about splitting your prize money with other players. Outside of that, anything you can think of is okay.

Although I was becoming less sure that he had any, I asked Rob, “What is your best memory of The Amazing Race?” From a strategic view, it was the decision not to eat all that meat. But, really, it was the drive from Chile to Argentina and the African safari. Both were scenic and wonderful. He adds, “We got everything we wanted, and more!”

I changed directions to ask Rob how he feels now about making his wedding a TV show? Rob apparently has no regrets as he responded, “Great. We met on TV, CBS was and is very supportive toward us, and it seemed like the right step to take.” They’ve now been happily married about three-and-a-half years.

Rob assured us that both he and Amber showed up at Survivor: All-Stars only with the intent of winning the million. Rob points out that usually when you go on a first date, you’re in your nicest clothes and trying to make the best possible impression. In their situation they were dirty, no make-up, and focused on winning, not on each other. He adds that in that situation, you truly do see someone for who they really are.

I asked if we might ever see Rob compete on a reality show again. He thinks not, as he’s currently choosing to follow opportunities in the writing and production end of reality TV. It seems like a natural progression, like a seasoned athlete turning to coaching, and possibly management, after they retire from the game.

I suggested to Rob that one show that might appeal to him is Trump’s Celebrity Apprentice. His first response was to say, “Can you see me in a shirt and tie?” but after reflecting, he mused, “Maybe I’ll ask Mark Burnett to give Trump a call!” You know, I’m not really sure if he was joking or serious!

Canadian Idol

Continuing my thread of checking up on old friends comes this next item. CTV recently released updated information revealing what several Idols from previous seasons are doing now.

I’m going to start with Season 5 and work back. Winner Brian Melo has toured the country showcasing his debut album, Livin’ It and his latest single, “Summertime.” He shot a video log of his recent concert in Portugal, and it will air on CTVs eTalk program.

Runner-up Jaydee Bixby’s CD Cowboys and Cadillacs has reached number one on the Canadian country music charts, and number eight on the Canadian album charts. His first single, “Old Fashioned Girl” received a lot of airplay and is pushing toward the top ten. He’s on tour this fall, hitting Manitoba, British Columbia, and Ontario.

Third-place finisher Carly Rae Jepsen is ready to release her first CD, named Tug of War on September 30, 2008. Her cover single of John Denver’s “Sunshine On My Shoulders” shows her unique style and is getting airplay. Carly Rae will be on tour in the near future.

Tara Oram has a single, “Fly Girl,” that has cracked the top twenty on the Canadian country charts. A debut album is in progress, her TV show The Tara Diaries on CMT continues, and she has appeared in ads for Pantene Pro-V nationwide. Plus, she has a tour upcoming. Pretty good for the sixth-place finisher, I’d say!

Season 4 winner and JUNO nominee Eva Avila is finishing up her second album, scheduled to ship in October. The title track, “Give Me the Music,” has just been released as a single, and a tour to support the album is planned for early 2009. Previously, Eva scored a couple of high profile advertising contracts, including Maybelline New York and Sony of Canada. Also, at Epcot at Walt Disney World in Orlando, you can hear Eva sing the closing song to the film O Canada!, shown in the Canadian Pavilion.

As I’ve previously reported, Steffi D has the role of “Isle” in the U.S. national tour of the Tony Award-winning musical Spring Awakening.

Season 3 winner Melissa O’Neil continues to perform in the Toronto stage musical Dirty Dancing. Season 2 winner Kalan Porter released his second CD back in the summer. And, finally, Season 1 winner Ryan Malcolm’s band Low Level Flight released their third single this summer. A fall tour of Eastern Canada begins soon.

To find out tour dates and details, check out the website of the artist in question.

Wrapping Up

Well, that’s it for now. Come back for next week’s column. Topics will include something about Dragon’s Den, just in time for its premiere on the 29th.

Readers, do you have any suggestions for shows that fit this column that I should check out and possibly write about? Send me an email and let me know!

Brian can be reached at uncle_bto@rogers.com. He’d like to hear your opinions and promises to respond to all serious email!

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