Saturday 9 August 2014

So You Think You Can Dance Top 10 tour returning to Montreal




Ricky Ubeda
SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE, the 11-time Primetime Emmy® Award-winning show that sparked America’s fascination with dance, is set to captivate audiences again this fall – live on tour – with more stops than ever before. Celebrating its momentous 11th season, the show's Top 10 finalists will make their way across North America, performing in more than 70 cities and for the second year in a row Montreal will be part of it.  The tour will stop at the Bell Centre on Monday night, October 27.

I attended last year's Bell Centre show. It was a packed house, the atmosphere was electric and the performers were real crowd pleasers.

The Season 11 tour lineup includes the following Top 10 finalists: Bridget Whitman, Casey Askew, Emilio Dosal, Jacque LeWarne, Jessica Richens, Ricky Ubeda, Rudy Abreu, Tanisha Belnap, Valerie Rockey and Zack Everhart. The show airs Wednesdays (8 p.m.) on FOX and CTV. 




The tour kicks off on Wednesday, Oct. 1, at the Saenger Theatre in New Orleans and crosses the United States and Canada with more than 70 stops. The first leg of the tour will finish up on Friday, Dec. 19, at the Maverick Center in West Valley City, UT. The dancers will return for the second leg of the tour, starting at the Rabobank Theatre in Bakersfield, CA, on Thursday, Jan. 22.

Tickets for the Montreal show go on sale August 16. Info:www.evenko.ca.

Wednesday 6 August 2014

All-star NHL defenceman Kris Letang is getting his "adrenaline" rush in Montreal

If there is a professional athlete discreetly training or hanging outside somewhere in Montreal, Daniel Alon will find him. The 22 years old John Molson School of Business student has a knack for catching up with celebrities from the world of sports. Kris Letang, the all-star defenceman for the Pittsburgh Penguins, is the latest on his list. Daniel bumped into Letang at the Adrenaline Performance Centre on Devonshire in TMR.

"He trains there during the summer," Alon said. "He was very friendly, willing to take a picture and and sign an autograph" 

Kris Letang chats with Daniel Alon.
Last winter, at the age of only 26, Letang suffered a stroke.  At the time some wondered whether he would ever play again. But in April, 10 weeks later,  he was given the all clear sign to return.

The Associated Press reported that hockey did not cause the stroke,so  a return to play would not represent a risk. Letang  said he knows he also must accept the uncertainty that comes with experiencing strokes, in general."Right from the start they told me it's something that can happen whenever: sitting around, walking around," Letang told AP.  "I'm not scared to go out there and play. I just feel comfortable right now.


Others who train under the guidance of Jonathan Chamberg at Adrenaline include NHLers Benoit Pouliot, Jakub Voracek, boxer Jean Pascal and even gorgeous singer Chantal Chamandy.