(Jeff D'Andrea/paNOW Staff)

By Jeff D’Andrea

Search for the Stars

Live audience applauds return of in-person Search for the Stars

Jan 17, 2022 | 8:54 AM

The 14^th Annual Canadian Tire Search for the Stars was exactly what it should be this year—a performance in front of a live audience.

A year ago, that wasn’t the case. The event’s up-and-coming singers and bands performed in front of a dark EA Rawlinson Centre theatre, except for the cameras that were live-streaming the event.

But the theatre was close to full with a vibrant crowd of at least 185 people on Sunday, soaking in each performance and showing their appreciation through warm applause. There was also a live stream available like last year, with another 30 tickets being sold.

Nicolas Aiken appeared in his third and final Search for the Stars event on Sunday and still remembers the rush of taking the stage for the first time in front of a live audience.

“For my first actual show that I did, it was amazing. You see your family, you see people you don’t know. It gets you comfortable to be on stage, no matter how big it is,” Aiken said. “Last year, we had no people in the audience, but you still get that feeling that ‘this is real.’

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“Even the workshops, they help so much,” Aiken added. “The judges here, they teach really well. It’s been very big in my career as a singer.”

And that’s really what the Search for the Stars is about. Not only are the ‘stars’ discovered, but they’re also formed through all the workshops, tryouts, and rehearsals.

There have been some difficulties due to the pandemic, including a participant of one of the 16 individual acts and two bands set to perform on Sunday withdrawing due to being a close contact of somebody with COVID-19. But production manager Dannyll Challis said getting over all the logistical humps is worth it. As they say, ‘the show must go on.’

“It’s important through this pandemic to support youth and any of those people that are in the performing arts, giving them a venue and a chance to perform. It’s hard enough on all of us right now, so it’s really exciting to see this tonight,” Challis said.

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Jeff.dandrea@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @jeff_paNOW