Canada's Got Talent
Canada's Got Talent is a Canadian television reality talent show that debuted on the Citytv network on March 4, 2012,[1] and part of the global Got Talent franchise. The logo used for Canada's Got Talent does not follow the logo from America's Got Talent, but instead follows the logo from Britain's Got Talent.
| Canada's Got Talent | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Created by | Simon Cowell |
| Written by | Trevor Boris, Sabrina Jalees, Mark Lysakowski |
| Directed by | Joan Tosoni Sue Brophey |
| Presented by | Dina Pugliese Lindsay Ell |
| Judges | Stephan Moccio Measha Brueggergosman Martin Short Howie Mandel Lilly Singh Kardinal Offishall Trish Stratus |
| Voices of | Dina Pugliese |
| Country of origin | Canada |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 22 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | John Brunton, Barbara Bowlby and Ed Robinson |
| Producers | Mark Lysakowski Paul Becker Trevor Boris Cliff Dempster |
| Running time | 30–120 minutes |
| Production companies | SYCOtv FremantleMedia Insight Productions Talkback Thames |
| Distributor | Rogers Media Television |
| Release | |
| Original network | Citytv |
| Original release | March 4, 2012 – present |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows | America's Got Talent Britain's Got Talent |
| External links | |
| Official website | |
As with other series in the franchise, the show was a competition in which entertainers in various fields competed to win a cash prize of $100,000 and a Nissan GT-R, an opportunity to perform during Citytv's New Year's Eve bash, a possibility to perform in a venue in Las Vegas and a trip to Trinidad and Tobago.[2][3]
The first season was won by the Manitoba-based dance troupe Sagkeeng's Finest.
In April 2020, a spin-off version of the show called Canadian Family's Got Talent carried out virtually by Citytv during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada ran from April 27 to May 26. It was won by Toronto-based singing trio CZN. In June 2021, it was announced that Canada's Got Talent will be revived after a nine-year hiatus, which is set to return in spring 2022.[4]
Format
Auditions
The auditions took place in front of the judges and a live audience at different cities across Canada. At any time during the audition, the judges may show their disapproval to the act by pressing a buzzer which lights a large red "X" on the stage. If all the judges pressed their buzzers, the act must end. Voting worked on a majority-of-two basis where two positive votes from the judges were required.
The Cutdown
Those that were accepted past the audition round moved on to the Judges Round (also known as "The Cutdown"). This stage of the competition did not feature any audiences and only contained contestants performing in front of the judges. Out of all that made it to this point, thirty-six (36) acts made it through to the next round which was the semi-finals.
Semi-finals
The semi-finals and final were broadcast with a varying number of semi-finals, followed by the one final split into two episodes over one night. The remaining acts performed across a number of semi-finals, with the two most popular acts from each semi-final winning a position in the final. Judges may still end a performance early with three X's. The judges were again asked to express their views on each act's performance. After all acts have performed, phone lines, Twitter, Facebook, text and online voting platforms opened for a one-hour, while the public voted for the act they think were the best. Voters could submit a total of 50 votes (10 in each platform). After the votes were counted, the act that has polled the highest number of public votes automatically was placed in the final. The judges then chose between the second and third most popular acts, with the winner of that vote also gaining a place in the final. All other acts were then eliminated from the competition.
Judges and hosts
For the first season, it was announced, on October 13, 2011, that Martin Short would be one of three judges on the show.[5] Four days later, Stephan Moccio and Measha Brueggergosman were confirmed to be the other two judges. The same day, Dina Pugliese, co-host of Breakfast Television was announced as the host for the show.[6]
For the second season, it was announced in October 2021 that Howie Mandel, Lilly Singh, Kardinal Offishall and Trish Stratus will serve as judges for the show, with Lindsay Ell set to serve as host.[7]
Broadcasting
Because of the various time zones in Canada, only viewers in the provinces and territories east of Manitoba saw the show live (in the Newfoundland, Atlantic and Eastern time zones); all other areas in Canada broadcast the show on a tape delay basis. All Citytv stations aired the show at 8:00 p.m. (in each time zone where there is a Citytv station) with the Toronto station airing the program at 8:00 p.m.; viewers in Newfoundland see the show live at 9:30 p.m. and viewers in the Atlantic region at 9:00 p.m., because there is no Citytv station in these provinces to broadcast the show at local time. The same process occurred with the results show.
Season overview
The first season of Canada's Got Talent, a reality television series, premiered on March 4, 2012, and ended on May 14, 2012, on City.[1] Unlike America's Got Talent, the show only had the audition round, top 37, semi-finals, and then the finale. The premiere episode, which aired March 4, 2012, took in a viewership of 2 million on average throughout the night, a record for Citytv.
Auditions
Preliminary auditions
Canada's Got Talent travelled to six different cities across the country for the producer auditions: Winnipeg, Edmonton, Vancouver, Montreal, Toronto and Halifax during the months of September and October 2011.[1]
After the final auditions were completed in Halifax, the show then travelled to Calgary, Vancouver, Toronto, Winnipeg, Halifax and Montreal for the live-audience auditions which were taped in October, November, December 2011 and January 2012.[8]
A total of 244 acts were given a "yes" during the auditions. A total of 108 auditions were aired on television (both eliminated acts and successful acts).[9]
Judges round
Those that were accepted past the audition round moved on to the Judges Round (also known as "The Cutdown"). This stage of the competition did not feature any audiences and only contained contestants walking up to the judges or Dina (host) to find out if they made it to the next round. Originally, out of all that made it to this point, thirty-six (36) acts were to make it through to the next round which would be the semi-finals but because the judges "broke a rule" the final number of semi-finalists were thirty-seven (37). During the episode, it was announced that 244 acts were given a "yes" during the auditions meaning that 207 were eliminated (some of these auditions were not shown on television).[9][10][11]
The judges could not decide between two similar acts. Scott Jackson and KRNFX, who were both beatboxers were both called up to the judges and they told them that in order to determine who would make the live shows, they would need to beatbox right there and now. After both acts finished, the judges still could not decide, opting to have both of them advance.
Semi-finals
At this point in the competition, the selected thirty-seven acts will perform in front of an audience and the judges. The semi-finals will contain six or seven acts per week for six weeks with the day after being the results show. Each week, out of the acts that perform, only two will make it to the finals. To determine who moves to the finals, viewer's at home will select one act and the judges will select the other.[12]
| Participant | Age(s) | Genre | Act | From | Semi-Final | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Angela Ewtushik and Rally | 39, 7 | Animal | Dancing Dog Act | 5 | Eliminated | |
| Angry Candy | 27-36 | Singing | Band | 2 | Runner-Up | |
| Aygul Memet | 36 | Acrobatics | Circus Performer | 5 | Finalist | |
| The Brat Pack | 14-18 | Dance | Dance Group | 3 | Eliminated | |
| Broken Dance | 19-25 | Dance | Bollywood Dance Group | 6 | Finalist | |
Caitlin Bell  |
Singing | Singer | 3 | Eliminated | ||
| Christopher Charles | Singing | Singer | 1 | Eliminated | ||
| Craz E Crew Stunt Team | Danger | Motorcycle Stunt Team | 3 | Eliminated | ||
| Daddy Cool | 27-50 | Dance | Dance Group | 2 | Eliminated | |
| The Dance and Illusions of Oslen | 36 | Dance/Magic | Magician and Dancer | 4 | Eliminated | |
| Emilio Fina | 38 | Singing | Opera Singer | 3 | Finalist | |
| Enigma Dance | 23-25 | Dance | Dance Group | 3 | Eliminated | |
| Eric Saintonge | 37 | Acrobatics | Cyr Wheel Acrobat | 5 | Eliminated | |
| Fantasy Circus | 42, 38 | Acrobatics | Balance Acrobats | 2 | Eliminated | |
| The Forestier Family | 58, 7 | Music | Singing Musicians | 4 | Eliminated | |
| Francelle and Mat | 32, 23 | Music | Yodeler and Guitarist | 6 | Eliminated | |
| Fresh | Dance | Dance Group | 2 | Runner-Up | ||
| H.I.X. | 16-21 | Music | Beatboxing Group | 1 | Eliminated | |
| Ivan Daigle | 41 | Singing | Singer and Guitarist | 4 | Finalist | |
| Jack Ettlinger | Singing | Singer | 6 | Eliminated | ||
| Jeffrey and Karen Chang | Dance | Dance Duo | 5 | Eliminated | ||
| Julie Lafontaine | 45 | Singing | Opera Singer | 2 | Finalist | |
| KRNFX | 22 | Music | Beatboxer | 5 | Finalist | |
| Laheed Quddusi | Comedy | Impressionist | 6 | Eliminated | ||
| Lisa Odjig | Dancer | Hula Hoop Dancer | 4 | Eliminated | ||
| Marianne Demers | 15 | Singing | Singer | 6 | Eliminated | |
| Marissa Puff | 26 | Dance/Danger | Fire Dancer | 1 | Eliminated | |
| Mathew Cathcart "The Emsee" |
Music | Rapper | 4' | Finalist | ||
| Nathan Knowles | 16 | Dance | Dancer and Contortionist | 3 | Eliminated | |
| Oneblood | 18-49 | Music | A Cappella Group | 3 | Eliminated | |
| Pulp City Inn | 16-22 | Singing | Band | 1 | Eliminated | |
| Roger LeBlanc | Variety | Actor | 2 | Eliminated | ||
| Sagkeeng's Finest | 15-17 | Dance | Tap Dance Trio | 5 | Winner | |
| Scott Jackson | Music | Beatboxer | 2' | Finalist | ||
| Shale Wagman | Dance | Dancer | 3' | Finalist | ||
| Silvia Ricciotto | Singing | Singer | 5 | Eliminated | ||
| Vithou Thurber-Promtep | 16 | Singing | Singer | 2 | Eliminated | |
| Wushu by Storm | Danger | Martial Arts Group | 1 | Eliminated | ||
| Yuval Fichman | Music | Pianist | 2 | Eliminated |
- Caitlin Bell and Mathew Cathcart "The Emsee" were selected to join the competition from the Last Chance YouTube auditions.
Semi-finals summary
Buzzed Out | 
Judges' choice |- Advanced | Won Judges' Vote | Lost Judges' Vote
Week 1 (April 2–3, 2012)
| Semi-Finalist | Order | Buzzes and Judges' votes | Result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short | Brueggergosman | Moccio | |||
| Wushu By Storm | 1 | Eliminated (Lost Judges' Vote) | |||
| H.I.X. | 2 | |
Eliminated | ||
| Pulp City Inn | 3 | Eliminated | |||
| Marissa Puff | 4 | |
|
Eliminated | |
| Christopher Charles | 5 | Eliminated | |||
| Freshh | 6 | Advanced | |||
| Julie Lafontaine | 7 | |
|
|
Advanced (Won Judges' Vote) |
Week 2 (April 8–9, 2012)
| Semi-Finalist | Order | Buzzes and Judges' votes | Result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short | Brueggergosman | Moccio | |||
| Scott Jackson | 1 | |
|
Advanced (Won Judges' Vote) | |
| Daddy Cool | 2 | |
Eliminated (Lost Judges' Vote) | ||
| Roger LeBlanc | 3 | Eliminated | |||
| Angry Candy | 4 | Advanced | |||
| Yuval Fichman | 5 | Eliminated | |||
| Vithou Thurber-Promtep | 6 | Eliminated | |||
| Fantasy Circus | 7 | Eliminated | |||
Week 3 (April 15–16, 2012)
| Semi-Finalist | Order | Buzzes and Judges' votes | Result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short | Brueggergosman | Moccio | |||
| Craz E Crew Stunt Team | 1 | Eliminated | |||
| Emilio Fina | 2 | |
|
Advanced (Won Judges' Vote) | |
| Nathan Knowles | 3 | Eliminated | |||
| The Brat Pack | 4 | |
Eliminated (Lost Judges' Vote) | ||
| Oneblood | 5 | |
Eliminated | ||
| Caitlin Bell | 6 | |
Eliminated | ||
| Shale Wagman | 7 | Advanced | |||
Week 4 (April 22–23, 2012)
| Semi-Finalist | Order | Buzzes and Judges' votes | Result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short | Brueggergosman | Moccio | |||
| The Dance and Illusions of Oslen | 1 | Eliminated | |||
| The Forestier Family | 2 | Eliminated | |||
| Enigma Dance | 3 | |
Eliminated (Lost Judges' Vote) | ||
| Mathew Cathcart | 4 | |
|
Advanced (Won Judges' Vote) | |
| Ivan Daigle | 5 | Advanced | |||
| Lisa Odjig | 6 | Eliminated | |||
Week 5 (April 29–30, 2012)
| Semi-Finalist | Order | Buzzes and Judges' votes | Result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short | Brueggergosman | Moccio | |||
| Eric Saintonge | 1 | Eliminated | |||
| KRNFX | 2 | |
|
Advanced (Won Judges' Vote) | |
| Sagkeeng's Finest | 3 | Advanced | |||
| Silvia Ricciotto | 4 | Eliminated | |||
| Angela Ewtushik and Rally | 5 | |
Eliminated (Lost Judges' Vote) | ||
| Jeffrey & Karen Chang | 6 | |
Eliminated | ||
Week 6 (May 6–7, 2012)
| Semi-Finalist | Order | Buzzes and Judges' votes | Result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short | Brueggergosman | Moccio | |||
| Jack Ettlinger | 1 | Eliminated (Lost Judges' Vote) | |||
| Broken Dance | 2 | Advanced | |||
| Laheeb Quddusi | 3 | Eliminated | |||
| Francelle and Mat | 4 | Eliminated | |||
| Aygul Memet | 5 | |
|
|
Advanced (Won Judges' Vote) |
| Marianne Demers | 6 | Eliminated | |||
Finals Summary
Only 12 acts made it to this point in the competition. After all the acts performed in the two-hour special on May 13, 2012, Canada voted for their favourite, and the winner of Canada's Got Talent's first season was crowned on May 14, 2012, on the finale of the show. The winner received a brand-new Nissan GT-R, possibly a performance in Las Vegas, a spot on Citytv's 2013 New Year's Eve Bash and $100,000 in Canadian currency.
The youngest platinum-selling recording artist in history, Jackie Evancho, who was a finalist on Season 5 of America's Got Talent, sang the Sarah McLachlan song "Angel" as a guest artist on the season finale on May 14. Canadian rock band Hedley performed the song "Beautiful" from their album Storms.
- Winner | Runner-up
| Finalist | Order | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Sagkeeng's Finest | 1 | Winner |
| Terry Im "KRNFX" | 2 | Eliminated |
| Julie Lafontaine | 3 | Eliminated |
| Aygul Memet | 4 | Eliminated |
| Ivan Daigle | 5 | Eliminated |
| Broken Dance | 6 | Eliminated |
| Shale Wagman | 7 | Eliminated |
| Scott Jackson | 8 | Eliminated |
| Angry Candy | 9 | Runner-Up |
| Mathew Cathcart "The Emsee" | 10 | Eliminated |
| Emilio Fina | 11 | Eliminated |
| Freshh | 12 | Runner-Up |
Production
On May 30, 2011, Citytv and Insight Production announced that they would create a Canadian series of the hit Got Talent series and that the show would begin in Spring 2012.[13]
The stage for Canada's Got Talent is almost exactly the same used on Britain's Got Talent; the only difference being that the stage is not full of moving LED lights in Canada.
In June 2012, Rogers Media president, Scott Moore, announced that a second season would not be produced, after a "careful consideration of all factors, including the current economic climate".[14] However, on June 8, 2021, it was announced that the series will be revived, which is set to return in spring 2022. Production on the series will begin in fall 2021 at Niagara Falls.[4][15]
Ratings
| Order | Episode | Viewers (millions) |
Rank (night) |
Rank (week) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Toronto Auditions" | 1.463[16] | 2[17][18] | 15[19] |
| 2 | "Calgary Auditions" | 1.120[20] | TBA | 23[20] |
| 3 | "Vancouver (Part 1) Auditions" | 0.953[21] | TBA | 23[20] |
| 4 | "Winnipeg Auditions" | 1.124[21] | 5 | 23[20] |
| 5 | "Halifax and Vancouver (Part 2) Auditions" | 0.829[22] | 8 | 31+[23] |
| 6 | "Toronto Auditions (Part 2)" | 0.981[22] | TBA | 31+[23] |
| 7 | "Montreal Auditions" | 0.940[24] | TBA | 31+[25] |
| 8 | "Cutdown Episode" | 0.754[24] | TBA | 31+[25] |
| 9 | "Semi-Final 1" | 0.690[26] | TBA | 31+[27] |
| 10 | "Semi-Final 1 Results" | 0.451[26] | TBA | 31+[27] |
| 11 | "Semi-Final 2" | 0.559[26] | TBA | 31+[27] |
| 12 | "Semi-Final 2 Results" | 0.271[28] | TBA | 31+[29] |
| 13 | "Semi-Final 3" | 0.612[28] | TBA | 31+[29] |
| 14 | "Semi-Final 3 Results" | 0.270[30] | TBA | 31+[31] |
| 15 | "Semi-Final 4" | 0.573[30] | TBA | 31+[31] |
| 16 | "Semi-Final 4 Results" | 0.286[32] | 15[32] | 31+[33] |
| 17 | "Semi-Final 5" | 0.561[32] | 12[32] | 31+[33] |
| 18 | "Semi-Final 5 Results" | 0.311[34] | 14[34] | 31+[35] |
| 19 | "Semi-Final 6" | 0.308[34] | 14[34] | 31+[35] |
| 20 | "Semi-Final 6 Results" | 0.326[36] | 11[36] | 31+[37] |
| 21 | "Live Finals 2-Hr Show" | 0.521[36] | 9[36] | 31+[37] |
| 22 | "Finale" | 0.459[38] | 10 | TBA |
Canadian Family's Got Talent
In April 2020, during an interview on Breakfast Television, Simon Cowell announced a spin-off version of the show called Canadian Family's Got Talent carried out virtually by Citytv during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada. The contest, presented by Canadian Tire, ran from April 27 to May 26, and was judged by Cowell alongside hosts Dina Pugliese and Devo Brown.[39] The contest was won by Toronto-based singing trio CZN.[40]
References
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- "Lights, Camera … Talent! Citytv and Breakfast Television Count Down to AGT Premiere with Canadian Family's Got Talent Contest, April 27 to May 26". Rogers. April 27, 2020.
- "Simon Cowell crowns singing trio CZN as winner of Canadian Family's Got Talent". toronto.citynews.ca. May 26, 2020.