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Canada’s Got Talent

March 5, 2012 by · Comments Off on Canada’s Got Talent 

Canada’s Got Talent, If you like your reality TV with a heavy helping of schadenfreude, Canada’s Got Talent might not be the show for you.

If you like to laugh, to be amazed, impressed, even frightened, to have your heartstrings tugged and, in general, be entertained, pull up a couch.

All of that was in evidence in the first episode of this homegrown version of America’s/Britain’s Got Talent, where we saw contestants audition for judges Martin Short, Measha Brueggergosman and Stephan Moccio at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.

They had 90 seconds to show their talent in hopes of getting to the next round and, ultimately, winning the $100,000 cash prize, a Nissan GT-R, a chance to perform in Las Vegas and a spot onstage at Citytv’s televised New Year’s Eve bash.

The acts, as you might expect, ranged from the ridiculous to the sublime.

In the former category: the guy who stapled a photo of Martin to his brother’s face (Martin had the wit to go onstage and sign it for him after) then put a fork up his nose in the Monsters of Shlock act.

Then there was the sparkly clown who came out in a bullet bra, red wig, green plaid drawers and glittery makeup, twirled a hula hoop in very rudimentary fashion and stripped to silver bikini bottoms; or Brant the Fire Guy, who kept dropping his fire sticks while trying to skateboard with them.

But the ultimate in “What was she thinking?” was Breigh Scheefer.

The long-legged blond talked obliquely about the talent she had discovered when she was 5 years old that had made her parents proud. She took the stage in a strapless satin dress, prompting Martin to exclaim, “You’re going through to the next round!” before she’d uttered a word. And after telling the judges she’d rather show than talk about her talent, she opened her mouth and let out a big belch. She kept belching as each judge in turn pressed their red X buzzers to reject the act.

“It’s like having (opera singer) Maria Callas back; it’s unbelievable,” quipped Martin. “I say fantastic, but no.”

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