Here we are, week four! Seven Dorothys remaining, one of whom will go home Monday and one of whom will star in The Wizard of Oz at the Ed Mirvish Theatre.
This week's show took place on Thanksgiving weekend and the girls each gave thanks. They also dished — about each other's quirks and qualities. Colleen's penchant for dinosaurs; AJ's habit of always telling the truth; etc. So we learned something about each Dorothy hopeful.
The judges, as you will recall, are "Canada's first lady of musical theatre," Louise Pitre, dashingly handsome actor Thom Allison and choreographer and director Arlene Phillips.
Let's take a look at the highlights and lowlights.
"Oh my" moments:
Pay attention to the man behind the curtain: David Mirvish, the great and powerful, stopped by to say hello and drop this little truth: "This is just thrilling but I'm nervous because we have millions of dollars on the line and if we don't get it right, we're in trouble." Hadn't thought of it that way, had you, voters?
I don't think we're in Kansas anymore: After a string of good-but-not-great performances, Stephanie shocked everyone, I think, by busting out with her rendition of "Buenos Aires" from the musical Evita. Allison summed it up best with his comment: "What!? Ladies, we have ourselves a competition!"
You better watch out for my army of flying monkeys: Jennifer did not look amused with host Daryn Jones's crack about her scene as a waitress singing Queen's "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" being good practice, as actors often have to work as waiters. Honey, it's true. Sorry.
Over the rainbow performance: Danielle has been a consistent force to be reckoned with thus far, and last night she really pulled it out with a subdued version of Mancini and Mercer's "Moon River." Phillips was blown away and said, "That wasn't just the performance of the night, that was the performance of the entire series so far." Honourable mention goes to Jessie for her performance of Adele's "Rolling in the Deep." Phillips told her "You have just mopped the floor with the competition!"
The wizard must have something in that bag for her: Colleen deserves a mention for stepping up her game from previous weeks with "If They Could See Me Now" from Sweet Charity, despite being under the weather. (Also for wearing that ridiculous usherette costume while everyone else got to dress relatively normally.)
Who's clicking her heels three times? I've voted Jennifer off two weeks in a row but Canada has kept her around. I love Jennifer, I just don't think she's as strong as the other girls. Still, clearly I am outvoted. So, this week, I'll bet on Cassandra going home. Cassandra is adorable but her version of Duffy's "Mercy" didn't quite measure up to the others.
Tune in to CBC TV tonight at 8 p.m. to find out if I'm right (for once)!
Recap the Rainbow: Over the Rainbow episode 3
Recap the Rainbow: Over the Rainbow episode 2
Why is 'Over the Rainbow' great? Sam Roberts, Jill Barber, Susie Arioli and others weigh in
Rainbow Battle: CBC R2 Shift's 'Over the Rainbow' cover competition