McLachlan, Bryan Adams, Rush among artists expected at opening
By Nick Patch (CP)
VANCOUVER, B.C. — In an age where news travels as fast as a sled hurtling down a skeleton track, the sustained secrecy surrounding Friday's opening ceremonies at the Vancouver Games is an Olympic feat in of itself.
Only in the past few days have small amounts of information dribbled out as Twitter-happy fans have leaked rehearsal information.
Recent reports indicate that Bryan Adams and Sarah McLachlan have been spotted rehearsing for the show.
Meanwhile, Rush and 16-year-old Montreal jazz singer Nikki Yanofsky also seem to be involved. A publicist for the veteran Toronto rock trio and Yanofsky herself both responded to questions from The Canadian Press with no-comments, citing non-disclosure agreements.
"NDA, non-disclosure, we're not allowed to say anything," Yanofsky said when asked if she would perform.
But beyond those nuggets of information, the Olympics' opening festivities have been relatively leak-proof, leaving eager viewers to work on educated guesses at which artists might be present for the Games' commencement.
So, whom might viewers look forward to seeing on Friday evening?
Michael Buble, for one, seems a logical choice to join local favourites McLachlan and Adams. Fresh off his second Grammy win, Buble is an avowed sports fan who will be in town anyway to provide colour commentary on hockey games for Australian TV and to participate in one of the final legs of the torch relay.
And like Adams, the crooner is associated with manager Bruce Allen, the Canadian impresario who is serving as VANOC's headline talent producer for the opening and closing ceremonies.
McLachlan's involvement, meanwhile, shouldn't come as a shock. The singer recorded NBC's Olympic theme, "One Dream," and is based in Vancouver.
Similarly, Celine Dion would seem a logical choice.
The 41-year-old chanteuse from Charlemagne, Que., boasts a massive international following and already has an Olympic performance on her resume after singing "The Power of the Dream" at the 1996 Games in Atlanta.
Dion, who just last month performed a stirring tribute to Michael Jackson at the Grammys, is also on the verge of releasing her documentary-concert film, "Celine: Through the Eyes of the World," so the timing makes sense.
Further, Dion appeared on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" on Wednesday to perform a version of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" with the Canadian Tenors. Interestingly, some of those rebellious rehearsal tweeters claimed to have heard the backing track to the classic tune blaring through the speakers at the opening ceremonies run-through, prompting speculation that Dion might appear to sing the song.
But, of course, she isn't the only megawatt Canadian pop star that viewers hope is included.
A People Magazine web poll recently asked readers which of five Canadian pop stars they wanted to see perform at the opening ceremonies, pitting Dion against Shania Twain, Avril Lavigne, Nelly Furtado and Alanis Morissette.
The result? A stunning 62 per cent of users voted for Twain, with Lavigne finishing second with 28 per cent, Dion third with seven per cent and Morissette and Furtado each receiving a paltry two per cent of votes.
Twain has resurfaced lately after willingly receding from the limelight over the past few years. She appeared as a judge on "American Idol," carried the Olympic torch through her hometown of Timmins, Ont., and has blogged about her ongoing development of a follow-up album to 2002's "Up."
Though none of those appearances required any singing, Internet fans are hopeful that Twain will take to the microphone at the Olympics.
"Shania Twain must be the one to perform!" said one enthusiastic follower below the People poll.
In fact, if the Internet is in part to blame for leaking out news about the opening ceremonies, it's also the setting for a multitude of impassioned arguments about the potential lineup of Canadian performers.
On Facebook, users have fought back and forth over the relative merits of a cluster of recognizable Canadian names - including Stompin' Tom Connors, Neil Young, Sam Roberts and the Barenaked Ladies - in a series of discussion threads.
"I personally hope that Stompin' Tom will be there," wrote a user named Richard on Facebook. "If anything says Canada (it's) Stompin' Tom and the Hockey Song."
"There's no doubt that Rush, Bryan Adams and (Nickelback) MUST be part of the Opening Ceremonies," added a poster named Silvie. "They represent Canadian Rock from the 70s, 80s, 90s and 00s."
Another poster, nicknamed Vanore, agreed: "I'm pretty sure (Nickelback) will be there. And it doesn't matter what song they play, since all their songs sound exactly the same."
-With files from Canadian Press reporter Victoria Ahearn in Toronto.
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