The Labelle Stage Productions Vocal Competition is right around the corner, and organizers couldn’t be more excited with the line-up of local contestants ready to strut their stuff.
Local producer/artist/musician extraordinaire Curtis Labelle is the man behind the event, which kicked off with auditions here in Red Deer back in February.
Semi-finals ran April 28th in the Snell Auditorium (downtown branch of the Red Deer Public Library).
Finals then run in the Snell as well on May 5th, and there are still tickets available for that event, said Labelle.
Tickets for the finals can be purchased by phone at 780-908-2849 or by going online to www.elevatedsuccesscanada.com.
There were 15 semi-finalists that came from all across the province – Rocky Mountain House, Camrose, St. Albert, Edmonton, Calgary, Lethbridge and Olds.
“We opened it up to all of Alberta and it was amazing who came out. There is some fabulous talent out there,” he said.
There will ultimately be first, second and third place awards handed down along with a ‘People’s Choice Award’ at the finals.
Labelle does emphasize that the event is still fundamentally a competition.
“We will be picking the best of the best and we have found amazing artists. The response was fantastic,” he said.
Competition judges include Tina Hunter, Amanda Hansen and Paeton Cameron. “All three have accolades for high quality standards when it comes to judging,” said Labelle, adding that the finals will also be filmed and streamed on social media.
Plenty of terrific prizes will be given out as well including recording time, trophies and cash prizes.
“We’ve got some great stuff for these singers out there to also help them.”
Labelle is also grateful to Parkland Audio who has donated some equipment and are onboard with the event.
Because of the interest shown in this spring’s competition, plans are already taking shape to hold another this fall from September through to November, he said, adding that age categories will be included at that time.
More details on the fall competitions will be available in June.
“It allows another opportunity – people are already contacting us and asking when is the next one?
“I think we are also going to want to keep it central, to keep it in Red Deer. But we are going to want to do it in a larger facility,” he added, referring to growing interest in the event and the strong demand for tickets as well.
Labelle is also one of the creative folks behind The Mics Awards Show – set to run May 12th at Days Inn & Suites Conference Centre West Edmonton.
Presented by The MICs Inc. and the Music Is Cool non-profit organization, it’s described as a glittering annual event that is hosted in a different major city across Canada each year. There are a stream of categories for consideration, from TV, film and radio to the stage and music. Organizers are also opening it up to music videos, too.
Sponsorships and ticket sales help to fund the event, and Labelle added that there are also scholarships available through the Music is Cool organization.
Labelle, who moved away from Red Deer several years ago, relocating to Edmonton, Toronto and New York City for various stints – is happy to back in the City and already has lots of exciting plans unfolding.
Besides being the CEO of Elevated Success Canada, he’s also an extremely talented performer in his own right. He’s starring in a show called ‘Kings of Vegas – Elvis and Liberace’ hosted by Labelle Stage Productions which is set to make a Red Deer stop this September.
