The 13th edition of Show Tune Showdown was a huge success!! Thank you to all who helped make it so outstanding, particularly:  our celebrity judges, CBC Radio’s Robyn Bresnahan, jazz sensation Kellylee Evans and Ottawa City Councillor Jeff Leiper; the competitors, Orpheus Musical Theatre Society, TotoToo Theatre, and Zucchini Productions; our MC Bob LeDrew; pianist Jenna Richards;  the show’s original creator, Rob Bowman, producer, Gianluca Ragazzini, and the whole production team.

What is Show Tune Showdown™?

Show Tune Showdown™ is a musical theatre performance game show with a unique blend of singing competition, and Name That Tune with loads of Broadway glitz thrown into the mix.

Three teams of four singers representing different arts organizations sing a selection of Broadway or off-Broadway show tunes in front of three local celebrity judges.  The team garnering the most points receives the grand prize of $1000 for their organization. Each team prepares three tunes to sing for the judges and the audience and is awarded up to 10 points from each judge for their efforts.

But then they are challenged even further to get some additional points in the Showdown rounds, where the team that guesses a song from trivia clues has to sing it with no rehearsal, no safety net –and with just the sheet music and lyrics to help them. Each judge awards a maximum of 5 points for the showdown performance.

If a team guesses the tune but declines to sing it or guesses it wrong, the MC goes to the audience to ask if anyone in the audience can sing the song. The MC calls the volunteer audience member to the stage and gives them the option of using the lyrics or the sheet music. The audience member awards the points received from the judges to the team of his or her choice. 
 
With points for fabulous performances, knowledge of trivia, and from the kindness of strangers, it’s hard to know who will win this competition until just before the closing curtain. Throw in some audience singalongs, our amazing accompanist Jenna Richards and our fabulous MC Bob LeDrew and it has all the ingredients for an unforgettable show.
 
Since 2005, Showtune Showdown™ has become Ottawa’s largest LGBTQ-sponsored cultural event and a must-see for musical theatre lovers in Eastern Ontario and West Quebec. 
The show has been a sellout in Ottawa in past years. The Show Tune Showdown™ concept has been so successful it has spawned productions in Minneapolis and was a blockbuster mainstage entertainment event at the GALA Choruses International LGMTQ* Choral Festival in July 2016 in Denver Colorado.
 
Arts organizations that have fielded teams for past editions of Show Tune Showdown™:
  • Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet (ASNY) Productions
  • Canadian Centennial Choir
  • Confidential Music Theatre Project
  • Orpheus Musical Theatre Company
  • Ottawa School of Speech and Drama
  • Sheridan College Musical Theatre Program
  • Sock ‘n’ Buskin Theatre Company
  • Suzart Productions
  • Vanity Project Productions
  • Zucchini Grotto
  • Zucchini Productions

Past judges for Show Tune Showdown™ have included:

  • Laurence Wall
  • Julian Armour
  • Pierre Brault
  • James Caswell
  • Gavin Crawford
  • China Doll
  • The Honourable Sheila Copps
  • Paul Dewar, MP
  • Kellylee Evans
  • Laurence Ewashko
  • Robert Filion
  • Mathieu Fleury
  • Catherine McKenney
  • Alan Neal
  • Erica Peck
  • Ivan Pednault
  • Kathleen Petty
  • Evan Solomon
  • Marg Stubington
*Show Tune Showdown is a registered trademark.  Tone Cluster is using the Show Tune Showdown name and concept with the expressed permission of the rights holder.