Upper Canada Chorus

Montreal Tour 2007

On Friday May 19th, 45 choristers and chaperones borded a coach bus bound for "lower Canada" and a whirl-wind tour through Montreal. Our first stop was the Big Top in downtown Montreal where we experienced the thrill of "Cirque du Soleil" with their brand new show "KOOZA".

The Big Top - Cirque du Soleil

KOOZA is a return to the origins of Cirque du Soleil: It combines two circus traditions - acrobatic performance and the art of clowning. The show highlights the physical demands of human performance in all its splendor and fragility, presented in a colorful mélange that emphasizes bold slapstick humor. The Innocent's journey brings him into contact with a panoply of comic characters such as the King, the Trickster, the Pickpocket, and the Obnoxious Tourist and his Bad Dog. Between strength and fragility, laughter and smiles, turmoil and harmony, KOOZA explores themes of fear, identity, recognition and power. The show is set in an electrifying and exotic visual world full of surprises, thrills, chills, audacity and total involvement.

After such an excellent start to the tour, choristers were ready to take the stage themselves for a performance at St. Joseph's Oratory, the home of Canada's largest Bascilica, on Saturday morning.

St. Joseph's Oratory

In 1904, Blessed André Bessette began the construction of a small chapel on the side of the mountain near Notre Dame College. Soon, it became much too small. Even though it was enlarged, in 1917, a church was built, called the crypt, with a seating capacity of 1,000. In 1924, the construction of the basilica was inaugurated; it was finally completed in 1967. The Oratory's dome is the second-largest of its kind in the world after Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome, and the church is the largest in Canada.

After a quick 7:30 AM rehearsal at our hotel, the UCC Training Choirs were well awake (except for one or two) and performance ready. About 150 people gathered in the Oratory and listened to the Training Choirs sing music ranging from the a cappella "Ilumina Oculos Meos" to "And God Shall Wipe Away All Tears" and Canadian Folk Song "My Heart Soars".

The afternoon and early evening found us exploring the cultural fibre of Montreal as we toured through the Basilica, and through downtown Montreal by both land and water. Our Amphibus took a plunge into the St. Lawrence to give us an incredible view of the Montreal skyline, not to mention a quick ride through the rapid current of the river (for one of our 2 groups anyway). A trip over to the Biodome enabled us to experience 4 different climates in the span of an hour and a half. Then on to enjoy some authentic Montreal cuisine at Chez Suzette. By 9:30 PM we were ready for some relaxation and fun in the roof-top pool at our hotel. Even Keira enjoyed a little swim with the girls, and was a little upset that she had to leave the beautiful poolside to take in some much needed sleep.

We lingered long over the expansive Sunday morning brunch at our hotel before waking our bus driver and heading toward a performance at River's Edge Church. This old catholic church has been converted in recent years to house a very contemporary church. With a 500 person seating capacity, River's Edge was full to overflowing. An unprompted standing ovation followed quickly after a strong UCC performance - what an excellent end to a busy tour!

We look forward with great anticipation to our next UCC Training Choir tour in May 2008. Check back often - we'll be announcing the destination shortly.

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