Canada's Favourite Dancer is TARA-JEAN on CTV's SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE
CANADA

    
         - After close to three million votes, VINCENT is the runner-up -

    - Season 3 Audition Tour begins in Toronto November 14 before travelling
     to Montreal for the weekend of November 28 and Vancouver on December 5 -

      - An encore of the SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE CANADA finale to air on
                   MuchMusic Sunday, November 1 at 6 p.m. ET -

          - SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE CANADA Top 10 Tour kicks off in
                           Kelowna, BC on November 25 -
    

TORONTO , Oct. 26 /CNW/ - Canada has watched her Jive, Salsa, Quick Step, Rumba, Mambo and Hustle to the top and following tonight's gripping SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE CANADA second season finale, CTV congratulates TARA-JEAN Popowich, on becoming Canada's Favourite Dancer. Host Leah Miller announced live that TARA-JEAN, 20, a Contemporary dancer from Lethbridge, AB received the majority of close to three million votes cast during the countrywide poll on Tuesday night and therefore claims the title of Canada's Favourite Dancer and the grand prize of $100,000 as well as the keys to a brand new 2010 Mazda 3 Sport.

Fellow Top 4 finalist VINCENT Desjardins, 20, a Ballroom dancer from Trois-Rivières, QB, was declared the runner-up and also receives the keys to his very own 2010 Mazda 3 Sport. TARA-JEAN and VINCENT along with fellow Top 4 Finalists EVERETT Smith, 25, a Tap dancer from Glen Morris , ON., JAYME RAE Dailey, 21, a Contemporary dancer from Montreal , QB., and the remaining dancers from the Top 20, all took to the stage during the two-hour live extravaganza broadcast on CTV.

TARA-JEAN has been winning Canada's hearts and votes since her audition in Saint John, NB., earlier this spring. During her time on the show, TARA-JEAN has demonstrated her versatility on stage tackling everything from Contemporary to House to Samba with the same dedication, skill and flare for performance. Best known for her determination, gracious demeanour, hard work and perseverance, TARA-JEAN has been praised by the judges for being a true performer and an inspiration to dancers everywhere. During the Top 4 performance show, SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE CANADA Judge Blake McGrath comments to TARA-JEAN foreshadowed the big win when he said, "There's something very, very important you need in this competition to win. It's called star quality, and baby you have it!"

    
    (xx) Media Note (xx) Download new photos from the Finale and information
    about SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE CANADA at ctvmedia.ca/dance2009/.
    

The Season 3 Audition Tour will be traveling to five cities across Canada with confirmed stops in Toronto on Saturday, November 14 , Montreal during the weekend of November 28 and Vancouver on Saturday, December 5 . Registration will begin at 8 a.m. in all cities. Auditions will also be coming to Calgary and an East Coast City to be announced. Confirmed dates and venues will continue to be announced as information becomes available. Check dance.ctv.ca for details and updates.

    
    Audition details available to date listed below (subject to change):

    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    City              Date                    Venue
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Toronto, ON       Saturday, November 14   Metro Toronto Convention Centre
                                              255 Front St. W., Toronto
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Montreal, QC      Weekend of November 28  To be announced
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Vancouver, BC     Saturday, December 5    The Centre in Vancouver for
                                              Performing Arts
                                              777 Homer Street
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Calgary, AB       To be announced         To be announced
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    East Coast City   To be announced         To be announced
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    

TARA-JEAN and her fellow Top 10 competitors will now prepare to embark on the much anticipated 18-city SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE CANADA Top 10 Tour beginning November 25 in Kelowna, BC. Featuring hit performances from throughout the season, fans can see their favourite dancers live. Tickets are currently on sale and for details regarding purchasing tickets as well as a full list of cities and dates for the tour, go to dance.CTV.ca.

As TARA-JEAN accepts the title of Canada's Favourite Dancer, Season 1 winner Nico Archambault has not shied away from the spotlight. Archambault will appear as the legendary ballet dancer Rudolph Nureyev in the upcoming Bravo! biopic Nureyev and has also been on a national tour with his performance group Pinup Saints. Archambault is also set to appear as a modern-day Johnny Castle in the new Family Channel film Vacation With Derek, and returned to the SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE CANADA stage to choreograph along with his fiancée Wynn Homes during Top 8 week.

Since its premiere on August 11 , SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE CANADA has averaged 1.44 million viewers*, ranking as a Top 20 show with key demo A18-34 and key female demos (F18-34 and F18-49)(xx). The series also consistently wins its timeslot nationally with the key female demos (F18-34, F18-49 and F25-54).

Highlights from each week's SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE CANADA episodes are available on demand on the CTV Video Player at CTV.ca. For exclusive footage and clips, information on dancers, judges and choreographers along with image galleries, videos, forums, blogs from the judges and more, visit dance.CTV.ca.

For those who want to relive the two-hour SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE CANADA finale, an encore broadcast will air following an encore of the Top 4 Performance show Sunday, November 1 beginning at 4 p.m. ET on MuchMusic (go to muchmusic.com to confirm local broadcast times).

The Gemini Award-winning series SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE CANADA was created by Simon Fuller and Nigel Lythgoe, and is produced in association with CTV by Danse TV Productions. Sandra Faire and Trisa Dayot are Executive Producers. Susanne Boyce is President, Creative, Content and Channels, CTV Inc.

    
    About Danse TV Productions
    --------------------------
    

Executive Producer Sandra Faire , acclaimed as one of Canada's leading variety producers, is also a vice-chair of the National Ballet of Canada and a cabinet member of Grand Jeté for the National Ballet School. Ms. Faire , along with Executive Producer Trisa Dayot, Senior Producers Bronwyn Warren and Millan Curry-Sharples and producer Janet Lavack, helm SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE CANADA . For over a decade the team has produced an impressive array of Canadian award-winning programs seen in Canada and the U.S. Ms. Faire still holds the record for the highest-rated variety special in Canadian television history, ANNE MURRAY'S FAMILY CHRISTMAS, which garnered a 43 per cent share on CBC with 4.2 million viewers.

    
    About 19 Entertainment Ltd.
    ---------------------------
    

Simon Fuller's 19 Entertainment Ltd. is recognized as a lead creator, provider and promoter of globally successful entertainment and music brands of today. The company has attracted a unique team of exceptionally creative executives, who work together to integrate and leverage activity across television, sports, film, touring, merchandising, music publishing, recording and artist management. 19 Founder/CEO Simon Fuller has developed and managed some of the biggest entertainment properties of our time, with credits that include the creation of TV phenomenon AMERICAN IDOL, SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE and the HBO series LITTLE BRITAIN USA. 19's unique talent includes legendary musical icon Annie Lennox , country music sensation Carrie Underwood , the pop group sensation Spice Girls, IDOL alumni Chris Daughtry , David Cook , Kris Allen , Adam Lambert and Allison Iraheta , soccer icon David Beckham and world tennis No. 2 Andy Murray .

    
    About Dick Clark Productions, Inc.
    ----------------------------------
    

Founded in 1957, Dick Clark Productions, Inc. (DCP) is a leading independent producer of television programming. DCP produces perennial hits such as the American Music Awards, the Golden Globe Awards, Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve and the Academy of Country Music Awards. DCP also produces popular weekly television programming, including SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE, and owns and maintains one of the world's most unique and extensive entertainment libraries, which includes more than 30 years of American Bandstand among other things. For additional information, please visit www.dickclarkproductions.com.

    
    About MuchMusic
    ---------------
    

As the No. 1 Canadian brand for teens and young adults, MuchMusic is an integral part of today's pop-culture landscape. Live performances and interviews with the best Canadian and international artists, and celebrity guests put fans in the centre of the action making MuchMusic's acclaimed street level Toronto headquarters Canada's epicentre of celebrity. A multi-platform Canadian icon, MuchMusic.com is a favourite destination for youth delivering music videos, user-generated content site and more. MuchMusic spotlights homegrown talent through original productions and nurtures the Canadian music video production industry through its annual, multi-million dollar contribution to VideoFACT. MuchMusic is available in 8.2 million households across Canada via cable, satellite, and mobile. For more information, go to muchmusic.com. MuchMusic is a division of CTV Limited.

    
    About CTV Inc.
    --------------
    

CTV, Canada's Olympic Network, is also Canada's largest private broadcaster. Featuring a wide range of quality news, sports, information, and entertainment programming, CTV is Canada's most-watched television network. CTV Inc. also owns radio stations across the country and owns or has interests in leading national specialty channels, featuring news, sports, factual, arts, entertainment, music, youth and fashion programming. CTV Inc. is owned by CTVglobemedia Inc., Canada's premier multi-media company, which also owns Canada's national newspaper, The Globe and Mail. CTV is the official broadcaster of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games and London 2012 Games of the Olympiad. More information about CTV may be found on the company website at www.ctv.ca.

    
    Source: BBM Canada, preliminary data, Performance Shows
    *  August 31st - October 11, 2009
    (xx) September 21st to October 4, 2009
    

For further information: Christy Sullivan, SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE CANADA, [phone] or [email protected]; Amanda Rinaldo, CTV Inc., [phone] or [email protected]; Allie Page, CTV Inc., [phone] or [email protected]