I have always hated cold weather and snow but this is one time in my life when I was hoping the snow would never go away.

Our trip to Toronto was less than perfect but our reason for going there was perfect. Andre was about to begin an historic World Stadium Tour and we would see the very first one. This was exciting enough to brave all kinds of weather and inconvenience.

When we arrived at the Renaissance Hotel (of course the same hotel as Andre and the JSO and crew were staying) we met all the wonderful fans we had heard about throughout the year. They came from Holland, Australia, Germany and America. Walking through the lobby and hearing all the different languages was an experience in itself. I had decided I was going to get some rest from our trip but it seems that the lobby was the place to be and I was not going to miss anything so as soon as we got our luggage to our room we made our way to the lobby which was filled with fans, JSO, crew and I guess ordinary guests who were wondering what all the fuss was about. So we found our seats, met with the fans, loaded up on coffee and decided this would be our “room” for the day. It was the most comical thing to see all the heads swivel each time the elevator door opened, hoping for a glimpse of Andre and/or the JSO. We saw lots of the JSO, the Tenors Gary, Bela and Thomas and Carla, Mirusia, Carmen and Suzan. They were quite available for taking pictures or just talking. I had my picture taken with Mirusia, Bela and Gary and had lots of chances for others but I was so busy looking and enjoying their presence that I did not think of getting too many photos. I would say that it would be easier to list those I did not see and that would be Tanya, Stephanie and I never did see Pierre but I was told he was in the lobby at some point. We did have to leave to eat but that was about all. We never left the hotel from Friday morning until Monday noon when we checked out, except to run over to the Rogers Center which was quite a cold walk in the snow and ice. The first night I didn’t take my coat, the second night I learned quickly that I was not going to make that same mistake.

When we arrived at the Rogers Center I just could not believe the beautiful set in front of us. It was amazing from a distance and as we walked toward the front I could feel the excitement building - you know those butterflies I get whenever I know that Andre is in the same area. What I didn’t know at that time was all the problems they were having backstage with the lights about 10 minutes before the show. They were tuning their instruments in the dark and the tension must have been terrible for Andre who had tears in his eyes when the lights did come on just in time. Can you imagine all that work and only at the last moment realize that your dream will come true after all. It came true in a big way as the music started and the horses and carriages entered the arena from the left side (which we were on). All I could think about was which carriage Andre was in as they rolled by. By this time we were on our feet and I saw Andre and the JSO right in front of us. I tried to get pictures but so many people standing in front of us made it hard to get anything good. I am hoping someone got a good shot of the carriages as they entered. I knew some of the songs which would be coming since (thanks to Ruth Morgan) we could stand in her room (which faced the back of the stage) and listen to as much of the rehearsal as we wanted to hear. A few of the songs were part of Andre’s 2007 tour and he added some Christmas songs which made me so happy since I had never seen a Christmas tour. “The Holy City” was moving beyond belief, “Silent Night” was just gorgeous as we hummed and sang along and “Jingle Bells” was the usual jolly and jazzed up version. A new twist for Mirusia’s “Concerto Pour une Voix” was instead of standing in her angel dress they brought her across the stage in the air which was so beautiful as was her singing. She also sang “Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again” which made me quite happy and brought her a standing ovation. That song was sung during the second part of the show.

The dancing and ice skating was exquisite as they waltzed to “Roses From The South” and skated to “My Heart Will Go On”. The Platin Tenors tribute to Pavarotti was just beyond any words I can think of. I was so moved that I had tears coming down my face and did not even see the camera man who was (I think) filming the flags we were holding which were made by Alice Leung. “Nessun Dorma” is one of my favorites and to hear the Tenors version was just unbelievable. It is my hope that we will someday have a recording of this.

Andre played “The Beautiful Blue Danube” and a few of us brave fans danced to his music. I say brave because we had the best dancers in the world in front of us and here we were moving around the floor but when Andre looked right at me during his pause in the music (I made sure I was right in front of the stage) and smiled, I forgot all about the thousands of people watching. At the end of Bolero which was fantastic and received a standing ovation we did not know on Friday that they had planned real flames coming from the top of the building (Palace) but we found this did not happen on Friday for some reason but Saturday these flames shot out of the building and you could feel the heat where we were seated. What a conclusion to an already thrilling piece. By the time Andre started the “Radetsky March” we knew it would soon be coming to an end so after the balloon drop we headed to the front of the stage for the encores. The people were cheering and asking for more and Andre was really up especially Saturday after everything worked perfectly so he played the usual encores and surprised everyone with 300 Bagpipers representing the Military and Police units of Ontario who marched right in front of us as we stood at the stage. This led to “Auld Lang Syne” which was sung by all. Andre then prepared to leave us by playing “Adieu, mein kleiner Gardeoffizier”. Thus ended another perfect performance and two perfect days. Thanks to Andre and Pierre, the JSO and crew for making us happy once again.

 

The fan dinner on Saturday evening was such a nice addition to the weekend (thanks to Ruth for doing all the hard financial work). We had a great dinner and chatted with all the fans with Andre’s music in the background. We then posed for a group photo which was a nice touch to the event.

After the concert we of course made our way to the lounge hoping for a glimpse of Andre and some of the JSO. Friday night we had stayed there until 2:30 in the morning and no Andre glimpse but some of the JSO. Saturday was different and since Andre was in such a good mood he showed up, talked a few minutes to some at the bar (at that time we were standing at the entrance to the lounge) and then turned around and walked right by me within eight inches and he was beaming. I, of course, was becoming unglued and could not say a word. I just looked at that gorgeous face with that smile and that was all I could do. But I did go to bed a happy person. That was not my first sighting, I had seen Andre go into the elevator earlier and Al Girard and I accidentally walked in on him during a business meeting in the restaurant. No one stopped us so we didn’t realize he was there but we hastily retreated once we saw him. I spoke to one of his bodyguards and he told us that Andre was in a business meeting. I asked him where they were going to store the set and he said it would be stored in Maastricht.

Sunday we realized we were snowed in (great!) and not even Andre and JSO could leave so we had breakfast and then did our usual lobby star gazing thing. We sat and talked and drank coffee to stay alert (at this time I had very little sleep) while the JSO went back and forth, some going out to shop. I was determined to sit there all day but then sometime in the afternoon Ruth asked us to come up to watch the dis-mantling of the set. Clyde went up ahead of me and I stayed a little longer hoping that Andre would walk by or something. Thinking that this was not going to happen I went to Ruth’s room and yes - you guessed it - when I came back to the lobby from the elevator all the girls just looked at me and said “you missed the whole show”. Well you can imagine I was just devastated when I realized that I had missed an autograph session with Andre. I was so disappointed that I could not even eat my dinner that evening. All I could think about was what I knew had to be a wonderful time. I told all the girls I was happy for them and I truly was but I was so unhappy. I had never had an autograph before so that is why it crushed me so much. The next morning I was standing in the lobby (Clyde was getting the car) and this is where the beautiful part of the day comes in; a very sweet fan I had met by the name of Cathy came over to me and reached in a bag and handed me her autographed photo which Andre had signed the day before and told me “I could see your heart was broken and I could fix it and that is what Christmas is all about”. I just hugged her and thanked her from the bottom of my heart. To think that someone would do this for me was just amazing. I did not want to take hers but she insisted and I will never forget her. What better Christmas gift could you get than something that is given with the heart and out of concern for another. I hope someday I can do the same for her or another person. That is what Christmas is all about!