(Posted 8:30 a.m., July 26)
Orléans ‘Idol’ hopeful survives to sing another day
By Fred Sherwin
Orléans Online

Orléans native Steffi Didomenicantonio has managed to make it to the final eight on Canadian Idol despite being in the bottom three the last two weeks. File photo

At this rate, Orléans 'Idol' hopeful Steffi Didomenicatonio may want to sing 'Stayin' Alive' or 'I Will Survive' on the next show. For the second week in a row, the Fallingbrook resident was among the bottom three vote getters, but managed to stick around after finding out that she received the seventh highest number of votes out of the eight remaining contestants.

For someone who admits being a bit of a drama queen on stage, Steffi has definitely supplied her fair share of dramatics on the show as she flirts with elimination.

On Monday, Steffi delivered an inspired version of the Rolling Stones 1980s hit “Miss You” complete with a few dance moves, the odd wink at the camera and a kiss.

All four celebrity judges were impressed with her performance.

“I would rather that Canadian Idol was about the kind of unique flavour that you bring than all the eight-octave contralto nonsense that these shows turn out to be,” said Zack Werner. “I dig you completely.”

“You actually pay attention to the lyrics,” added Jake Gold. “You seem to actually live out every lyric on the stage every night. Nobody else in this show does that.”

Despite the judges’ comments, however, the viewing audience had their own opinion and Steffi was once again relegated to the bottom three when the results of the voting were announced on Tuesday night. But just as what happened last week, she was given an instant reprieve.

Steffi’s father Guy Didomenicantonio has spent the last two weeks supporting his daughter in Toronto. This week he’s back in Ottawa trying to drum up local support. He’s hoping to get KISS FM or the Hot 89.9 to throw start promoting her much the same way that Energie 104.7 has been supporting Gatineau native Eva Avila on the other side of the river.

“Her father is on the radio every morning promoting her,” says Didomenicantonio. “Maybe we can turn it into an Ottawa versus Gatineau thing.”

For the past two Mondays, Didomenicantonio has opened up his office to a dozen or so of Steffi’s friends so they can use his 12 phone lines to vote as many times as possible.

For her part, Steffi has been taking the everything in stride.

“She loves the competition. She competes all the time in musical theatre so this is right up her alley,” says her proud father.

One of only two 17-year-olds left on the show, she has spent the last two weeks in a Toronto area mansion with the other seven remaining competitors.

The seven bedroom house is equipped with an inground pool, theatre, sauna and racquet ball court, but the contestants don’t get much time to enjoy it.

According to Mr. Didomenicantonio who toured the mansion on Tuesday, the competitors must wake up every morning at 6 a.m. and have breakfast before being whisked off to a full day of rehearsals. By the time they get back it's often nine or 10 o’clock at night.

This week the eight remaining contestants have been getting a few pointers from 80s pop star Cyndi Lauper who will be making an appearance on Tuesday night’s results show.

(This story was made possible thanks to the generous support of our local business partners.)

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