As I get ready to go to Disney World, I’ve been thinking about my path to becoming a professional fangirl. I’ve gone to the most meet and greets in Disney theme parks, so I have no doubt that’s where my interest in posing with famous characters and people came from. It goes back for so many years that my first meet and greets were not captured on a digital camera. After all, it was the early 90s!
I’ve also spent more than a year talking to super fans of Kim Kardashian and more recently, Taylor Swift, daily. This made me want to reflect on my personal history of relationships with pop culture icons. Let’s go back, shall we?
Barney
Before I built a personal brand as the girl in the red jeans, I loved all things purple. Between the clothes, videos and stuffed animals, I basically collected Barney products.
In middle school, I took on a new Barney project: re-selling new VHS tapes. I bought them at a phenomenal bargain price and sold them on sites likes Amazon and eBay. It was a challenging time to do this because VHS tapes were being phased out. I’m not sure how much $$$ I made, but it was a good way to learn about e-commerce.
There’s one main incentive to see Full House The Musical and that’s Perez Hilton. After talking to him in June, I was excited to see him on stage at the Randolph Theatre.
“I wear high-waisted jeans and I want you to meet my unconventional family,” Perez sings, as Danny Tanner, introducing the show. The cast activates the hug zone in the opening number when they joyously approach audience members in the first few rows. If you fall in love with the characters, then it’s not as weird as it sounds.
After catching up on G-rated entertainment on Netflix by watching old episodes of Full House, it’s exciting to announce that celebrity blogger Perez Hilton will star in Full House The Musical!
The show will debut in Toronto at the Randolph Theatre in August. Perez loves spending time in Toronto and he especially admires how we celebrate theatre as a city. In a phone interview, Perez noted that Toronto’s passion for theatre makes our culture distinctly different from Los Angeles, where people see more movies than stage shows.
Considering how much time he spends online, it’s unsurprising that Perez landed this opportunity through social media. When he saw a friend in the entertainment industry post about the show, he immediately commented that he wanted to get involved. “I even joked that I would be Mary-Kate and Ashley,” he recalled. “Then Tobly, one of the creators, saw my comment and asked my friend if I was serious and I said, ‘Yes, I’m very serious,’ so then we set up a meeting.” Perez sent the creators footage of him singing to convince them that the Tisch School of the Arts graduate was talented enough to play Danny Tanner.
“The Prismatic World Tour is coming to light up some of my favorite North American cities this summer, as well as some new cities that you introduced me to through your video requests,” said Katy. “This colorful show will bring you all the songs you know as well as ones from my new album, PRISM.” Colourful would be an understatement though. Last time I saw Katy Perry, there were inflatable beach balls tossed around and “colourful” barely begins to describe her wardrobe.
Katy Perry’s coming back to Toronto this summer, so you can bet there will be thousands of fans roaring with excitement at the Air Canada Centre in July. Opening acts will include Capital Cities, Kacey Musgraves and Tegan and Sara, although unfortunately my favourite twins (aside from Mary-Kate & Ashley) will not be joining Katy in Toronto. Instead, local Katycats can watch Capital Cities perform hits like Safe and Sound.
When Katy Perry spoke about her upcoming Prismatic World Tour on CTV’s The Social, she hinted at performing in outdoor venues, so I expected her to return to the Molson Amphitheatre again. At least there’s no need to worry about the weather for concerts at the ACC. Katy’s team offered buffer room between her Toronto stop and the next concert date, so I wouldn’t be surprised if she adds a second night to accommodate her huge fan base.
If you can’t make it to the ACC, maybe you can book a quick trip to catch her somewhere nearby in the U.S.
July 3 Miami, FL AmericanAirlines Arena *
July 9 New York, NY Madison Square Garden *
July 11 Newark, NJ Prudential Center *
July 15 Montreal, QC Bell Centre *
July 16 Ottawa, ON Canadian Tire Centre *
July 18 Toronto, ON Air Canada Centre *
July 24 Brooklyn, NY Barclays Center *
August 1 Boston, MA TD Garden *
August 7 Chicago, IL United Center *
August 26 Winnipeg, MB MTS Centre ^
August 28 Saskatoon, SK Credit Union Centre ^
August 29 Calgary, AB Scotiabank Saddledome ^
August 31 Edmonton, AB Rexall Place ^
September 9 Vancouver, BC Pepsi Live at Rogers Arena #
September 19 Los Angeles, CA STAPLES Center #
September 26 Las Vegas, NV MGM Grand Garden Arena #
*With Capital Cities ^ With Kasey Musgraves # With Tegan and Sara
Click here for a complete list of North American tour dates.
