Quebec City is enjoying its finest moment on the small screens in the United States on Thursday morning. The popular American show Today with Hoda & Jenna from the NBC network is presented live from the historic district, just in time for the start of the Quebec Carnival… and the arrival of the biting cold.
• Also read: Jeanick Fournier on Today with Hoda and Jenna
• Also read: An NBC program at Carnaval de Québec
Hosts Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager, one of the daughters of former President of the United States George W. Bush, and their impressive team are touring the capital to film two shows in front of an audience.
Her talk show, which is watched by 1.6 million viewers, is the fourth hour of NBC’s popular morning show, the Today Show.
Photo Dominique Lelievre
People interested in filming can visit Bistro 1640, located on Sainte-Anne Street in the heart of Old Quebec, across from Place d’Armes and Château Frontenac.
The schedule includes the recording of a first hour-long episode presented live from 10am, then a second at 11:30am to air on Friday.
With -16 wind chill this morning, the American team and crowd should wrap up warm but avoid the worst of the intense cold snap that will really take hold tonight.
sponsorship
According to an NBC press release, the goal is to celebrate and promote “the vibrant culture of Quebec and the vitality of the Capitale-Nationale.”
The visit is sponsored by Bonjour Québec, Destination Québec cité and Destination Canada.
Photo Dominique Lelievre
The Quebec Tourism Industry Alliance, which piloted the file, invested nearly $350,000 in this campaign as part of its “Mandate to Promote Quebec Destinations,” according to the Department of Tourism.
The animators have been in Quebec since Tuesday to record certain segments. We should see them exploring the streets of the Petit Champlain district, sliding down the Terrasse Dufferin slide, snowshoeing in the Plains of Abraham and visiting the Quebec Carnival.
A staffer who arrived last week will be able to tell the American public about her adventures in ice canoeing, ice climbing, ice skating and skiing, in addition to a night at the Hôtel de Glace.
Among the guests of the show from Quebec, we particularly expect the participation of singer Jeanick Fournier, winner of the second season of Canada’s Got Talent.
“It’s worth its weight in gold”
According to the quoted director of Destination Quebec, Robert Mercure, this rare visit could very well be one of the best publicity stunts ever pulled for the Quebec region, targeting the “very important” American market.
“This is a big show for the Americans. For us, this case is worth its weight in gold […]these are big leagues,” he says, saying to himself “confident that we will reap the rewards of the coming months and years.”
Photo Dominique Lelievre
The ancient capital’s most important foreign market, the United States, generates nearly a quarter of the tourist benefits, or US$350 million, each year.
More details to come…