Long-time friends from Barrie, Ont. perform at World Series opening

Michelle Huggins and Mathew Jones sang 'O Canada' with 400 people at the Blue Jays World Series game.

Performing at the World Series in front of a crowd of thousands isn’t something very many people would expect to do in their lifetime.

But friends and business partners Michelle Huggins and Matthew Jones from Barrie, Ont., were some of the lucky 400 who got to share this rare opportunity. Very few fans could say they spent Game 1 of the World Series singing and dancing on the Rogers Centre field in Toronto.

On a typical weekday, Huggins is managing her restaurant, The Lazy Tulip, while Jones is cooking up eggs and bacon at his business, The Midway Diner.

In addition to their business backgrounds, the two of them have some unique talents including drumming backgrounds, having been involved in Drum Corps and competitive marching bands. (Huggins has actually taught marching bands and drum corps.)

The organization, Blue Devils, a group that provides music and performance-type services, had put out a social media post sharing the application and looking for those with marching experience.

It seemed like an opportunity too good to pass up. The duo decided to apply and shortly after they found out they had got accepted to perform ahead of the opening game on Oct. 24.

Huggins says the moment that they discovered the Toronto Blue Jays were going to be going to the World Series, that’s when the emails started coming in with a rehearsal schedule, asking for participants’ sizes for costumes. They were also told to bring both red and white shoes because they didn’t know which part of the Canada flag they were going to be forming.

Jones and Huggins were part of the human Canadian flag behind the singers and musicians. The Voices of Fire choir sang both the American and Canadian national anthems with Color of Noize Orchestra backing them up.

Jones, with a full salt and pepper beard is hard to miss, as he is positioned on the side of the flag singing loud and proud.

In preparation for the spectacle, Jones needed to make some arrangements for his diner in his absence.

On The Midway Diner’s Facebook page, a photo of red pants and boots is posted with the caption, “I’m not allowed to say too much but if you tune into the opening ceremonies of the World Series tonight, you’ll see why the diner was closed yesterday and today.”

The anticipation was palpable. Huggins said the group of 400 performers had to sit in a tunnel backstage for an hour waiting for their moment to shine. Once it was time to head onto the field, the adrenaline was sky high: “The crowds...the lights!” Huggins gushes to CTV News.

“All those 400 participants will have a bond. It was a bonding experience that we’ll share forever,” recalls Huggins. “I think we’re all still processing what we did. It was just electric.”

“I get goosebumps every time I talk about it. Just to be on that field with 400 people and sharing that moment. Singing the national anthem with 50,000 people singing along with us, it was just absolutely incredible.”

As to whether something like this could happen again, Huggins is hopeful: “Maybe we’ll be asked to perform at the closing ceremonies, who knows!”