The Semifinals (Top 24)
The semifinals consisted of three weeks of elimination rounds to reduce the Top 24 contestants (as chosen by the judges) to the final Top 10 (as decided by public vote). This was the first round in which eliminations are the result of public voting. Performances take place in a more intimate venue with a smaller stage and audience than the finals. Multiple contestants are eliminated each week.
This season, the semifinals saw a number of format changes: from the number of contestants (24, instead of 22), and an uneven gender composition (more males than females), to the performance group division (not by gender), and variation of group composition (changed from week to week). The semifinals results shows also saw some 'surprise' (unannounced) changes, including special 'showcase' performances and judge-selected 'encore' performances, and a variation in the number of contestants eliminated (6, instead of 4, in the final week).
Read more about this topic: Canadian Idol (season 6)