The WOW show is a world-class theatrical extravaganza running over three weeks, hosting more than 100 finalists from all over the world and seen by an audience of more than 60,000 annually. Described as Broadway meets Cirque Du Soleil, the stage comes alive with incredible works of wearable art, dancers, aerialists, music, lights and AV. Designers compete in a number of categories with one overall supreme winner.
It is an intensive block of work and takes seven weeks to put together the choreography. Kayla worked closely with the artistic show director Malia Johnston, co-choreographer Andrew Cesan and rehearsal director Anita Hunziker.
“The feeling that happens when you put a show like WOW together is amazing,” Kayla says.
“You work so hard and then you see it come to fruition and it’s quite a buzz that you get from it.”
She worked in the TSB Arena with a massive cast including 30 dancers and 30 models.
“In a typical rehearsal there would be 100 people working in the space —people working on costumes, working on garments, working on the stage design — and you’re choreographing within that space every day. There’s a big energy,” she says.
The theme of this year’s WOW was Beyond — a big space-themed extravaganza. It took the audience on an exciting visual journey to worlds beyond their imagination. The entertainment surrounded six core categories: Open, Aotearoa, Avant-garde, Mars & Beyond, Gold and Bizarre Bra.
Definitely a bucket-list job: choreographer
“Choreographically there was a lot going on. There were sections that had a lot of contemporary movement. The Aotearoa section was based around garments that were designed with themes around planet Aotearoa. That section had a lot of kapa haka movements, so we had Taiaroa Royal (dancer/choreographer) come in and advise us. We needed to align with things culturally and make sure the movement was crafted in an appropriate way as well as being able to blend it with commercial and contemporary movement.
“There’s so much going on which is why we need such a large team to pull it off. We all have our strengths.”
The vocab of movement created by the choreographers was aligned with the worlds they were creating.
For example the designers who had entered the Mars & Beyond category had been asked to create garments of creative interpretations of what they believed an alien would look like. In the scene the dancers were scientists wearing hazmat suits designed by costume designer Gabby Stevenson, setting up a science lab on Mars.
“I used a lot of utilitarian movements. Our referencing was pretty broad and not down to styles — more down to vibes.
“All the dancers had to be different life forms from different planets. We went to planet Aotearoa — a fresh take on New Zealand in the future — that was where the kapa haka movement came in — then we went into another planet which was this data collection planet so similar to the beginning with utilitarian robotic movement and hip hop. There were dancers in light suits that were created by Peter Vospertron of Vospertron, a company that blends dance and technology.
“In one scene pop star Zoe Moon came down in a bubble.
“It’s very hard to explain and I think that’s one special thing about the show. You have to see it to really comprehend it. It’s so cool to be a part of because there’s nothing else like it that I’ve ever seen. It’s very fresh.”
Kayla said she loved the challenge of it, but there were days when the workload was pretty demanding.
“I flew back down to see the closing night and it was fantastic to be in the audience. One thing I love about the job is meeting and fostering relationships with all these incredibly creative people.
“It was definitely a bucket-list job for me.”
At the moment Kayla is teaching a six-week dance education programme in Auckland to emerging freelance dancers and choreographers.
The programme is based on the curriculum she created when she spent a year living in Gisborne back in 2021. She moved here to be closer to family and take a break after Covid-19 lockdowns.
“The programme gives the dancers some options of where they could go in their dance careers,” she says.
She works out of the DANZA dance studio in New Lynn which she uses for a lot of her dance workshops and as a rehearsal space.
Making the most of being an independent freelance choreographer and performer, it is normal for Kayla to juggle multiple jobs.
She is currently working on the choreography for the NZ Advertising Awards and will soon go to Sydney to teach a series of dance workshops so there’s never a dull moment.
Entries are now open for designers and creators from around the globe to enter the 2024 WOW competition with incredible prizes of over $185,000 to be won.
This year they hosted more than 100 finalists from all over the world.
