Utopia Worldwide creates the new World of Light parade in recognition of Lotte World Adventure’s 35th Anniversary
by Keith Miller
World of Light, the new nighttime parade spectacular celebrating Lotte World Adventure’s 35th anniversary, is full of hidden meaning. On a very literal level, it’s a celebration of illumination. Twelve floats and 65 performers are decked out from head to toe in color-changing LED lights. But there’s deeper messaging at work too. It’s a show about the diversity of our planet, and how light, as a visual representation of love, unites us all.
World of Light is not a typical theme park parade. But Lotte World Adventure (Seoul, South Korea) is also not a typical theme park. Opened in 1989, most of the park is housed inside a four-story building. Attractions are located around the perimeter of each floor. A central oval on each level is cut out, revealing an ice rink below. Positioned above the rink on the top floor is the park’s central icon, an artistic gyroscope with concentric rings that emulate a globe. World of Light takes place on this level, surrounding and interacting with the park’s central icon.
“We wanted a parade that plays off our strength as an indoor theme park, allowing the audience to see the whole parade from wherever they’re standing,” says Keehoon Kim, COO of Lotte World. “You can only see this kind of unique parade at Lotte World, where the entire parade route is essentially a theatrical stage.”
Setting the stage
To help stage this massive undertaking, Lotte World turned to Utopia Worldwide, Inc. (Burbank, California) to design and collaborate on the production. “Utopia conceived and designed everything in the perimeter of each floor. A central oval on each level is cut out, revealing an ice rink below. Positioned above the rink on the top floor is the park’s central icon, an artistic gyroscope with parade, in consultation with Lotte World,” says Norman Kahn, Utopia Worldwide’s CEO and executive producer. “We were excited to work with the park, because they are one of the world’s best theme parks for parades.” Utopia’s scope included concept and story development, creative design for the parade including floats, lighting and costumes, producing music, show direction and choreography for the entire production, which is expected to run for a minimum of five years.
The 30-minute performance begins with a guardian angel, Rodette, floating in the atrium above. Well-known Lotte World characters Boonhong and Joohong then introduce the parade, which consists of six thematic units each made up of multiple floats, characters, and performers.
Whereas a typical parade moves continuously along the route, World of Light’s procession circles around the top floor of the park. Once all the units are spread out around the oval, the floats stop moving and, as Kim indicated, the whole fourth floor becomes a stage for the show.
Of the six thematic units, the first features Boonhong and Joohong while the last showcases Lotte World mascots Lotty and Lorry. The middle four units are themed to light: Passion of the Lights, Beauty of the Light, Miracle of the Lights, and Joy of the Light. “We wanted each of the light units to reflect a region of the world, but not too specifically. We chose themes that were more emotional and ethereal, rather than geographical,” says Kahn. “Instead of the Caribbean, it’s an ocean vibe and instead of the North Pole, it has an arctic feel. Each theme connects to the attributes of a particular region.”
First to appear is Passion of the Lights, with vivid red lights, matadors, Latin dancers, and a crimson hot phoenix. Beauty of the Light features a carriage and floats embellished with flowers, lavish decorations and chandeliers. Miracle of the Lights evokes arctic glaciers, accompanied by a representation of the colorful aurora borealis. Joy of the Lights rounds out the themed zones with a ship sailing on a sea of blue over glowing sea creatures.
As the parade starts, the iconic rainbow castle comes alive with sparkling shooting stars leaving trails of rainbow light. The parade’s star, the Queen of the Lights, leads a collection of dancers and roller skaters. The parade finishes with Lotty and Lorry riding a giant star, bringing more shining light with them. These two beginning and ending units both create Celebration of the Lights, a dazzling colorful display of stars, showing how we are joined together by light and love and happy memories.
As the parade units take their place around the route, the central icon, called the Light of the Heart, fades. “All of the parade characters and performers ask the audience to send their love in order to illuminate the icon,” Kahn reveals. “It dramatically lights up and fireworks explode around it.”
“The central icon is the symbol of Lotte World Adventure and the happiness and love it inspires,” explains Kim. “Utopia’s idea to connect floats and costumes and the music to the central icon through the love of our guests is truly inspirational.”
The idea to make the parade a celebration of lights from around the world came from the development team’s show director, Kahori Kanaya. According to Kahn, the design team wanted to give the parade an overarching theme encompassing the people and regions of the world, while being mindful of cultural sensitivities and respect. That’s how the team decided on regional terms like the ocean and arctic and connected them with conceptual themes like passion, beauty, and joy.
Executing the vision
Creating World of Light involved overcoming some substantial challenges. “When we started the project, we had less than 16 months to do everything – from the sketches to opening – and within a budget of 10 billion South Korean wons (about $7 million),” says Kahn. The availability and advances in LED lighting helped speed up the process and keep the team on budget. “Many of the LED technologies we implemented for the show couldn’t have been done just a few years ago,” he says.
Utopia assembled an impressive team that included Muundo Studio, Roark, Lightswitch, Winnie Mac, Audio By the Bay, and Rando Productions. “We knew we needed to bring together key industry experts in order to help execute the vision for World of Light,” says Kahn. “This project team has impressive experience in creating and producing nighttime spectaculars.”
In addition to all the lighting and special effects, music also plays a key role in World of Light. “Utopia wanted unique theme songs for each unit of the parade,” says Kim. “It dramatically expanded the musical footprint of the show and helps the audience engage with the storyline.” The team turned to renowned Japanese composer Takatsugu Muramatsu to compose the music, and Kahn says that many comments for the parade video on YouTube compliment the beauty of the music.
In choosing when to stage the parade, Kahn said the decision was easy. World of Light’s location indoors provides not only climate control for the floats, performers and guests, but also allows more precise control of lighting, sound and special effects. These benefits are more effectively used at night. It also gave the team an opportunity to turn the parade into what Kahn refers to as a “kiss goodnight” for guests in the park. “A nighttime spectacular like this extends length of stay – a fundamental business consideration for operators,” explains Kahn. “When guests stay longer, they spend more, particularly if they stay to eat dinner in the park.”
Kim says people are, in fact, staying for the parade, and Lotte World is delighted with guest reactions to the new show: “We’ve gotten so many great responses from guests and we know that they have truly connected with the theme, story and magic of World of Light.” •
“The Entertainment Department You Can Just Hire”
Utopia has years of experience working extensively with theme parks on various entertainment projects, including long-term attractions and short-term events. The company has also created special events for cities like Beverly Hills, Irvine, and West Hollywood.
“We’re like the entertainment department you can just hire!” says Norman Kahn, Utopia Worldwide’s CEO and executive producer. “Art direction, music, costumes, show direction, stage management, pyro, LED, flames – whatever is needed, we’ll do it.”
Kahn himself has an impressive career of design and production experience in the attractions industry, starting in 1988 as show producer/project manager for Universal Creative, followed by four years as vice president of entertainment for Universal Studios Hollywood. When he worked with Universal Studios Hollywood, the park’s Waterworld – A Live Sea War Spectacular won the “Thea Award for Outstanding Achievement – Live Show” from the Themed Entertainment Association, and Kahn says he earned a patent for its innovative stage design.
Keith Miller has been mesmerized by theme parks and other attractions ever since his first visit to Walt Disney World as a child when he was afforded a visit to the utilidors beneath the Magic Kingdom. A communications major, he served as a freelance writer for Amusement Business weekly magazine for three years before writing for IAAPA’s Funworld Magazine and News Hub for 21 years, 17 of which as news editor. He’s been thrilled to have had the opportunity to travel across North America, Europe, and Asia visiting attractions and plans to spend the next few years traveling more than ever.
