As you wander the halls of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Creative Studios, you might hear tap dancing in one studio, catch a glimpse of a swing number in another, or hear the sounds of Journey or the Eagles reverberating through the walls.
This is just a taste of what happens every day in the company’s comprehensive rehearsal and production space, located in two Tampa warehouses spanning 110,000 square feet. The studio creates and manages every aspect of each show’s production, from costumes and cosmetics to shipping and laundry for all 35 ships in the Norwegian, Oceania and Regent Seven Seas fleets.
“We create bespoke productions and experiences from the ground up, which is one of the reasons why having an in-house creative team is so important,” said Brian White, vice president of entertainment production at Norwegian Cruise Line Holding. “These are unique pieces that can’t be found anywhere else in the world.”
During a tour of the facility in mid-January, performers previewed “ELTON: A Celebration of Elton John” and “HIKO: Innovation meets Wonder,” as well as previewed “Syd Norman’s Presents: A Tribute to the Eagles.” All of this will debut on Norwegian Luna, which is scheduled to debut from PortMiami in early April.
behind the scenes
When you think about what it takes to support 134 active shows across Norwegian Cruise Line Holding’s ships, it makes a lot of sense to have makeup artists, costumers and performers under one roof.
In one space, costumes can be custom printed and cut using high-tech printers. Meanwhile, in another space is a room full of sewing machines, where costumers spend 80 hours crafting intricate fur-patterned cloaks with fringes and sequins.
One space focuses solely on hair and makeup, and the other is the main space for costume fittings, where the team can see 10,000 costumes completed a year.
This is a reasonable operation given the limited time frame each cast member must prepare before heading to the ship (approximately six weeks from arrival to departure). All material for each show can be sent to any of 110 countries from a department that ships nearly 300 a year.
When costumes are returned after a show, each costume is cleaned in the laundry room, which receives 60 to 80 costumes per day. From there, each piece is either stored in storage or donated to a local school drama club or dance studio upon eventual retirement.
Elton’s main stage moment
Norwegian Cruise Line’s entertainment lineup includes a Prince tribute musical and a Jersey Boys Broadway-style musical. Now, Sir Elton John is having that moment.
Program director Katie Tate said: “As we continue to celebrate mainstream artists who appeal to a wide range of generations, there is no one better than Elton.” “We’re bringing in a lot of archive footage of Elton. We don’t want it to feel like an impersonation show. We want to summon his past performances and feel like we’re a part of them.”
The complete Elton Show production on board includes aerial and acrobatic elements, as well as high-tech elements such as an LED screen atop a set of four grand pianos from which the performers pop out.
From the 15-minute preview, it’s clear that the show will offer a high-energy spectacle with snappy choreography and talented live musicians performing hits like “I Guess That’s Why They Call It the Blues” and “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting.” It was also revealed that a fancy fur coat would be part of the show, an obvious choice, and a broom would be used as a prop.
Mr White said the show was created with the support of John’s creative team.
“Once Sir Elton’s team found out we had an in-house creative team and recognized the quality of work we were doing, they were able to trust us,” he said. “They could be trusted to deliver a high quality, engaging and creative show that we can be proud of.”
In the costume department, the show used over 1,000 yards of fabric and half a mile of fringe, and 90 different fabrics.
Hiko
Although the name Hiko comes from Shinatsuhiko, the Japanese wind god, the show takes a more sci-fi approach, fusing Cirque’s artistry with “mixed reality visuals.”
Kai Carrier, theatrical creative director for Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, conceptualized the show with the idea that Hiko, the main character, would add color and energy to the otherwise dull protagonist.
“Hiko has complete manipulation and control over his world, and we show that through mapping and projection,” he said. “He lands in this world that’s monochromatic and boring. He starts building this world. The guests can watch it as he controls it and changes things.”
Previews for the show showed performers bouncing on trampolines and running vertically up wooden walls, while Hiko adjusted the scenes and the performers around them.
The show’s director, Shea Kubler, comes from a martial arts background and helps coordinate the stunts. He is also a fan of action movies.
“Our goal is to make a cinematic masterpiece out of this work,” he said. “What’s really great about[director Christopher Nolan]as an inspiration for me is that he combines the charm of artistic cinema and blockbusters. My goal is to create something that is artistic but accessible to everyone.”
Multi-generational appeal
All of Norwegian’s shows are designed to engage guests through easy-to-understand storytelling, familiar music, and big visual spectacle.
Although the content and stories are different, the artistry found in both The Elton Show and “HIKO” appeals to multiple generations.
Norwegian Luna also offers experiences for all ages, including the kids’ “Discover Seas! Undersea Festival” and the adults-only “Lunatique: Pop Circus.”
The latter takes inspiration from circus characters with themed cocktails and interactive components.
“(The audience) is going to leave feeling really good about the time they had,” White said. “They’re going to have a little bit of cheeky fun, but it’s not going to feel childish. It’s going to feel really sophisticated.”
Another fan-favorite venue, Sid Norman’s Poor House, is coming to Luna. This time, the Eagles tribute show will be held on a pub-style stage, and will also appear on the main stage. Sid Norman’s band will also perform a tribute to Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Rumours’ on board.
White said the greatest reward of his job is seeing the look of awe and wonder on guests’ faces after the 18-month concept, pre-production and production process finally hits the stage.
“When you think about all the effort that all of our hundreds of team members have put in to make these things happen, it’s about the guests. We’re doing it for the guests,” he said. “There’s nothing better than sitting next to them and they don’t know who I am, but they’re in awe and wonder at these things we’ve created.”
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