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NEWS

10 JUNE 2012 SUNDAY NEWS

Lady Gaga arrives at the Stamford.

Lady Gagas Kiwi blast

LADY Gaga, pop idol and queen of extravagant outfits, has kept a low profile while in New Zealand largely staying in her hotel and rarely being sighted outside of her shows. In contrast to pop phenomenon One Direction, who were seen bungy jumping from Aucklands Sky Tower and sampling the citys nightlife, Gaga has kept a tight rein on her appearances. Universal Music invited her to a function at their central Auckland offices on Wednesday night but she instead met members of the record label backstage following her first show. She spent about 20 minutes with half a dozen hand-picked Little Monsters (Gagas name for devoted fans) before heading straight back to the Stamford Plaza. After Friday nights show at Vector Arena, the leather and sunglasses-clad Gaga stopped outside her hotel with a wine glass in hand and took photos with starstruck fans in the carpark, striking her monster pose and speaking French to one of her admirers. Gaga has also shown gratitude to her Kiwi followers and reviewers via tweets from her hotel room. Im having a blast in New Zealand!! the last couple shows have felt like festivals. Just so free, wild, happy. What music is all about it. And much gratitude to the New Zealand press for the lovely reviews of our show. My dancers, band, crew, Haus and I Thank You! Xoxo.

Hopefuls from around Auckland converged on Epsom Girls Grammar for a chance to enter New Zealands Got Talent. Photos: Lawrence Smith/Fairfax NZ

Talent-ed wannabes
BY NICOLA RUSSELL IT was the biggest turnout yet for New Zealands Got Talent auditions close to 1000 wannabe stars queuing in the cold and the rain in Auckland for their chance in the spotlight. Some sang, some danced, some played guitars as they waited in the colourful queue that stretched from Epsom Girls Grammar Schools hall to the street. This weekends auditions will conclude a six-week tour of the country from Invercargill to Whangarei, during which over 4000 people have turned out to bid for a place in the second series of the reality TV talent show. Line producer and talent scout Loretta Jacobs has seen hundreds of auditions. She has shed and mopped up tears during the tour and witnessed an array of moving, wild, and wacky acts. We have seen a lot of incredibly talented singers, dancers and a lot of really cool novelty acts. Weve seen miniature horses, howling dogs, pole dancers, contortionists, magicians and impersonators. Weve had the works, which is what the show is all about. One of the earliest to show up on Friday was dancer of four years Chris Olwage, 26. The 82kg muscle-packed dancer, who wore nothing more than a tutu and a crown into the audition room on Friday evening, had been waiting since 11.30am for his audition. Spray tanned with black contacts and a painted-on mask, Olwage has spent weeks perfecting a gender bending performance of the Black Swan routine. It has been six weeks of blood, blisters and bruises for the South African-born dancer, who has entered the traditional female dancers terrain of dancing en pointe (on his toes). The original is done by women and I thought I might reinvent it and be a boy en pointe. I have always admired women who are able to dance on their toes, so I thought I might try it. His friend and choreographer Lisa Jurakovich helped Olwage train for the show. The pair met at the gym where they train together, sharing an unusual passion for ballet and weight training. Eighty-two kgs of muscle en pointe is not the normal weight for a ballet dancer, said Jurakovich.

Black Swan Chris Olwage.