Get ready to Wiggle New Zealand!
What's red, blue, yellow AND purple, And Lots Of Fun The Fab Four for the Under Fives .. The Wiggles!
TICKETS ON SALE MONDAY, DECEMBER 1st, 2008
www.thewiggles.co.nz
Get ready to Wiggle New Zealand! It's nearly time to dance live-in-concert with the 'fab four for the under fives' at
'The Wiggles Live in Concert' in 2009'!
Where & When tour and ticketing details are placed at the end of this email.
The Wiggles look forward to touring New Zealand in 2009, for the first time since 2005! Join Anthony (Blue), Jeff
(Purple), Murray (Red) and Sam (Yellow) and all their Wiggly friends, Dorothy The Dinosaur, Wags The Dog, Henry The
Octopus and Captain Feathersword, performing in Auckland, Hamilton, Napier/Hastings, Wellington, Christchurch and
Dunedin.
Blue Wiggle, Anthony Field said, "New Zealand children are the same as children in Australia, American, China - all
around the world who come to our shows - the children have a great time and the families have a great time watching
their children have a great time. But we're doubly excited as we have the best seat in the house because we get to see
the children and their families having a good time! We have always enjoyed coming to New Zealand - with its breathtaking
sights and the warm hospitality we always receive. We are so glad to be coming back to this beautiful country."
The Wiggles will perform songs from their latest release, YOU MAKE ME FEEL LIKE DANCING (which won them their 7th ARIA
Award for Best Australian Children's release), plus all the favourites such as Rock A Bye Your Bear, Toot Toot Chugga
Chugga Hot Potato, Quack Quack, Monkey Dance, Can You Point Your Fingers And Do The Twist. Celebrating 18 years of
entertaining children around the world, 2008 has been another fantastic year for The Wiggles, having toured the US three
times, a sell out tour of the UK as well as a regional tour of NSW, the mid year shows in Sydney and Melbourne and their
national tour of Australian capital cities in December which are always a favourite with everyone! The Wiggles'
interactive song and dance shows continue to capture audience's imaginations. They have sold in excess of 22.5 million
Videos/DVDs and 7 million CDs worldwide.
The Wiggles are the most awarded children's act in Australia. Earlier this year, they were named as UNICEF GOODWILL
AMBASSADORS joining the ranks of Shakira, David Beckham and Roger Federer. The Wiggles have always been great supports
of organisations that help children. As UNICEF ambassadors, they will be focussing on numeracy and literacy as well as
sanitation. The Wiggles performed a concert in Sydney which featured Jimmy Barnes, Leo Sayer and Damien Leith that
raised money to build clean water facilities and 300 latrines for five schools and villages in Timor.
The Wiggles also created a song for the first ever global hand washing day for UNICEF which was observed on October 15,
2008 "UNICEF works with children in need in 150 developing countries including Australia's Northern Territory, to
improve access to clean water, health care, education and food. UNICEF gives all children, regardless of race or
religion, the best start in life. For that reason, we feel deeply honoured to be asked to take on the role of Goodwill
Ambassadors and work with UNICEF to help impress the lives of children around the world" said Murray Cook, The Red
Wiggle. This year, The Wiggles will have performed to over one million fans worldwide. So join the in all the fun with
'The Wiggles Live in Concert - 2009'! But be quick, tickets will sell like..Hot Potatoes!
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA ATTENTION The New York Times called The Wiggles THE BAND THAT ROCKS THE CRADLE.
The New York Times Magazine (in a six page feature on the group) "..How a group of Australians turned an ed-school
project into a multimillion-dollar toddler supergroup..."
Time Magazine said "Its the quality of course, that kids, parents and educators love. The Wiggles promote social
behaviour urging children to engage with a world that is becoming increasingly virtual.
While at home, The Daily Telegraph said "The Wiggles are a bright spot in an often confusing jumble of children's
entertainment options.
ABOUT THE WIGGLES
The Wiggles are children's entertainers who have rewritten the book about how children can be entertained with song and
dance. Sam Moran (Yellow), Murray Cook (Red), Jeff Fatt (Purple) and Anthony Field (Blue) and the characters they have
created are now a part of the lives of millions worldwide.
The names Dorothy the Dinosaur, Wags the Dog, Henry the Octopus and Captain Feathersword the friendly Pirate are as
recognized by children as The Wiggles themselves. Fashion or fad does not drive the pre-school entertainment scene; it
is an area of entertainment where integrity and longevity are the treasured hallmarks of success.
The Wiggles are a unique and dynamic musical group who entertain children, enchanting them with the pure joy of their
own music and dance. Instantly recognized in their distinctive skivvies, the friendly foursome have been said to be the
major force in moving children's entertainment away from the traditional and into the contemporary area, in a strong
positive fashion. Well crafted songs, interesting lyrics, humour that's geared specifically for the audience's age
group, characters that are intelligently constructed and a dialogue with their audience that's easy to follow and never
patronizing.
Celebrating their 17th Year in 2008, The Wiggles have created a catalogue of music, television, video and film that have
proven to be modern classics. The Wiggles have always been a touring band, which in part explains the success they have
enjoyed. They have kept in constant contact with their public and the public has responded to the music and characters
they have created. The Wiggles are a global success story that cuts across all demographics including gender, race,
ethnicity, etc.
THE WIGGLES ORIGINS
In 1991 Anthony, Murray and Greg Page (the original Yellow Wiggle) met while studying Early Childhood Education at
Sydney's Macquarie University. The three began writing children's songs as one of their music projects. They enlisted
the assistance of Jeff, who played with Anthony in the popular 1980's band The Cockroaches, and The Wiggles were born.
Sam Moran, educated at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music became the Yellow Wiggle in December 2006 when Greg Page
decided to leave the band due to an ongoing illness. Greg handed over his Yellow Skivvy to his friend Sam Moran who had
been touring with The Wiggles for almost ten years, firstly as the host of the Dorothy the Dinosaur Show and then
joining The Wiggles as a Wiggly Dancer and Greg's understudy.
The Wiggles took their first tape to ABC MUSIC who released the self-titled album in 1991. "The Wiggles" album has since
achieved Gold and Platinum status and The Wiggles themselves have gone on to become one of the most popular and
successful performing acts in the world for any age group.
Now in their 17th big year, The Wiggles continue to entertain more and more children around the world. Their ability to
relate to their young audience and to create songs that are both entertaining and educational has made The Wiggles
incredibly popular with both children and their parents. Couple their unique song-writing ability with the foursome's
genuine enjoyment of what they do, and the result is a live show which has the wigglers (and adults) dancing, clapping
and singing in the aisles.
The band's Early Childhood training continues to influence the approach they take with their live shows, DVDs and "The
Wiggles Movie." Anthony Field feels that The Wiggles success comes from their knowledge of child development. "A lot of
what we do comes from a child's perspective", says Anthony. "It's got a lot to do with what songs are about and the
language we use, and I like to think we know how to write pretty catchy tunes. Right from the start we gave a lot of
thought to what was appropriate for children's music".
THE WIGGLES ACCOLADES
The Wiggles have sold over 23 million DVDS and 7 Million CDs worldwide. Their list of awards for albums, singles and
videos coupled with their extraordinary sales figures would be the envy of any contemporary artist. The devotion of
their enormous, young fan-base sees tickets to their live shows snapped up within minutes. Huge crowds of children and
their parents turn up at any live appearances, often in matching skivvies!!
The Wiggles self-titled first album/DVD was released in 1991 and 17 years and 28 VIDEO/DVD releases later, they have
been awarded with 14 Gold, 12 Platinum, 3 Double Platinum and 10 Multi Platinum Awards. They have also been awarded with
Highest Selling Children's Video Sales in 1995, 1996, 1998 and 1999 at the ADSDA Awards. Their CD sales are equally
impressive having been awarded 14 Gold Record Awards, 8 Platinum, 2 Double Platinum and 1 Triple Platinum Award.
As songwriters and recording artists, The Wiggles have also been recognized by their peers winning four prestigious APRA
song-writing awards for Best Children s Song of 1994, 1995, 1996, 2007 as well as being awarded the prestigious
International Achievement Award.
The Wiggles have won seven Australian Recording Industry Awards (ARIA) in the category of Best Australian Children's
Album for Big Red Car (1995), Wake Up Jeff (1996) Toot Toot (1998), Live! Hot Potatoes (2005), Racing to The Rainbow
(2006) Pop Go The Wiggles! (2007) You Make Me Feel Like Dancing (2008) respectively. In 2003, they were awarded the ARIA
Outstanding Achievement Award for their success in the USA. They are the most awarded artist in any one category for an
ARIA Award which is the equivalent to the Grammy Award.
In April 2006, The Wiggles were awarded the Australian Catholic University's (ACU National) highest honour, Doctor of
the University (honoris causa), in recognition of their outstanding contribution to early childhood education.
In February 2008, The Wiggles were named as UNICEF GOODWILL AMBASSADORS joining the ranks of Shakira, David Beckham,
Nicole Kidman and Roger Federer. The Wiggles have always been great supporters of organisations that help children. As
UNICEF ambassadors, they will be focussing on numeracy and literacy as well as sanitation. UNICEF works with children in
need in 150 developing countries including Australia's Northern Territory to improve access to clean water, healthcare,
education and food. A special charity concert held at the Sydney Entertainment Centre in May - featuring The Wiggles
performing duets with some of Australia's top talent including Jimmy Barnes, Kate Ceberano, Leo Sayer and John Paul
Young raised over $110.00,000 for this cause.
THE WIGGLES ON THE ROAD
When it comes to live performances, it is nearly impossible to find a live act anywhere, regardless of what age group of
musical genre that comes close to matching their figures. (It's even been estimated that one in two toddlers in
Australia either sing-a-long to The Wiggles on DVD, video or CD at home or have been to a Wiggles concert - so add that
to the many hundreds of thousands of adults who have been "exposed" to The Wiggles phenomena and the numbers become
outstanding!). The Pop Go The Wiggles Big Show in Australia in 2007 sold over 160,000 tickets. Their December 2008 You
Make Me Feeling Like Dancing Big Show looks like overtaking this figure already! Worldwide The Wiggles performed to over
1 million fans in 2007.
In the US The Wiggles were launched at the famous Wal-Mart in June 1999 while performing in the shopping center parking
lots. In 2003, they performed 12 Sold Out shows at Madison Square Garden in New York and performed to over 250,000
people in November of 2005. Their US fans include Jerry Seinfeld, John Travolta, Sarah Jessica Parker, Matthew
Broderick, John Fogarty, Shaquille O'Neal, Chris Rock, Courtney Cox-Arquette, Chris Rock, Robert DeNiro, Cate Blanchett.
THE WIGGLES AROUND THE WORLD
While The Wiggles regularly tour throughout Australia doing both capital cities and regional tour, The Wiggles also tour
the UK annually as well as touring USA three times a year.
In 2003, The Wiggles decided to expand into non-English speaking countries with the very first Taiwanese version of The
Wiggles. In 2006 The Wiggles launched their Spanish-speaking counterparts who will tour throughout Central and South
America. In the future other non-English speaking Wiggles will appear throughout the World bringing joy and Wiggly tunes
to children of all cultures.
In 2008, The Wiggles television series are broadcast in over 100 countries including USA, UK, Italy, Japan and New
Zealand.
THE WIGGLES PHENOMENON.
The advantages of being a celebrity according to Oscar Winner, Cate Blanchett: "Well.The Wiggles were sold out and we
got two tickets!"
"One of the missions that NASA has.is to inspire the next generation of explorer's.The Wiggles, you and your whole team,
you really inspire children everywhere.You guys know very well that you have a very special rapport with children."
Astronaut Michael Fincke, International Space Station, NASA
"The Wiggles are a children's entertainment group dedicated to writing, dancing and singing songs that are entertaining,
fun and truly educational. Through their music, films and shows, they have taught millions of children important skills
and valuable lessons in life.The Wiggles have dedicated their lives and true talents toward the enrichment, empowerment,
and development of our most valued and cherished resource, children." Governor of the state of Louisiana, USA, Kathleen
Babineaux Blanco
"Thank god for The Wiggles!" Kelly Ripa, Live with Regis and Kelly, NYC
"Four men who have gone on to dominate every part of the world not yet one metre high. Their passion for what they do-
their genuine affection for their fans, the enthusiasm of their stage shows and their determination. All these are the
hallmarks of greatness. Songs crafted for an audience already high on life they never fail to fill their young audience
with joy." Andrew Denton, ARIA Outstanding Achievement Award
THE WIGGLES BUSINESS INITIATVIES
Having hit the No. 1 spot in Business Review Weekly's Australia's highest earners in the entertainment field for the
fourth year in a row (2008) and being named Australian Exporters of the Year in 2005, the 17 years on constant touring
around the world has certainly paid off.
In 2005, The Wiggles opened up a multi-million dollar amusement park at Dream World on the Gold Coast of Australia
called Wiggles World. In 2007 Wiggle Bay was opened at White Water World, which is also part of Dream World. Tourists
both locally and internationally have been lining up to experience the park that has led to its success. Six Flags in
America now have four Wiggles themed parks at New York's Six Flags Great Escape, Lake George, Illinois Six Flags Great
America, Chicago, Massachusetts Six Flags New England, Springfield and New Jersey Six Flags Great Adventure, Jackson and
more are being planned.
Two successful Wiggly Play Centres have opened in Sydney's west - Seven Hills and Villawood. The emphasis on the centres
are Ball Rooms and Jumping Castles which include some of the most amazing new inflatables ever seen in Australia
including the new SS Feathersword pirate ship inflatable. The Centres also feature five differently themed party rooms.
The Wiggles opened their very first Wiggly Play Center in the United States in Frisco, Texas, in October of 2006. The
Wiggly Play Center (www.wigglyplaycenter.com) provides a high-end, affordable community center where parents can take
their children for a fun and entertaining experience that focuses on the development of the child. World-renown as the
premier children's entertainment group, The Wiggles have always focused on material and activities that educate while
entertaining children. The plan is to roll out more nationally in the next few years.
DATES AND VENUES
AUCKLAND
Vector Arena
Saturday March 28
Sunday March 29 Bookings
1pm
10am & 1pm Ph 09 970 9700
HAMILTON
Founders Theatre
Tuesday March 31
Bookings
10am & 12.30pm
0800 4 ticket (0800 482 538)
NAPIER/HASTINGS
PG Arena
Thursday April 2
Bookings 10am & 12.30pm 0800 4 ticket (0800 482 538) 06 845 9300
WELLINGTON
Town Hall
Friday April 3
Saturday April 4
Bookings
10am & 12.30pm 10am & 12.30pm 0800 ticketek (0800 842 538 835)
CHRISTCHURCH
Town Hall Saturday April 5 Bookings
0800 ticketek (0800 842 538 835)
DUNEDIN
Regent Theatre Tuesday April 7 Bookings 10am & 12.30pm Ph 03 477 8597
ENDS