Christchurch's Illuminate light show delayed by a week

The Illuminate Light Show was set to take place in Christchurch this week, but has been postponed due to freight issues. It will now take place next week.  

Coming up on its sixth annual event in Ōtautahi, Illuminate has become a leading winter event in Aotearoa, welcoming over 100,000 guests.  

Catered for all ages, Illuminate features over two kilometers of light displays and interactive installations, amusement rides, and food trucks.  

The show opens on August 27 at 5.45pm, and will run from Thursdays through to Sundays for three weeks at the Botanical Gardens.  

The event was supposed to begin on August 20 but was postponed as supplies arriving from overseas had been delayed in sailing.  

Event Hire owner and operator, Phil Anderson, explained that Christchurch’s show is the one that often gets a lot of new products, and that “a couple of those containers had a couple of delays with sailing, enough for us to warrant the pushback".

The extra week has also given organisers more time to test equipment before opening night. While it was an uncomfortable position for Anderson to be in, “it was best to make sure that we could start the show while making sure everyone had the same experience".

Anderson had previously set a personal goal to constantly keep evolving Illuminate, a goal he believes he has achieved this year.  

“It’s always challenging with this event, to constantly innovate,” he said.

“We always try and aim for at least fifty-percent new lighting installations... it should definitely feel like a new show.”  

Despite its name, Illuminate goes beyond light displays, with smoke bubbles, haze, fire, and water features also forming part of the experience.  

As “one of the biggest multi-day events in New Zealand”, last year’s running sold out almost every night, and neared 85,000 visitors in total. Anderson expects a similar attendance this year.