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H.i.P.O.

Hazardus Interstellar Perfessional Operations is an 80' tall rocket that sits atop a 80' diameter launch platform and tower filled with performers dressed as hippopotamuses. It is the largest installation Dedo Vabo has built to date and is the centerpiece of the 2019 Coachella Music Festival. The entire structure acts as a medley of different artistic mediums. Robotics and animatronics, multimedia elements, animations, smoke fx, mechanical gags, puppetry, mask making and lighting fx are all mashed together into one massive performance art piece that defies explanation. Animatronic hippos hang from the exterior 70 feet in the air while an RC robot made out of junk circles the perimeter. Every room in every inch of the installation is alive with kinetic special fx. A cast and crew of 210 people work and perform nonstop for 12 hours a day throughout all 6 days of the festival. The piece is a 360 degree immersive experience with 8 theatrical stages surrounding the structure along with interactive elements that allow audiences to engage with the hippos. At any given angle and at anytime during the event, a performance can be seen somewhere on the installation. H.i.P.O. is the result of 9 hard months of endless work, 4 months of construction and a countless amount of sleepless nights.

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