La Jolla Playhouse Wow Festival
Transforming passive outdoor space into a social destination.
The La Jolla Playhouse’s celebrated annual WOW Festival is a four-day celebration of immersive, interactive and surprising art experiences from local, national and international artists. It is theatre - without walls .
Friendly Futures designed a playsculpture for all ages placed on an unprogrammed campus lawn. Blending twists on traditional games as well as new games, this project combines sensory play, creative play, physical play and more to transform a passive outdoor space into a social destination.
It demonstrates placemaking’s power to turn nothing into something, and most notably how impactful creating moments for all ages to play can be.
Located on UCSD’s campus, the La Jolla Playhouse is a world class theater and cultural institution. Their WOW festival focuses on sharing culture with the greater community, hence their slogan theatre - without walls. Friendly Futures was brought on to activate the plaza where the festival took place, promoting healthy and joyful gathering for families, students, and other visitors to informally enjoy in between sets.
Context: La Jolla Playhouse/UCSD
The plaza is not activated and the festival wanted to invite new people to enjoy theatre, make it more family friendly, and hopefully even convert passersby into future theatergoers. So Friendly Futures designed a play sculpture system where every element doubles as seating, game, and social catalyst — turning a perfectly empty lawn into a very good reason to stick around.
The Need for Social Architecture
Play for All Ages
Great play design doesn't card you at the door. The sculpture invited kids to crawl, climb and conquer, teens to goof off and pose, and adults to rediscover their inner kid - all in the same space, at the same time. That cross-generational magic is exactly what Friendly Futures designs for.
We got all ages moving, laughing, and connecting - but let's be honest, the kids showed everyone how it's done. Their uninhibited joy was the best proof of concept we could ask for.
The Kids Couldn't Help Themselves
Curious to bring some more play and social wellness to your community?
