Cosmopolitan annually stages a big spectacle that draws men and women alike. The Bikini Bash, the magazine's biggest marketing stunt of the year, brings hundreds of swimsuit-clad locals and tourists to spell out C-O-S-M-O for an aerial photo shoot—billed as the largest of its kind in North America—which later runs in the magazine. This year marked the event's first time in Las Vegas, after a move from Miami.
"The move to Vegas was because our sponsor Nivea wanted to align the event closer to their big summer push behind Goodbye Cellulite, which really kicks into gear with the Memorial Day/summer timing," said the magazine's New York-based executive director for integrated development, Jason Cavallo, who oversaw the event. "And we felt that timing would be difficult in Miami due to weather and also lack of college-aged girls, who would have since left for home for the summer. So after evaluating cities that made sense in late May, we came across Vegas and a fabulous partner in Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino."
The mag once again tapped Wizard of Ah's, which has produced since the event since its inception in 2008. The company's president and owner, Mark Cheplowitz, used a microphone to run the show from high above on the rooftop while 12 wranglers on the ground herded the women into the formation.
"We weren't on a beach. We were on the sixth-floor pool deck of Planet Hollywood, which was great for a change," said Cheplowitz. "This was a little bit easier because of the way we could move the girls in and out of the image a lot quicker. And we did it at dusk, versus in the afternoon; [Cosmo] wanted a nighttime shot to capture the flavor of Las Vegas. It's not just the girls in the image, but it's the whole [landscape]. Some of the challenges of being on the beach during the day went away at dusk on a hard surface."
Another bonus: Dirty Swift and Bruce Waynne of the group Midi Mafia wrote and performed a song—“2 Piece (So Cosmo)"—for the event this year, whereas last year music was prohibited on the beach. "It was much more festive," said Cheplowitz. Wizard of Ah's also created a dance number called the "two piece," which it revealed as a flash mob performance.
