How Wichita’s Red, White and Boom was planned

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – Preparation, staging and production are all part of the Red, White and Boom Fourth of July fireworks show.

“Multiple different things have to happen,” James Johnson, lead display operator for Victory Pyrotechnics and Special Effects, said.

Johnson says shows like these require professionals.

“It takes a lot of different effects to keep people interested for 20 minutes, so we like to have a lot of variety,” Johnson said.

The process takes months of planning.

“This is not a go out, buy it at the stand and set it on the curb and light it type thing. This is something that we’ve been planning for, and we’re very excited for,” Johnson said.

Working alongside Johnson, Cody Hanna says technology is essential.

“We’ll have well over 400 cues tonight. We design our shows in a 3D platform called Finale 3D, so all our shows are actually designed in 3D prior to them ever being shot here live in person,” Cody Hanna, director of business development, said.

In planning the performance, the team considers space and safety concerns. They work with the fire department.

“So we shoot here on the riverbank up to an inch and a half, which is fairly small. We have shows out in Dodge City, western Kansas, that we shoot up to 10-inch shells, so those are professional devices that we use on our larger aerial displays,” Hanna said.

It took about eight months to create the 20-minute show. The organizers couldn’t give an exact price tag for how much the show costs, but they say it depends on what kind of fireworks are used and how long the show is.

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