With a weekend full of guest appearances, from Kanye West to Angus Young, Sia provided the biggest names even if they were not necessarily music stars. However, the guests that “joined” her onstage were not necessarily joining the Australian singer in the desert. The list of stars that appeared on stage was massive, but all was not as it seemed – the cameos were pre-recorded sets featuring some of Hollywood’s biggest stars, reinterpreted by Sia’s own dancers during tonight’s set. Those close enough to see what was going were able to confirm that the guest stars’ roles were in fact pantomimed by dancers wearing extremely similar make-up.
First up “on stage” with Sia was Maddie Ziegler, who is best known as the performer in Sia’s breakout “Chandelier” video. Following her appearance, alternative-comedian Tig Notaro was up during the Austrialian singer’s performance of “Diamonds.” Though it was made famous by pop singer Rihanna, Sia was one of the song’s principal songwriters.
The biggest guest of the night would be the third, with on-top-of-her-game comedian/actress Kristen Wiig making an “interpretive dance” appearance for Sia’s set – the most visually-dramtic moment of the night featured a simulated rain storm.
Kristen Wiig interpretive acting during Sia’s performance at #Coachella2016pic.twitter.com/7gEadac8nU
— Mikey Wynn (@Itchyypanda) April 18, 2016
The on-screen cameos did not end with Kristen Wiig. Actor Paul Dano (Little Miss Sunshine, There Will Be Blood) appeared via video with Sia, who played the part of business man as dancers held panes of glass for Sia to shatter. Later Gabby Hoffman (Girls, Transparent) made an appearance for her rendition of the track from 2016’s “Unstoppable.” The night also featured a version of EDM superstar David Guetta’s “Titanium,” which features guest vocals by Sia on the original recording.