# New Zealand's Got Talent series 3

New Zealand's Got Talent was a New Zealand reality television show, based on the original UK series, to find new talent. The third and final series began airing on TV One from 15 September 2013. Host Tāmati Coffey returned to the show, along with judges Jason Kerrison and Rachel Hunter and key sponsor Toyota New Zealand. Cris Judd also joined the judging panel, replacing Ali Campbell. The series screened at 7.30pm on Sunday evenings.
The series was won by 22-year-old singer Renee Maurice from Wellington, who performed "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going". Maurice had previously made it to the bootcamp round of the first New Zealand series of The X Factor. Christchurch dance duo Silhouette was the runner-up, with 14-year-old singer-songwriter Jenny Mitchell from Gore in third place. Unlike 2012 winner Clara van Wel, Maurice was not given a recording contract, after Sony opted not to sign her. Maurice did, however, still receive the prize of a new car and $80,000 cash.

## Background

In November 2012, TVNZ confirmed the show would return for a third series in 2013. In July 2013, funding agency NZ On Air confirmed that it would give the series $800,000 in production funding, a 50% reduction from the 2012 series funding.

## Host and judges

In December 2012, series two host Tāmati Coffey announced his plans to tour Europe for six months in early 2013, expressing his intention to return to New Zealand to present the 2013 series. In June 2013 he was confirmed as returning as series host. In April, TVNZ confirmed Opshop frontman Jason Kerrison would return as a judge. In May, TVNZ confirmed that American choreographer Cris Judd would join the judging panel and that Rachel Hunter would return to the judging panel for 2013.

## Auditions

The first call for auditions was made in November 2012. Contestants could enter in one of three ways: online, via post, or in person at an open audition venue as part of the Toyota Talent Tour. From late April to early June 2013, the show's producers toured around New Zealand towns and cities with the Toyota Talent Tour and held non-televised open auditions. The top applicants then progressed to the judges' auditions.
The following list contains all of the cities, venues and dates of the Toyota Talent Tour.
| Audition city/town | Date | Venue |
| Invercargill | 29 April 2013 | Southland Boys High School |
| Dunedin | 30 April 2013 | Otago Boys High School |
| Dunedin | 1 May 2013 | Otago Boys High School |
| Timaru | 3 May 2013 | Roncalli College |
| Christchurch | 5 May 2013 | Addington Event Centre |
| Christchurch | 6 May 2013 | Addington Event Centre |
| Greymouth | 8 May 2013 | Tai Poutini Polytechnic |
| Nelson | 9 May 2013 | Nelson School of Music |
| New Plymouth | 14 May 2013 | New Plymouth Boys High School |
| Wellington | 17 May 2013 | Wellington East Girls College |
| Wellington | 18 May 2013 | Wellington East Girls College |
| Napier | 20 May 2013 | Napier War Memorial Conference Centre |
| Hamilton | 25 May 2013 | Southwell School |
| Rotorua | 28 May 2013 | John Paul College |
| Tauranga | 29 May 2013 | Otumoetai College |
| Whangarei | 4 June 2013 | Whangarei Girls High School |
| Auckland | 8 June 2013 | Epsom Girls Grammar School |
| Auckland | 9 June 2013 | Epsom Girls Grammar School |

### Judges auditions

The judges auditions took place in Dunedin at the Regent Theatre on 14 and 15 July, in Auckland at the City Impact Church on 25 and 27 July and in Wellington at the St James Theatre on 10 and 11 August. The first episode aired on 15 September 2013, running for 90 minutes. After the judges' auditions, the successful contestants will be further reduced down to a group of 30 for the semi-finals.

## Semi-finals

There are six semi-finals, with the first episode broadcast on 10 October. The semi-finals are pre-recorded the Thursday before broadcast at the City Impact Church in Albany, Auckland. The winners of each week's semi-final were revealed at the beginning of the next week's episode.

### Tip Top Natural Talent Search

In addition to 30 semi-finalists, one wildcard entry will be chosen by a public competition. The Tip Top Natural Talent Search competition is open to any act. Acts upload a video audition and are voted on by the public. The top five acts were revealed in semi-final four, with the winner selected by the judges and announced in semi-final five. The five top acts were: The Pack (dance trio), The Black Trio (singing trio), Troublemakers Dance Crew (dance group), Shane Brown (singer) and APD Bhangra Group (dance group).

### Semi-finalists

| Key | Semi-Finalist (lost judges' vote) | Finalist | Winner | Runner up | Third place |
| Name | Genre | Act | Age | From | Semi | Position reached |
| 50/50 Dance Crew | Dance | Dance Group | 16–24 | Auckland | 1 | Eliminated |
| Renee Maurice | Singing | Singer | 22 | Wellington | 1 | Winner |
| Ravi | Variety | Martial Artist | 37 | Auckland | 1 | Eliminated |
| This Is Unicycling | Variety | Unicycle Duo | 21 & 22 | Kaikohe, Nelson | 1 | Eliminated |
| Mayo | Dance | Dancer | 21 | Pukekohe | 1 | Finalist |
| Diamond Divas | Singing | Singing Duo | 40 & 49 | Porirua | 1 | Eliminated |
| MDM | Singing | Singing Trio | 12–16 | Auckland | 2 | Eliminated |
| Brian and Sarah | Dance | Dance Duo | 18 | Christchurch | 2 | Finalist |
| Gabriella Atkinson | Singing | Singer | 13 | Nelson | 2 | Eliminated |
| Origin Dance Crew | Dance | Dance Group | 5–18 | Nelson | 2 | Eliminated |
| James Lee | Singing | Singer | 31 | Auckland | 2 | Finalist |
| Calista Gray | Singing | Singer | 14 | Tauranga | 3 | Eliminated |
| Silhouette | Dance | Dance Duo | — | Christchurch | 3 | Runner-up |
| Siuleo Vitale | Singing | Singer | — | Auckland | 3 | Eliminated |
| Manako and Cinnamon | Variety | Dog Act | 6 | Auckland | 3 | Eliminated |
| Ethan Scharneck | Dance | Dancer | 10 | North Shore | 3 | Finalist |
| Moxie | Dance | Dance Group | 15–26 | Albany | 4 | Eliminated |
| John Vaifale | Dance | Dancer | 17 | Manukau | 4 | Eliminated |
| All Star Cheerleading | Variety | Cheerleading Group | 9–25 | North Shore | 4 | Eliminated |
| Rob Innes | Singing | Singer | 66 | Wellington | 4 | Finalist |
| Cruize Karaitiana | Singing | Singer | 22 | Masterton | 4 | Finalist |
| Geordie Meade | Singing | Singer | 28 | Auckland | 5 | Eliminated |
| OKK (Ordinary Kids Krew) | Dance | Dance Group | 8–44 | Turangi | 5 | Eliminated |
| Oceana Olsen | Singing | Singer | 10 | Christchurch | 5 | Finalist |
| Kurt X (Kurt Mueller) | Variety | Harmonica Player | 50 | Wellington | 5 | Eliminated |
| Jenny Mitchell | Singing | Singer | 14 | Gore | 5 | Third place |
| IDentity | Dance | Dance Group | 18–26 | Auckland | 6 | Finalist |
| Natasha Alexandra | Singing | Singer | 16 | Auckland | 6 | Eliminated |
| Sam Francks | Singing | Opera Singer | 12 | Auckland | 6 | Finalist |
| Estella Winnie-McGee | Singing | Singer | 16 | New Plymouth | 6 | Eliminated |
| The Black Trio | Singing | Singing Trio | 26–29 | Wanganui | 6 | Finalist |

## Semi-final summary

| Key | Judges' choice | Buzzed out | Won the public vote | Won the judges' vote | Lost the judges' vote |

### First Semi-Final, Week 1 (20 October)

| Order | Contestant | Judges' choices | Judges' choices | Judges' choices | Finished |
| Order | Contestant | Kerrison | Hunter | Judd | Finished |
| 1 | 50/50 Dance Crew | | | | |
| 2 | Renee Maurice | | | | Won Public Vote |
| 3 | Ravi | | | | |
| 4 | This Is Unicycling | | | | |
| 5 | Mayo | | | | Won Judges Vote |
| 6 | Diamond Divas | | | | Lost Judges Vote |

### Second Semi-Final, Week 2 (27 October)

* Guest performer: Clara van Wel – "Wait For Me"
| Order | Contestant | Judges' choices | Judges' choices | Judges' choices | Finished |
| Order | Contestant | Kerrison | Hunter | Judd | Finished |
| 1 | MDM | | | | |
| 2 | Brian and Sarah | | | | Won Public Vote |
| 3 | Gabriella Atkinson | | | | |
| 4 | Origin Dance Crew | | | | Lost Judges Vote |
| 5 | James Lee | | | | Won Judges Vote |

### Third Semi-Final, Week 3 (3 November)

* Guest performer: Ezra Vine "Celeste"
| Order | Contestant | Judges' choices | Judges' choices | Judges' choices | Finished |
| Order | Contestant | Kerrison | Hunter | Judd | Finished |
| 1 | Calista Gray | | | | |
| 2 | Silhouette | | | | Won Judges Vote |
| 3 | Siuleo Vitale | | | | Lost Judges Vote |
| 4 | Manako and Cinnamon | | | | |
| 5 | Ethan Scharneck | | | | Won Public Vote |

### Fourth Semi-Final, Week 4 (10 November)

| Order | Contestant | Judges' choices | Judges' choices | Judges' choices | Finished |
| Order | Contestant | Kerrison | Hunter | Judd | Finished |
| 1 | Moxie | | | | |
| 2 | John Vaifale | | | | Lost Judges Vote |
| 3 | All Star Cheerleading | | | | |
| 4 | Rob Innes | | | | Won Judges Vote |
| 5 | Cruize Karaitiana | | | | Won Public Vote |

### Fifth Semi-Final, Week 5 (17 November)

Guest performer: Sol3 Mio
| Order | Contestant | Judges' choices | Judges' choices | Judges' choices | Finished |
| Order | Contestant | Kerrison | Hunter | Judd | Finished |
| 1 | Geordie Meade | | | | Lost Judges Vote |
| 2 | OKK (Ordinary Kids Krew) | | | | |
| 3 | Oceana Olsen | | | | Won Judges Vote |
| 4 | KurtX | | | | |
| 5 | Jenny Mitchell | | | | Won Public Vote |

### Sixth Semi-Final, Week 6 (24 November)

Guest performer: Olly Murs – "Dear Darlin'"
| Order | Contestant | Judges' choices | Judges' choices | Judges' choices | Finished |
| Order | Contestant | Kerrison | Hunter | Judd | Finished |
| 1 | IDentity | | | | Won Judges Vote |
| 2 | Natasha Alexandra | | | | |
| 3 | Sam Francks | | | | Won Judges Vote |
| 4 | Estella Winnie-McGee | | | | |
| 5 | The Black Trio | | | | Won Public Vote |
* Judge Rachel Hunter was unable to choose between IDentity and Sam Francks, declaring she wanted both acts to go through. This decision was accepted.

## Grand Final, Week 7 (1 – 8 December)

The two-hour grand final was broadcast on 1 December with the results show on 8 December.
* Guest performers:
** The Babysitters Circus feat. Jason Kerrison – "Giving Love"
** Criss Judd dance performance – "When I Was Your Man"
** ENZSO feat. Jason Kerrison – "Poor Boy"
* Contestant performances:
** Jenny, Renee and Silhouette – "Next to Me"
** Rejected auditionees medley
| Artist | Order | Act | Finished |
| Silhouette | 1 | Dance Duo | 2 |
| Jenny Mitchell | 2 | Singer | 3 |
| Cruize Karaitiana | 3 | Singer | 6 |
| Brian and Sarah | 4 | Dance Duo | 5 |
| IDentity | 5 | Dance Group | 8 |
| Sam Francks | 6 | Opera Singer | 10 |
| Oceana Olsen | 7 | Singer | 4 |
| Mayo | 8 | Dancer | 12 |
| James Lee | 9 | Singer | 9 |
| Ethan Scharneck | 10 | Dancer | 11 |
| The Black Trio | 11 | Singing Trio | 13 |
| Rob Innes | 12 | Singer | 7 |
| Renee Maurice | 13 | Singer | 1 |