Breaking It Down: Entertainment

This is the last post of this series, but definitely not about the least. Entertainment was a huge part of the 850-person fund-raising event for the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute hosted by the university's medical center.

Working with the UPCI/UPMC staff and chairperson of this event we started the process of creating the theme and event message by approaching the entertainment for the evening from an experiential standpoint.

The theme brought to us by the marketing department was The Power of Partnership. At start of planning, there were to be four tribute videos, each with a pointed message tying back to the theme that was woven through the unique entertainment concept into the messaging of the video itself.

But during the planning process that initial concept morphed as we reviewed logistics, timing and the budget. The result was four video messages yet instead of being followed by a specific entertainer they were woven throughout the performances. The link to the community came in the choice of local talent -- emcee Michael Keaton who was born in Pittsburgh, The Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, the Pittsburgh Opera, Nick Dialoiso Orchestra and singer Jessica Lee (who performed during the reception). The only non-native was singer Kristin Chenoweth who gave a show-stopping performance.


The ballet..


The emcee of the evening was Michael Keaton, a Pittsburgh native son...

Kristin Chenoweth on stage, a show-stopper.


The Power of Partnership. Fundraiser chairs Susan McGalla and Cy Holzer.


Behind the scenes... Myself, Kristin and her musical director, Rob Fisher...


One more element to break down...Catering

The Monroeville Convention Center allowed UPMC to setup their own kitchen for the event so that Brad Kelly, UPMC's executive chef, could produce the food. AOO was in charge of the kitchen design; we created layouts, handled logistics and worked closely with Brad to ensure a flawless culinary experience.


Eric Rutherford (pictured below on the left) ran the floor for us that evening. We brought Eric on to keep everything running smoothly between all the elements such as setting up the kitchen, working with UPMC's chef and training the floor staff.



Now we are really done! This was the last thing that guests saw as they left the Monroeville Convention Center that night. It was a nice touch that extended the branding beyond the venue and the event.