| EVENT REPORT 06.02.09 9:27 AM |
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Smashed Cars, Hot Tub Add to Wild Vibe at Power Ball
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The "Decadence" theme at last year’s tenth anniversary Power Ball translated into a white decor scheme and burlesque dancers. This time around, "Power Ball 11: It's One Louder" (named for a line in This Is Spinal Tap) went in a decidedly different direction: smashed cars, an outhouse/video booth, and guests helping themselves to a whole roasted pig. "We're juxtaposing low-fi, tripped-out decor with things like oysters and champagne," said Sarah Bywater, head of development at the Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery, the site of the festivities.
Although the budget was tighter this year, Bywater said corporate support for the ball remained strong. Hugo Boss returned as the party’s lead sponsor, and a record 32 in-kind suppliers filled the gallery with displays over three days of setup. Landscape Ontario, for example, provided deciduous trees and plants to furnish the indoor space, and Castor Design brought in a Winnebago and the pig-roasting materials to help make the gallery’s south patio more than just a smoking destination.
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RELATED TOPICS
Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery, Hugo Boss, Dundee Real Estate Asset Management, DundeeWealth Inc., Rogers, Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, TD Securities, National Bank Financial, Hello! Canada, Now Magazine, The National Post, 103.9 PROUD-FM |
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| EVENT REPORT 04.03.09 1:36 PM |
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A.G.O. Adopts "Massive Uprising" Theme With Mock Protests, Riot Police
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The redesigned Art Gallery of Ontario played host to its fifth annual Massive Party benefit Thursday with a sold-out crowd of 1,600 guests. "We've held it off site at Muzik for the past few years, and we are thrilled to come back to the A.G.O.," said Geoffrey Chown, its manager of development and special events, who planned the event in conjunction with a committee co-chaired by Gillian Hewitt and Som Seif.
Songs like “We’re Not Gonna Take It” by Twisted Sister played as guests arrived for the party, which was dubbed "Massive Uprising" this year. Riot police wielding billy clubs greeted attendees as they entered Walker Court, where a group of models dressed as hippies conducted a sit-in in the middle of the floor. Placards with logos like “Fight for Your Right to Party” and “Join the Up Rising” were placed in black metal bins around the venue, and black linens and camouflage netting topped bars throughout the space.
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RELATED TOPICS
Art Gallery of Ontario, CTV, Claymore Investments, Equity Transfer & Trust Company, Investors Group, Interbrand, Merrill Corporation Canada, Now Magazine |
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| NEWS 11.03.08 5:22 PM |
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Now Presents Election Night Coverage at Bloor Cinema
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Election night parties are sure to be in full swing south of the border Tuesday, and Now magazine is getting in on the action here, too. The weekly publication is presenting America Votes at the Bloor Cinema, offering members of the public a chance to watch "live election night news on an American-sized screen." For a $3 fee, attendees can watch the results of the presidential race live on CNN, followed by footage from The Daily Show and The Colbert Report. Brian Smith of youandmedia.com is hosting the evening, which gets under way at 7:30 p.m. Now editor and C.E.O. Alice Klein and Now entertainment editor Susan G. Cole will offer commentary. —Susan O'Neill
RELATED TOPICS
Now Magazine, CNN |
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| NEWS 06.10.08 10:54 AM |
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NXNE Increases Outdoor Performances for 14th Annual Festival
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 | Bruce McDonald at the 2008 NXNE press conference
Photo: Courtesy of Phil Ogynist |
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To raise the profile of this year’s festival, North by Northeast organizers are holding more performances at outdoor venues, including Yonge-Dundas Square, Toronto Island, and 11 public parks. “We’ve seen how an event like the Toronto International Film Festival can take over the city, and this week we want people to feel like music is everywhere,” Michael Hollett, NXNE president and founder, said in an interview.
In addition to outdoor venues, performances will take place for the first time at two terminals at Pearson International Airport, as well as on the Toronto Island Ferry and at Union Station. Thirty-nine clubs and six record stores will host the remaining shows.
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NXNE, RedPipe.ca, Sirius Radio, Now Magazine, Astral Media |
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| EVENT REPORT 04.29.08 3:23 PM |
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Studio 54 Inspires Retro Vibe at Buy Design Fund-Raiser
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 | The Buy Design benefit
Photo: Courtesy of Faulhaber PR |
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Attracting volunteers to help organize Buy Design 54, the fifth annual fund-raiser for Windfall Clothing Service—inspired by the legendary New York nightclub Studio 54—held Saturday at the Fermenting Cellar in the Distillery District, wasn’t all that difficult, according to event manager Alessia Pugliese. “We never struggle to get volunteers,” said Pugliese, who credited the volunteer team for the event's success. About 50 volunteers, some of whom worked throughout the entire planning process (which began in July), helped pull off the fashion-conscious event, which raises money to support the award-winning charity that distributes new clothing and basic-needs items to Torontonians in need.
“For us, the biggest challenge, being a non-for-profit, is always money,” Pugliese said. “We put on this event on a very tight budget. We are very lucky because our volunteers are so young and most of them are in the media or fashion industry, so creativity is not a problem.” Adrian Mainella, the new host of CBC’s Fashion File, is one volunteer whose profile helped bring exposure to the event. Mainella, who has been involved with Buy Design since its inception, served as the evening’s host and donated a night out with him as one of the more than 150 items up for bid at silent and live auctions.
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RELATED TOPICS
Windfall Clothing Service, TD Bank Financial Group, BMO Financial Group, Mill Street Brewery, Now Magazine, Fashion Magazine, She Does the City, The Globe and Mail, BlogTO, Alterna Savings, Ontario Credit Union Charitable Foundation |
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| EVENT REPORT 04.14.08 2:19 PM |
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Interactive Installations Bring Buzz to A.G.O.'s Massive Party
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 | Dan Bergeron's graffiti project outside Muzik
Photo: Gary Beechey for BizBash |
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The 1,500 guests attending the Art Gallery of Ontario's Massive Party fund-raiser at Muzik on Thursday got a taste of the night's Vanities and Vandals theme before even entering the venue. Outside the nightclub, spotlights drew attention to artist Dan Bergeron's graffiti art installation, which gave a dramatically different look to the typical red carpet entrance. Later in the evening, Bergeron and a troupe of graffiti artists went outside to work on the project in front of onlookers.
Inside Musik, seven other contemporary artists showed off interactive installation projects (while two sold their merchandise) amid rotating coloured lights, dry ice, and music spun by DJ Efsharp and DJ Whitney. "Each year, it's the artist projects that are fresh, new, and exciting," said Geoffrey Chown, A.G.O.'s manager of development and special events. "It's all about the contemporary art." Many of the artists, like Bergeron, participated in their installations.
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RELATED TOPICS
Art Gallery of Ontario, Imperial Capital, The Investors Group, The Globe and Mail, CTV, Now Magazine, Frank Gehry, Claymore Securities |
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