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MOST POPULAR STORIES
1. MSNBC and Rodale Fete Jeff Corwin's New Book and Documentary at the Occidental
2. 8 New Venues for Washington Holiday Parties That Won't Break the Bank
3. P.C.M.A. Honors Wardman Park, Fairmont at First Nighttime Annual Meeting
4. How Do You Make Staffers Feel Appreciated—at Little or No Cost?
5. Poll Results: Informal Nights Out Make Most Appropriate 2009 Holiday Parties
6. New Moon Premiere Beckons 10,000 People and 2 Live Wolves
7. MoMA Gets Suitably Whimsical and Macabre for Tim Burton Tribute
8. Masked Raconteurs Tell Tales at Moth Ball, and I Have a Blast
FROM NEW YORK
Masked Raconteurs Tell Tales at Moth Ball, and I Have a Blast
Gap, Banana Republic, American Eagle Open Stores With Musical Performances
MoMA Gets Suitably Whimsical and Macabre for Tim Burton Tribute
3 New Hotel Restaurants for Business Entertaining, Private Groups
Nintendo Launches New Mario Game With Look Back at Franchise History
Scripted Models Play Up Key Notes at Victoria's Secret Fragrance Preview
Ad Age Looks to Boost Conference Interaction With Beer Tasting, Lounge Seating
More Photos From Louis Vuitton's Garden-Style Launch: Life-Sized Trees, Mounds of Mums
A Forest of Flora Marks Launch of Louis Vuitton's Saks Boutique
4 Made-in-New York Sweets for Gift Bags
FROM LOS ANGELES
Us Weekly Takes to Voyeur With Scantily Clad Models, Burlesque Feel
6 New Venues for Los Angeles Holiday Parties
New Moon Premiere Beckons 10,000 People and 2 Live Wolves
$4 Million MOCA Gala Breaks Fund-Raising Records
Chrysalis Benefit Cuts Ticket Prices in Half, Draws Same Crowd
MOCA Gala Spawning Arty Online Auction—Including Gehry's Hat for Gaga—Through November 30
Wende Museum Closes Wilshire for Cold War Anniversary Celebration
3 Ideas for Stylish, Eco-Friendly Events
3 New Restaurants for Autumn Alfresco Dining
With Help From Lexus, Cedars-Sinai Gala Breaks Fund-Raising Record
 
News Archive for Washington National Opera
TOP 100 EVENTS   06.22.09 11:30 AM
Washington's Top Benefits 2009
Artrageous
Artrageous
Photo: Tony Brown/Imijination Photography for BizBash
1. Knock Out Abuse and Fight Night Gala
This two-in-one party encompasses the Knock Out Abuse Against Women gala—a lavish women-only fete for 650 at the Ritz-Carlton, Washington, D.C.—while 2,000 men simultaneously enjoy Fight Night, an evening of boxing matches at the Hilton Washington. The two parties join for a gender-neutral after-party. The dual fund-raisers for anti-domestic-violence causes and the health care nonprofit Fight for Children return November 5.

2. The Opera Ball
The Washington National Opera’s elite event brings some 500 guests—including Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia and Congressman Dennis Kucinich in 2008—to a different ambassador’s residence each year. The German ambassador hosted this year’s June 5 ball.

3. YouthAIDS Benefit Gala
Ashley Judd, Sharon Osbourne, and Anna Kournikova were among the 550 guests at Population Services International’s 2008 benefit at the Ritz-Carlton, Tysons Corner. The rock 'n' roll theme party, which raised $1.2 million for the organization, returns this November. MORE >>

RELATED TOPICS Washington's Top 100 Events, Knock Out Abuse Against Women, Fight for Children, Washington National Opera, YouthAIDS, Corcoran Gallery of Art, National Italian American Foundation, The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, Prevent Cancer Foundation, Meridian International Center, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Washington Ballet, Heart of America Foundation, Smithsonian American Art Museum, March of Dimes Foundation, National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Folger Shakespeare Library, N.F.L. Players, Shakespeare Theatre Company, Phillips Collection, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Muscular Dystrophy Association, Spina Bifida Association, Washington Performing Arts Society, Trust for the National Mall, Capital Area Food Bank, American Red Cross, D.C. Scores, Washington Humane Society
EVENT REPORT   06.09.09 4:34 PM
More From the Opera Ball: Fancy Eats and Interactive Sweets
Marzipan candy at the Washington National Opera Ball
Marzipan candy at the Washington National Opera Ball
Photo: Tony Brown/Imijination Photography for BizBash
This year’s Washington National Opera Ball, held at the residence of the German ambassador, celebrated German food, culture, and music. But instead of spending money on flowers, organizers created more unique focal points, including artist demonstrations, lavish food, and fancy cakes. Here's a look at what stood out.
MORE >>

RELATED TOPICS Washington National Opera
EVENT REPORT   06.09.09 4:22 PM
Berlin Wall's Graffiti Sets the Tone at Opera Ball
A replica of the Berlin Wall at the Washington National Opera Ball
A replica of the Berlin Wall at the Washington National Opera Ball
Photo: Tony Brown/Imijination Photography for BizBash
A 12-foot-tall, 34-foot-long replica of the Berlin Wall set the tone at Friday’s Washington National Opera Ball, which celebrated German culture and the 20th anniversary of the fall of Berlin’s former symbol of oppression. The Opera Ballone of our Top 100 Eventsis held at a different ambassador's residence each year (France last year, Peru in 2007) and celebrates the culture of their home country. The colorful, graffiti-covered wall fit in surprisingly well at the modern residence of this year's host, German ambassador Klaus Scharioth.

The 500-guest event featured streamlined decor, including sleek black couches, acrylic chairs, and graffiti-covered cubes for food displays. “We’re using fewer flowers and getting the biggest bang for our buck in different and unique ways,” said the opera company's special events director, Patti Humphrey, who worked with Sandi Hoffman of Sandi R. Hoffman Special Events to plan, design, and execute the ball. In a more cost-effective move, Humphrey opted to take advantage of the residence’s highlights, like a grand piano in a light-filled atrium and a terrace with a view of Washington’s skyline.
MORE >>

RELATED TOPICS Washington National Opera
EVENT REPORT   02.10.09 12:33 PM
Greek Theme and Warm Temps Accent Scaled-Back Opera Gala
The reception space at the Washington National Opera's Midwinter Gala
The reception space at the Washington National Opera's Midwinter Gala
Photo: Gregory David Photography for BizBash
Saturday night offered appropriately balmy weather for the Washington National Opera’s Midwinter Gala at the Mellon Auditorium. The theme of the evening, after all, was the Greek city of Thessaloniki, which is known for its stunning waterfront. “In February, people like to focus on things warm and sunny, so we thought of Greece and the beaches as being cheery and uplifting,” said WNO special events manager Deana Taylor. “We also wanted something that was radically different from last year’s Taj Mahal theme.” MORE >>

RELATED TOPICS Washington National Opera, Whole Foods
BEST OF 2008   11.24.08 8:00 AM
Lighting Takes Center Stage
ShowPro's light show for Remy Martin
ShowPro's light show for Remy Martin
Photo: Alen Lin for BizBash
MORE >>

RELATED TOPICS Remy Martin, Washington National Opera
WHO'S DOING WHAT   07.22.08 2:34 PM
National Opera's Liz Early Moves to Performing Arts Society
The WPAS's Liz Early
The WPAS's Liz Early
Photo: Lynn Hornor Keith
After three years as the special events coordinator for the Washington National Opera, Liz Early began a new job at the Washington Performing Arts Society on July 8.

In her new role as the nonprofit’s associate director of development/director of special events, Early will be responsible for planning roughly 40 donor recognition events as well as two fund-raising galas every year. (Read about last May's 640-guest benefit here.) She will also work closely with embassies throughout the city to coordinate and celebrate the organization’s international artists. MORE >>

RELATED TOPICS Washington Performing Arts Society, Washington National Opera, WETA
EVENT REPORT   06.11.08 10:15 AM
Opera Ball Turns French Ambassador's Residence (and Performers) Into Light Exhibition
Performers in lit-up costumes greeted guests.
Performers in lit-up costumes greeted guests.
Photo: JC Martins/FotoBriceno for BizBash
Everything was illuminated at French ambassador Pierre Vimont’s residence in Kalorama on Friday night for the Washington National Opera’s annual Opera Ball—the company’s largest fund-raiser of the year (tickets start at $1,000), which drew heavy hitters such as Congressman Dennis Kucinich, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, and Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff. The event was appropriately theatrical, bathing the turn-of-the-century mansion in light. To create the effects, Washington National Opera director of special events Patti Humphrey turned to, at the ambassador’s behest, lighting designer Julien Pavillard—the artistic director of the winter Festival of Lights in Lyon, France. 

Pavillard drew inspiration from Versailles, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and elements of opera to create the glowing garden party. The outdoor display—set up over four days, despite the torrential downpours and the heat wave that followed—included 4,000 flower-shaped glass votives, red and white rope lights arranged in the yard, and five chandeliers hanging from a huge tree in the backyard. Fifteen panoramic lighting displays set up behind the trees added to the otherworldly glow. MORE >>

RELATED TOPICS Washington National Opera
EVENT REPORT   02.12.08 2:09 PM
Indian Accents Flank Opera Gala
The Mellon Auditorium glittered gold for the midwinter gala.
The Mellon Auditorium glittered gold for the midwinter gala.
Photo: Lara Shipley for BizBash
Each year, the Washington National Opera's midwinter gala—among Washingtonian's top 10 social events for D.C.—aims for an evening of decadence, with a taste of the exotic. (Stockholm was the muse last year, and Japan's Edo Period before that.) This year was no exception, with the theme of "Taj Mahal by Moonlight" filling the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium with romantic Indian decor.

The 500 well-dressed guests (some appropriately decked in exquisite saris) were transported into the evening through an entrance draped in pink and orange sheer fabric, with gold statues from Nivanjoli Props and Scenery and a sitar player perched high on a throne. Staffers dressed in Indian-style garb handed out sparkly bracelets and donned bindis, while waiters in black uniforms and gold turbans offered up mango cosmopolitans with a purple orchid garnish. MORE >>

RELATED TOPICS Washington National Opera
MY FAVORITE VENDORS   12.12.07 1:41 PM
The Opera Heads to the Phillips Collection
Photo: Courtesy of Deana Taylor
Deana Taylor is the special events manager for the Washington National Opera, where she has worked since 1999 (not including the year-and-a-half hiatus in which she planned events for the Phillips Collection). She produces more than 60 events annually, ranging from fund-raisers to cast parties and major galas.

Flowers and Decor: "Jack Lucky and his team at Jack H. Lucky Floral Design have always gone out of their way to make each event nothing short of incredible. They really work on each party as if it were their own event. I always feel comfortable knowing that they take such pride in their work.  For our opening-night events at the Opera, Jack has transformed empty spaces into spectacular creations using lighting and floral arrangements and even an occasional painted canvas. And for the Phillips Collection’s Duncan Phillips awards, he worked closely with our caterer to create a different look in each room of the house and to work with and not against the beautiful surroundings. The attention to detail is always there, regardless of the size of the event. With Jack, I find that you always get a personal touch with extremely professional results." MORE >>

RELATED TOPICS Washington National Opera, The Phillips Collection
EVENT REPORT   09.19.07 1:26 PM
From Bohemian to Traditional: The Opera's Opening Night
The Washington National Opera gala was awash in maroon and purple hues.
The Washington National Opera gala was awash in maroon and purple hues.
Photo: Lara Shipley for BizBash
The staging of the Washington National Opera’s version of La Bohème on Saturday at the Kennedy Center might have been edgier than operas generally tend to be—with fireworks, disco balls, and leather bustiers—but the decor at the opening-night gala veered toward the traditional. Immediately after La Bohème’s premier two-hour performance (dubbed by The Washington Times as "the most audacious season kickoff in company history"), more than 350 opera lovers decamped to the south gallery of the Kennedy Center’s Roof Terrace, which was awash in an Old World look, with draperies, tablecloths, flowers, and settings in regal shades of gold and purple.

“We wanted this gala to be very traditional, since the opera is very contemporary in production,” said WNO special events coordinator Elizabeth Early, who began planning the event (which is known among locals to kick off the fall gala season) in March with director of special events Patti Humphrey. The planners’ blend of the contemporary and the traditional is an example of the opera community’s effort to cultivate new audiences without alienating older fans. MORE >>

RELATED TOPICS Washington National Opera
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