Mount Sinai's Eyes Wide Open benefit (formerly known as the Spring Ball) has, in the past, had a location-based theme and presentation, such as "Live From South Beach" and "A Night in Manhattan." With a new event chair (Sebastien Centner of Eatertainment Special Events & Catering) and a new venue (the nightclub This Is London), this year's benefit, which took place yesterday, adopted the more vague theme of "Secrets Revealed," with surprises like a 400-pound Bengal tiger at the club's entrance.
Jodi Spitzer, the director of events for the Mount Sinai Hospital Foundation, worked with Centner to take out the more predictable parts of the fund-raiser. "This year was about having an element of surprise, which is part of the reason we kept the venue a secret up until a couple of weeks ago," Spitzer said. (The event has previously been held at the Windsor Arms Hotel and the Four Seasons.) "Having the event at This Is London helped create the theme and the intrigue."New York-based model-turned-DJ Sky Nellor topped the entertainment bill, with the local DJ Floh Back opening the show. Centner saw Nellor perform during trips to New York and Miami and said he chose the DJ not only for her musical talents but because she fit the "sexy" look of the event. Additional entertainment included pole dancers, greeters with body-painted corsets, and a snake expert with a seven-foot carpet python. Guests received masks at the entrance and could have their photo taken with props in the back corner of the club.
The revamped event also brought in MTV Canada's Dan Levy and Jessi Cruickshank—best known for their gig on The Hills after-show—to host the close to 500 attendees. "They've definitely jazzed it up," said Joseph Palumbo, an executive director of career development at York University, who attended the benefit last year. Another guest (who preferred to remain anonymous) said he noticed the thematic changes to this year's event. "It's geared toward a younger crowd—this is where my daughter and her friends would hang out," he said.
Eatertainment catered the event with two food stations—a taccone station (cones made from sandwich wraps with fillings like raw tuna and jalapeño sour cream) and a pasta station with three varieties. A 14-item silent auction and a $100 "mystery key" ticket sale contributed to the fund-raising efforts by Leadership Sinai, a group of young philanthropists who back the Eyes Wide Open event. The group launched an $8 million campaign in January, with their first pledge of $3 million going to Mount Sinai's Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute, a cancer research centre.
Jodi Spitzer, the director of events for the Mount Sinai Hospital Foundation, worked with Centner to take out the more predictable parts of the fund-raiser. "This year was about having an element of surprise, which is part of the reason we kept the venue a secret up until a couple of weeks ago," Spitzer said. (The event has previously been held at the Windsor Arms Hotel and the Four Seasons.) "Having the event at This Is London helped create the theme and the intrigue."New York-based model-turned-DJ Sky Nellor topped the entertainment bill, with the local DJ Floh Back opening the show. Centner saw Nellor perform during trips to New York and Miami and said he chose the DJ not only for her musical talents but because she fit the "sexy" look of the event. Additional entertainment included pole dancers, greeters with body-painted corsets, and a snake expert with a seven-foot carpet python. Guests received masks at the entrance and could have their photo taken with props in the back corner of the club.
The revamped event also brought in MTV Canada's Dan Levy and Jessi Cruickshank—best known for their gig on The Hills after-show—to host the close to 500 attendees. "They've definitely jazzed it up," said Joseph Palumbo, an executive director of career development at York University, who attended the benefit last year. Another guest (who preferred to remain anonymous) said he noticed the thematic changes to this year's event. "It's geared toward a younger crowd—this is where my daughter and her friends would hang out," he said.
Eatertainment catered the event with two food stations—a taccone station (cones made from sandwich wraps with fillings like raw tuna and jalapeño sour cream) and a pasta station with three varieties. A 14-item silent auction and a $100 "mystery key" ticket sale contributed to the fund-raising efforts by Leadership Sinai, a group of young philanthropists who back the Eyes Wide Open event. The group launched an $8 million campaign in January, with their first pledge of $3 million going to Mount Sinai's Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute, a cancer research centre.
A Bengal tiger outside This Is London
Photo: BizBash
Martini glasses filled with fake jewels and red feathers decorated the bar.
Photo: BizBash
Pole dancers performed on the club's dance floor.
Photo: Courtesy of Charles Kochman
MTV personalities Dan Levy and Jessi Cruickshank hosted the event.
Photo: Courtesy of Charles Kochman
Women in black lingerie and body-painted red corsets greeted guests and posed throughout the evening.
Photo: Courtesy of Charles Kochman
A 400-pound Bengal tiger from the Bowmanville Zoo sat outside the club's entrance to surprise guests.
Photo: BizBash
Large black and red balloons hung from the ceiling of the red-lit club.
Photo: BizBash
Two poles were placed on opposite ends of the dance floor.
Photo: BizBash
Guests posed with a seven-foot carpet python brought in by Reptilia.
Photo: Courtesy of Charles Kochman
Guests received coloured masks as they entered the event.
Photo: Courtesy of Charles Kochman
The taccone station featured spiced dry beef cone wraps with tabasco, served in a shot glass with bloody caesar sauce.
Photo: Courtesy of Charles Kochman
