For the 18th annual Bell Gala, which also marked the final year of a five-year funding commitment to the SickKids Foundation at the Hospital for Sick Children, Patricia Lakin, Bell’s national director of special events, created a fairy-tale theme meant to signify a storybook ending to the partnership. Held Thursday at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, this year’s event, dubbed Once Upon A Time, attracted more than 1,800 guests, including 100 local celebrities.
“We wanted to do a really storybook entrance. It’s like entering what I’ll describe as Bell’s version of Once Upon A Time,” said Lakin. She used a white rather than red carpet and created an interview area where guests sat on oversize Alice in Wonderland-style chairs prior to posing for photos in front of a step-and-repeat adorned with the Bell logo. A doorway fashioned from a blue and white book led guests into the reception area, which was decorated like an enchanted forest and included a teacup carnival ride.
The reception space included a silent auction, but Lakin decided to forgo the live auction this year. “It takes about 40 minutes to do it, and we wanted to try to pack the show with much more entertainment, so we created a concept called Almost Live,” Lakin said. “It’s all done by a bank of computers. All anyone has to do is go up to a computer and do a bid.”
Lakin reconfigured the dining room this year, placing two four-foot-high runways on either side of the stage rather than a five-foot-high runway in the centre of the space, and added an intermission. “We thought we needed time for people to get prepared for such a robust show lineup," she said. "We also wanted to provide some time for the guests to actually talk to each other. We want some of our executives to go and talk to key clients and customers. A lot of people might want to meet our C.E.O., and they don’t really get the chance to do that.”
The evening’s entertainment included a fairy-tale princess fashion show with designs from Renata Morales, Jennifer Allison, Ross Mayer, and Avec Plaisir and performances by Our Lady Peace, Marianas Trench, Kardinal Offishall, Ivana Santilli, Eva Avila, Suzie McNeil, Carly Rae Jepsen, Shiloh, and headliner Natasha Bedingfield.
Bell also worked with HBC to create an Olympic-themed component to the dinner. Ten athletes, including figure skater Shae-Lynn Bourne and speed skater Catriona Le May Doan, modeled new Olympic fashions, and Bell auctioned off a trip for two to the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games, which included tickets to sporting events like men’s hockey and an at-home entertainment package including a 55-inch Samsung TV.
For the after-party, sponsored by Palm and held on site, Lakin used orange and white decor—the colours of Palm’s logo. “I really wanted to make sure that we captured what they were looking for in the way of leveraging their brand, and I think we have,” she said. Green turf, topiary trees, and oversize furnishings gave the Palm lounge a whimsical, dollhouse feel and a sweets table topped with orange linens, oversize flowers, and desserts from The Cupcake Shoppe and Enchanted Sweets provided a focal point in the room.
