Perry memorably made her entrance riding a giant metallic tiger puppet. A large puppet appeared at the YouthAIDS gala at Washington's Ritz-Carlton, Tysons Corner in 2007. Supplied by Creative Inflatables, the inflatable Moulin Rouge-style elephant was airbrushed with Indian drawings. The Los Angeles-based company also has three types of inflatable lions and an inflatable tiger.
During one section of her performance, Perry appeared onstage with costumed dancers dressed as beach balls, sharks, and other seaside tropes. To give an event a similar vibe, consider adding beach balls to the decor or even serving thematic snacks. For example: Claire Crenshaw of Chicago's Moto Restaurant created the “100 Days of Summer” dessert with coconut macarons painted to look like beach balls. The treats were plated with white-chocolate seashells and pineapple starfish, as well as “sand” made from brown sugar.
Perry's set also featured dancers clad in polka-dot bikinis. For a similar type of entertainment, consider booking the Aqualilies, a Los Angeles-based a troupe of water ballerinas.
The show featured elaborate projection mapping on the floor of the stage. The Warner Brothers International Television Distribution gala in 2012 filled a Burbank, California, lot with digital mapping by Bart Kresa Design, costumed entertainers, and an array of pyrotechnic stunts and decor. Aerialists from Lucent Dossier entertained from above the party space. Companies like Obscura Digital, Ninjaneer Studios, and Media Stage have also created such visual displays on existing buildings.
The set of Perry's performance also featured an elevated stage that had flooring lit up with vibrant lights. For a similar look, Energy Floors offers human-powered, interactive dance floors for event rental worldwide. The eight-inch-deep tiles each house small generators; the tiles compress when stepped on, activating the generators to convert the kinetic energy produced by the dancers into electricity. The power can be used to activate the colorful LED light tubes inside the tiles that respond to the movement of dancers or nearby electrical systems.
The performance included a sea of illuminated orbs, held by performers clad in silver spandex. San Francisco company Got Light has similar fixtures, which they used at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art's Modern Ball in 2014. Got Light collaborated with Stanlee Gatti on the night's overall design.
Fitting for a singer who has a hit song called "Firework," Perry's show ended with a spectacular fireworks finale. Fireworks were also incorporated into a Chicago event for Ferrara Pan Candy in 2009, when a barge stationed in the river set off 30 minutes of fireworks so that guests in the riverside host venue could look on. Those fireworks were supplied by Lumina Inc.; there are other suppliers throughout North America.
Topman, the British fashion brand that has a store on Michigan Avenue, brought back its "Live Screen Printing" activation. Guests could customize T-shirts or tote bags with a variety of prints.
As in previous years—and as at other music festivals—guests waited in long lines to receive the custom tote bags and T-shirts.
Ray-Ban and Vice magazine teamed up on an another custom T-shirt activation—but guests could bypass the line by participating in a musical activity. Anyone who stepped into a live recording booth and sang along to Aloe Blacc's "I Need a Dollar" got a pass to step right up to the station.
The T-shirts all said "Speak the Truth," and guests could customize the statements that were printed below. One guest elected to have printed: "I still have stuffed animals," while another chose, "I am in the fast lane following my dreams."
Several brands used games to engage Pitchfork-goers. Coffee brand Café Bustelo, for example, had a prize wheel at its Café Bustelo Experience. Depending on the section the wheel landed on, guests could take home branded sunglasses, fanny packs, or other goods. The activation was produced by BMF Media Group.
Dark Horse Wine also had a prize wheel at its tent in the V.I.P. area. Guests could win prizes including an entire case of wine.
On the festival's main grounds, the wine brand also had a tent where guests could apply silvery, temporary tattoos featuring Dark Horse's logo.
Local beer company Goose Island made custom periscopes, set back from the main stages, that let guests peer at the festival crowds near the stages.
Whole Foods hosted a miniature market selling fruits and other snacks on festival grounds. There was also a station with complimentary amenities such as sunscreen, hair ties and bobby pins, and scented sprays with labels such as "Mosh Pit Mint." A sign near the station read: "Refresh yourself before you wreck yourself."
Several brands created interactive photo opportunities. At one such activation, guests stuck their heads into a billboard advertising Lifeway Kefir. Nearby, the brand doled out free samples of its vanilla and green-tea-raspberry frozen Kefir bars.
Whole Foods' photo op let guests pose in bright frames that appeared to grow out of a garden box.
Who knew carpet samples could come in handy at a music festival? Chicago-based carpet company Flor handed out some 5,000 squares of carpet so that guests could make their own carpeted seating areas on the grass. When the weather turned stormy on Saturday, guests used the carpets to cover muddy spots on festival grounds.
Off site but near festival grounds, Soho House Chicago teamed up with food website and mobile app the Infatuation to host an Ice Cream Social for festivalgoers on Friday. The event included a complimentary D.I.Y. sundae bar, where toppings inspired by the hotel's eateries included melon, basil, and bits of apple pie.
Outside at a mini market, guests could design their own parasols to take along to the festival on the hot, sunny day.
