BIZBASH CALL SHEET — #49 — Thursday, 06.30.11
Compiled today by Chad Kaydo in New York
Feed the Sheet: [email protected]
Subscribe: http://info.bizbash.com/callsheet.html
* INCOMING *
1. POP-UP CLUBS: New York Times: "Pop-up clubs—temporary parties in nontraditional party spaces—are having a moment. With nightclubs facing a citywide crackdown stemming from community complaints over issues like noise, party promoters have had to be a little creative…In recent months, pop-up clubs have taken over dim sum parlors, Brooklyn restaurants, strip clubs, Midtown offices, vacant warehouses, waterfront parks, school playgrounds and even a laundromat (complete with towel-clad bartenders and detergent-themed drinks)."
http://nyti.ms/lXTMeL
2. CELEBRITY CHARITY MYTHS: "Not-for-profits tend to approach Hollywood with an array of misplaced or incomplete perceptions about who celebrities are, how they should be used, and what they can accomplish," says Fast Company in a look at the myths of celebrity-charity relations. Here are three of the five:
* Celebrities are interchangeable—as long as you get someone famous, you're golden.
* It's impossible to have a real relationship with a star.
* Celebrities are airheads: Beware any ideas they offer.
http://bit.ly/leudGc
3. WHY PEOPLE "FRIEND" BRANDS: Survey says: "the No. 1 reason consumers follow brands on Twitter, Facebook and Myspace is for special offers and deals. A large percentage, around 30 percent for Facebook and Myspace, also follow brands simply because they’re current loyal customers." Hollywood Reporter:
http://bit.ly/kfyQDX
Infographics from survey source Get Satisfaction:
http://bit.ly/myrM6Q
4. REVIEWING NEW CIRQUE SHOW: Cirque du Soleil opened its new show, "Zarkana," last night at Radio City Music Hall, where it's booked until the fall in an attempt to create a franchise in New York. So what did the critics think of the latest from the troupe, which has been influencing event entertainment for more than a decade?
Post: "while this is no slip-up like the Cirque's "Banana Shpeel," it offers little we haven't seen before."
http://nyp.st/jAhkqm
News: "Even though there's always something to look at, the wow! factor comes and goes like a traveling salesman. The acts, while polished, are mostly familiar."
http://nydn.us/j1qeqo
Times: "essentially a traditional company presentation outfitted in extra layers of lavish digital technology and lush, exotic art direction."
http://nyti.ms/kKfvfW
(The Times review also links to videos and a slide show.)
5. FIRST REVIEWS FOR GOOGLE+: The search giant launched its new invite-only social networking venture yesterday, and The Hollywood Reporter has a roundup of the early opinions:
http://bit.ly/jX7YGf
* INDUSTRY ORG NEWS *
The leaders of four exhibitions and events industry associations Wednesday announced an "All-Exhibition Industry Summit" will take place in October. The leaders of ASAE, ESCA, IAEE, and SISO will invite two elected leaders from associations active in the exhibitions and events industry in the U.S. The purpose: "creating a set of Guiding Principles that will define industry best practices."
http://bit.ly/jqZnQW
* LOCAL NEWS *
AUSTIN: The city council voted to move forward with a convention-style Marriott Marquis downtown, just three blocks from the Austin Convention Center. The hotel will be the city’s largest, with 1,003 guest rooms and 103,000 square feet of meeting and event space. Construction is slated to begin in early 2012 and will take around 32 months.
http://bit.ly/iLibev
CHICAGO: In honor of Sprinkles Cupcakes' first anniversary in Chicago, the company's mobile bakery, the "Sprinklesmobile," will be in town July 11-24, doling out 1,000 free cupcakes each day. On July 21, owner Candace Nelson will greet customers at the shop.
SmartWater's Wanderlust Yoga in the City will hit up Grant Park July 19. Part of a seven-city promotion, the event will include an outdoor yoga class with music from DJ Lady D and a lounge sponsored by the water brand.
http://bit.ly/l9hggb
LAS VEGAS: Caesars Entertainment has a new program called Total Experiences, which offers customization and planning services for group travel. The service is complimentary when booking five or more rooms.
LOS ANGELES: Cee Lo Green is playing a free show to mark the opening of Universal CityWalk's new "5 Towers" concert venue July 7. CityWalk's largest expansion in over a decade, "5 Towers" opens July 1 with a 31- by 24-foot stage complete with thousands of LED fixtures, motion capture sensors, five 42-foot light tower sculptures, and a giant video monitor. Hollywood Reporter:
http://bit.ly/mmL2Z2
MIAMI: 5 Napkin Burger is adding Saturday and Sunday brunch starting this weekend.
Graffiti Gone Global, an exhibit of international graffiti and street artists that takes place during Art Basel, is launching its first satellite show, called the Pop-Up. Described as a showcase of artists from the last four years of shows, the Pop-Up runs July 15 to August 21 at ArtCenter/South Florida. There will be an opening reception July 16 with food from SushiSamba dromo and cocktails from Leblon Cachaça. PR: Treskoi Public Relations.
NEW YORK: Contributor Jim Shi reports: Produced by Van Wyck & Van Wyck's brand experience division at Doris Duke's former home, Tuesday afternoon's show for Salvatore Ferragamo's resort 2012 collection marked a number of firsts: The 300-person presentation was the label's debut showing in the U.S., and the first time a fashion event has taken place in the Upper East Side mansion, which now houses New York University's Institute of Fine Arts. (A spokesperson for Ferragamo confirmed no monetary funds were exchanged for the access as two of members of the Ferragamo family are graduates of N.Y.U.)
Eater takes a look at the new Copacabana, in the former China Club space:
http://bit.ly/iOLwD3
ORLANDO: Yelp is hosting a free "Fire and Ice Gala" at the Heaven Event Center July 7. Sponsors include Vitamin Water, Honest Tea, Grand Touring Vodka, Cocktails Catering, and Cake Shooters.
http://bit.ly/mJ37Vs
Alexander Reyes is the new executive chef at the InterContinental Tampa.
Reyes had been executive sous chef at the Loews Portofino Bay Hotel at
Universal Orlando Resort.
The opening of the Four Seasons hotel at Walt Disney World is now delayed until early 2014. The Toronto-based hotelier first announced the project in 2007 and it was originally scheduled to open in 2010. The Orlando Sentinel:
http://thesent.nl/iOja8X
TORONTO: The Star looks at the potential impact of New York's same-sex wedding law on Toronto's gay wedding business:
http://bit.ly/kQZOys
YOUR NEWS: What are you doing? Tell us: [email protected].
* FEEDBACK LOOP *
Jon B. Fisher, C.E.O. of CrowdOptic—the augmented reality company mentioned in yesterday's Call Sheet #48—wrote in yesterday morning (and four times later in the day) asking for a follow-up after we said his press release "sounds a little too good to be true." We didn't think this warranted a rebuttal, but we like when people respond to the Call Sheet. So here's his explanation of how the product works:
"Our system on smart phones senses when you and at least 1 other user raise phones to live action as is the case when you're taking a picture or video. In this way we establish triangulation (as a function of gps, compass heading and other attributes) on the live action. Using just native phones, we can track moving objects (e.g. Athletes) and put tags on them. And where this really gets interesting is we can communicate to our paying customers (event organizers) in real time what fans are focusing on and that changes live broadcasting."
Does it work as easily as the press release implies? We still don't know, but we're interested to see where this goes.
With contributions from Jenny Berg in Chicago, Alesandra Dubin in Los Angeles, Mitra Sorrells in Orlando, Carla Warrilow in Toronto, and Erica Petri, Anna Sekula, and Courtney Thompson in New York.
BizBash Call Sheet is the must-read daily digest of event industry news from BizBash.com.
Feed the Sheet: [email protected]
Subscribe: http://info.bizbash.com/callsheet.html
