For a highly visual—and Instagram-friendly—photo opp, social media prompts served as props against a grassy wall decorated with Veuve bottles at the fourth annual Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic at Will Rogers State Historic Park in Los Angeles on October 5. Working with Veuve director of communications Christine Kaculis, BrownHot Events produced the event once again with the chic, subtly branded details that characterize the annual sporting event.
In an effort to find an innovative way to encourage tweeting at AT&T-sponsored events, Team Epic worked with Brightline Interactive to develop what it calls a “Twitter balloon”: a balloon six feet in diameter connected to an air compressor that is activated by tweets with a particular hashtag. “There are a lot of Twitter walls that show tweets as they come in, but this performs a physical action and it happens within less than a second,” said Andrew Knutson, manager for Team Epic. “As soon as you tweet, you hear the air going to the balloon, which is pretty cool. You’ll see crowds forming, especially as the balloon gets bigger.” AT&T unveiled the balloon at the N.C.A.A. Final Four men's basketball championship last spring and has since used it at events such as the Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival in San Francisco, the College World Series in Omaha, CMA Music Festival in Nashville, and Music Midtown in Atlanta. Signage at the events encourages attendees to tweet with a particular hashtag. Each tweet triggers a burst of air into the balloon, and the person whose tweet causes the balloon to pop wins a prize such as an AT&T phone.
For a memorable photo opportunity, Mashable created its own wrecking ball as tribute to Miley Cyrus and the controversial music video for the song "Wrecking Ball." Participants signed waivers and posed for photos on the swinging globe marked with the Mashable logo.
3M encouraged attendees to contribute ideas using the hashtag #3MIdeaExchange. With each tweet, a balloon filled with a little bit of air. The person whose tweet caused the balloon to pop won $500.
The three-lane, three-story, neon-lit slide at IFC’s carnival allowed three people to glide down on burlap sacks. For those not partaking in the ride, there was a spot where they could take selfies.
The company's biggest annual fund-raiser, typically held in the winter, was known as "Spectacle Lunatique." And it was always full of surprises. At the 2008 event, a strange performance featured Redmoon performers pulling faces behind window panes.
At the next year's event, a Redmoon actor poured drinks from his perch atop the theater's wine bike—a machine with an umbrella of rotating glasses. The company offered the machine for hire, and it appeared (with an attendant) at several Chicago events.
Also at the 2009 gala, performers dressed as pregnant women opened papier-mâché bellies to reveal tiny puppet shows.
As guests arrived to the 2010 event, performers wearing giant fists cheered them on and shouted "ooh" and "aah."
The company routinely offered innovative ideas for food presentation. At its 2011 fund-raiser, a performer lay in a bathtub covered with a pool of candlelit wine bottles. Two trays at the side of the tub held hors d'oeuvres such as deviled eggs.
The company's "Spinning Vehicles" were rolling platforms with elevated, performer-activated, rotating vignettes including a tilted bathtub with a bather. The tropes appeared at the 2012 fund-raiser.
On highboy tables throughout the general receptions space, unusual centerpieces included flowers and bits of machinery sprouting from patches of grass. Other tables held jars filled with tiny winged ladders.
With the "Teapot Libation Machine," a Redmoon performer wore a metal backpack with an extended arm that held a porcelain teapot at its end. The teapot, mechanically operated by a switch on the performer's wrist, poured cocktails into guests' glasses.
A trio of roving characters in illuminated swan headdresses made their way throughout the event space. By moving their arms, the performers made the ghostly swans appear to fly.
Redmoon's musical entertainment was far from standard. Referred to as the "drum cart," a three-tiered, pedal-powered contraption held several percussion instruments. At the 2013 benefit, drummers dressed in bird masks and feathery headdresses commandeered the instruments as they rode the cart through the warehouse space.
The 2014 event showcased fresh ideas for raising money. A series of "give and get" experiences treated guests to Redmoon-style activities after paying for the opportunity via BidPal. One such experience was called the "Bearthday Party," which let guests celebrate their birthday (whether or not it was their actual birthday) on stage with a bear and a clown. Other treats included a cupcake with a sparkler and a birthday serenade. The experience ended with an explosion of confetti from the theater's so-called confetti cannon. "It was like your own personal celebration of you," said a rep for the theater company, after the function.
Another experience, given to guests who bid $1,000 (including Mayor Rahm Emanuel, pictured), was a 10-minute dinner prepared by Schwa chef Michael Carlson. Along with the rapid meal, bidders were treated to a private opera performance and champagne service from the theater's champagne chandelier. Dishes included melon with carbonated peaches, short ribs with dehydrated corn, and a caramel-apple-style dessert.
An amenity that was offered to all guests: snacks from the "Cyclone Grill." Stationed at the entrance to the event, the fixture contained 16 grills donated by Weber. At the start of the night, the grills held roasted pig, plantains, and black beans. Later in the evening, the grills held slices of pizza.
A costumed bear nodded to the theater's upcoming spring spectacle, "Bellboys, Bears, and Baggage." At the event, guests could bid $50 to play pool with the bear. Those who beat the bear at the game won a six-pack of beer.
The company also hosted events for holidays such as Halloween and Labor Day. The theater described its Joyous Outdoor Event—which took over Lakeview's South Belmont Harbor park over Labor Day weekend in 2010—as “a spectacular festival of performance, live music, and art for ordinary Joes and average Janes of all ages.” Lines formed outside the Luminarium, a cocoon-like, dimly lit structure from British company Architects of Air. Billed as "an inflatable, walk-in sculpture,” it contained a maze of glowing areas.
Described as a “skeletal spectacle,” Redmoon Theater’s 2012 Halloween party in Chicago featured dozens of the bony Halloween icons, and planners created unique ways to combine food and entertainment. At a s’mores station, two performers in lingerie and face makeup warmed chocolates over candles in a bathtub; blowtorches were used to sear the marshmallows.
Redmoon also threw parties to welcome in the New Year. At the 2013 gathering, aerialists in giant swaths of silk manned "sky trays" that held items such as strawberries and grapes.
The performers swooped down on silk swaths to drop the fruits into guests' mouths.
