At one of the largest fund-raisers in the city, nearly 2,000 people attended the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s 26th annual ball Saturday at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. After booking the night’s headliners, Jim Belushi and the Sacred Hearts Band and comedian Dana Carvey, organizers turned to the Internet for decor inspiration.
“Jim has a sort of bluesy feel to him, so we were trying to come [up] with a theme to complement that and decided on Saturday Night Blues,” said event producer Julie Hanson of Hanson Productions. “We then Googled images of jazz saxophone silhouettes, found one with this orange swoosh around him and loved it, so built everything around that.”
The image’s influence was evident throughout the reception and dinner spaces in everything from the linens and centerpieces to the lighting, additional entertainment, and printed collateral.
Here are the event decor, staging, catering, and entertainment highlights from the benefit.