Production People Profiled The business of temporary outdoor staging can be seen as a bit, well, temporary to some, what with the seasonal nature of outdoor events. It’s certainly what Abbey Thomas found when she applied for a summer temp job at Serious Stages in 2013 which, at the time, was just a local company with a job that might provide a little extra income while Abbey was studying for a degree in Maths and Sports Science. Little did she know that the experience would provide the foundation for a full-time role and a rise through the ranks to Operations…
Author: Andy Lenthall
As the sun set on the final evening of Underneath the Stars Festival at Cinderhill Farm, Barnsley, the lionesses have just won the Women’s EUROs to tumultuous applause in front of a giant TV, and Suzanne Vega brought the house down as the third in a hattrick of leading female headliners, at the 2022 festival. It’s been a packed weekend of thrills and spills for the hugely popular, family-friendly, music and arts festival. From weddings to street theatre, from glitter face-painting to the gleaming surfaces of a full brass band, and even interviews and talks with leading actors and comedians,…
The early bird tickets to next year’s 26th HebCelt festival, set in Stornoway, Isle of Lewis, have attracted unprecedented demand and sold out in a record-breaking four and a half hours. The festival, which is set to run over 12-15 July 2023, has sold its full quota of early bird tickets. The tickets which were frozen at 2022 prices provide access to the HebCelt Main Arena and were snapped up by eager festival goers both locally and from around the world, including from Germany, Australia, Canada, the USA and New Zealand. This follows on from the success of the festival’s…
They may not be festivals but they certainly do provide the platform to nurture the next generation of DJ talent, so the latest research from CGA showing that the past 3 years have reduced the number of nightclubs in the UK to 1130 is of concern to many. The Midlands and North have been hardest hit, with some key independent businesses being lost, all of which play a significant role in supporting the wider The Night Time economy which generates £112 billion in revenue per annum. The research shows that The culmination of pandemic debt, growing energy bills, workforce challenges,…
Under the leadership of Kedist Bezabih, Goodlive is reorganising its booking team for the splash! Festival, Bezabih also takes on the role of Head of Music International Rap Festivals & Touring. The Berlin-based concert and festival agency Goodlive will be reorganizing its Rap & Rn’B team in August. Bezabih, who was previously with FKP Norway, will take over as Head of Booking for the splash! festival. At Goodlive Artists, the touring division of Goodlive, Kedist will also take care of the tour bookings for many international artists in the future. Her global network, musical understanding and her many years of…
Meshh, the location-based intelligence and interaction specialist, will be deploying its spatial analytic services at the ExCeL London on July 30 – 31, for the 2022 London E-Prix, after a successful weekend at the 2022 New York City E-Prix on July 16. Meshh has been working with the Formula E Events and Insights teams to measure and evaluate visitor movements at The ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, having previously attended the 2022 New York City E-Prix, July 16 -17, to help understand on-site fan experience and pedestrian traffic around the circuit. Jessica Pomfret, account director at Meshh, explained, “We…
The Showman’s Show will host the fifth annual Vision: 2025 conference, with a new title: The Sustainable Events Summit, on Wednesday 19th October 2022, with a free-to-access, expanded programme of talks and interactive sessions. The Sustainable Events Summit 2022 aims to shape climate action for the UK’s outdoor event industry, bringing together event leaders, policy makers, suppliers and experts to exchange ideas and consider future standards, launch new resources, and discover innovations. PROGRAMME HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE: ‘The Future of Festival Sustainability,’ presenting a standardised ‘Green Events Code’ for delegate feedback, what policies and frameworks are available and exploring how the industry can move…
ASM Global, the producer of entertainment experiences, venue management and event strategy, has announced a new partnership with the leader in weapons detection security screening, Evolv Technology (NASDAQ: EVLV). The implementation of the state of the art technology by ASM Global will enhance venue safety and security, as well as improve the customer experience by reducing queues and offering a seamless and swift arrival to the venue. AO Arena, Manchester, operated by ASM Global, is the first arena in Europe to use Evolv’s cutting edge technology as part of ASM Global’s £50m investment into the venue, widely recognised as one…
Easol, the leading experience commerce technology company, launched by former festival founders, Lisa and Ben Simpson in 2017, is announcing the launch of a new all-in-one festival toolkit that they claim will transform the ability of festival organisers to run profitable festivals and deliver a gold-standard customer experience. Easol will be bringing together festival organisers from around the world at its online Showcase event to dive into the challenges facing the industry today and how the new toolkit can help to tackle these and create new opportunities to future proof their festival business. The go on to say that Festival…
A Greener Festival’s (AGF) CEO Claire O’Neill has put together some useful tips on how festival fans can all do their bit for the environment and do festivals more sustainably. It’s a great set of pointers for festivals to cut and paste into their own FAQs: 1.Choose the greenest way to travel Plan your green travel. Up to 80% of festivals CO2 emissions can be audience travel. Choose as low carbon as possible such as train, coach or cycling! Often there are packages to take the bus to the festival with fellow revellers, so why not start the party in…