Wednesday, June 15, 2011

The Return of Slim Jim

Welcome back Ladies and Gents, I'm sure this blog has been more heavily anticipated then the 7th Harry Potter book, and with out further ado…We begin…with a recap.

Now as you all know MTA Entertainment and Events has taken me on in a placement role to help with the upcoming Melbourne Events Showcase happening on Wednesday 29th and Thursday the 30th at the Royal Exhibition Building.

During the showcase we will be putting on acts the likes of…
·        Tim Campbell (Emcee), whom you may know from Home and Away, Dancing with the Stars, or his role as Johnny O'Keefe in Shout!
·        Musical acts including Pot Pourri, Sarah Taylor Jazztet and Maske.
·        Acrobatic acts Rockie Stone performing with chairs and champagne bottles (The possibilities are scarily exciting) and Matt Hughes (the man with the trampolining family)
·        Comedy act Rusty and Another Guy, also known as the artist formally known as Prince…I mean half of the Scared Weird Little Guys.
·        Then last but most definitely not least…Make an Entrance, showing us how to arrive with style

And so we enter the pre-event stage - the majority of planning has been done, now it needs to be implemented. This means that in the coming weeks life will become a learning experience. By this I mean one can only learn so much from a book, in terms of what will work and what won’t on the day. What can be planned and what needs flexibility. How to interact with the different groups that will be there from fellow event organizers, acts and any potential clients. What can (and should) be prioritized and why. So many little details that need to be thought of and dealt with in a timely manner that most people wouldn't even have realised was an issue.

Which is where all the planning, preparation and dedicated hard work will come into play. Accounting for these sort of things is what we are taught to in Events Management, and from what I have witnessed MTA do. It is one thing to be told this, it is another thing entirely to witness it and put it into action.

To quote Shakespeare:
Do not, as some ungracious pastors do,
Show me the steep and thorny way to heaven,
Whiles, like a puff'd and reckless libertine,
Himself the primrose path of dalliance treads.
And recks not his own rede

I read this quote the other day and was thinking about it - the idea that it’s not always easy, but the best way is often the hardest. It is not an appealing idea but one that we must all learn at some point. Planning for all outcomes and variables may seem tedious, but at some stage or another I guarantee it will pay dividends.

And so we finish this week of on a sentimental note for myself. I am fast approaching graduation from my course, we have learnt lots, and most likely forgotten twice as much. However, the Event industry is a lifestyle and occupation all unto itself. So many things, without meaning to will turn into events, including markets, sports games, presentations and so so much more. My bit of advice if you’re reading this and have the slightest of inclinations to go into the industry, is to do so and you won’t regret it.

Until next week,

Slim Jim