Surprise Original Recessional Composition for our Wedding Client

Last month, we had a groom approach us with a very unique inquiry – he wanted the leader of the string trio performing at his wedding ceremony, Mads Tolling, to compose a recessional piece for his soon-to-be bride. The song was to be a surprise for the bride and played as the couple receded down the aisle.

After sitting down with the groom to learn more about the couple, Mads was able to create a beautiful composition performed by himself and the other members of the trio. This original song set the tone for the beginning of a unique and special marriage that this couple is sure to have.

By Kelsey Pavao, © Entire Productions

Entire Productions Feels the Love!

Typically we use our blog to share about our amazing talent, but so much has happened this year with staff achievements that we had to make one quick post about them!

MPINCC
Kelsey was recognized as a “Power Player” for her involvement in Meeting Professionals International Northern California Chapter (MPINCC) during the month of May. This put her in the nomination pool for the Meeting Professional of the 4th Quarter! In addition to attending chapter functions, she’s currently on the Marketing Committee for MPI overseeing the Twitter feed for the organization.

ISES NCC
It’s no secret that Entire Productions LOVES ISES NCC! This summer Natasha & Elise were busier than ever wearing their “ISES hats” heading up committees for the annual Gala. Natasha chaired the Marketing Committee and Elise co-chaired the Silent Auction Committee for the event. Elise was all smiles as she accepted an ISES Heart & Soul award for her work on the Membership Committee this year (the same award Natasha won last year, coincidentally!). For the 2013-2014 year, Elise will be on the Programs Committee and Natasha will once again be on the Board of Directors for the chapter and also the VP of Communications for ISES NCC.

ISES Live
Entire Productions’ hard work on the Glamouriety event put us in the running this year for the ISES Esprit Award. This award recognizes members who have excelled in their respective event field throughout the year with immense creativity and hard work. Our nomination category is for Best Entertainment Production - Budget $25,000-$75,000. The winner of the Esprit Award will be announced at this year’s ISES Live taking place in the Bahamas on August 24th. Natasha and Elise are both attending this year; Natasha for holding a position on the ISES NCC Board and Elise for winning this year’s scholarship to attend.


Cheers to the 2012-2013 year – we’re excited to see what the next year has in store!

Elise accepting the Heart & Soul Award
Photo courtesy of Colson Griffith Photography

By Kelsey Pavao © Entire Productions

The Spinsters Ball

The Spinsters of San Francisco is a community oriented social and philanthropic organization comprised of women who sponsor and raise funds for a designated local charity. For the 2012-2013 year, the members have chosen the San Francisco and Marin Food Banks to benefit from their fundraising efforts. The Annual Ball for members and their guests took place in the Fairmont Hotel Penthouse this month, and we were honored to be a part of it!

The Spinsters asked us to source a band for the first half of the event who is capable of performing sophisticated, background music and also fun, energetic, Top 40s hits. Without hesitation, we sent them the Night Fever band, and judging by the second picture below, guests enjoyed dancing along!

The second half of the night featured DJ Dylan Cahill who rocked the (Pent)house with his upbeat and clever mixes. He always knows how to draw a crowd!

When guests weren’t busting a move on the dance floor, they could sit down with Jamie Starzyk, an amazing tarot card reader, to peek into their future. Whether they sat down with Jamie alone or with their date, the young women of the Spinsters loved having this as an activity at the event!

Last but certainly not least, Entire Productions AV set the mood with uplighting in the Living Room while the dancers partied on.

Thanks to all of those in charge of putting on such a fabulous event and for having us be a part of it! We also thank Drew Altizer Photography for capturing some great shots of our talent.

Night Fever

Night Fever & dancing party guests

Jamie Starzyk - Tarot Card Reader

By Kelsey Pavao, © Entire Productions

Onsite Management: An Intern's Perspective

Entire Productions has been graced with the assistance of two bright interns for the past few weeks. After working onsite at their first event with our team two weeks ago, this is their story…


Last night we (Mary and Natalie) were lucky enough to join the wonderful Kelsey at the First Place for Youth Fundraiser at The Fox Theatre in Oakland. This nonprofit organization provides housing and supportive services to former foster youth throughout California, and celebrated their 15th year with a blowout event!

Mary arrived embarrassingly early and was informed by a burly man that the theater was closed for admittance. Too afraid to inform him that she was indeed working for the event, she scurried away and waited for someone with more authority than herself to arrive. Kelsey arrived shortly after and we began a walkthrough of the talent’s dressing rooms, making sure that all of their requests were handled. We had a few minutes before sound check was scheduled to begin so we helped the Samantha Smith Productions team drape linens onto the cocktail tables.

Sound check began with Pamela, a young woman who has benefited from the nonprofit’s services, practicing her success story. Then Maya Azucena and her band began sound checking their music. It was so much fun seeing how enthusiastic Maya is when she sings, even during a sound check! Vocal Rush, an a cappella group from Oakland School for the Arts, did their sound check next. Then Natalie arrived just in time to watch DJ Fuze and Zion I perform their sound checks. She was very excited to learn that Zion I is the same group who performs one of her favorite songs “Coastin’.” She was a little star-struck to say the least!

After sound check, we completed a typical intern task: running to the diner next door to get Kelsey and ourselves some dinner. After eating, we struck up a conversation with DJ Fuze, which ended in another food run. This time we went to the food trucks that the event provided for the guests and talent. There was an assorted selection of Indian food, empanadas, hamburgers, and cupcakes. We picked up a few Indian food selections for DJ Fuze and may or may not have grabbed some cupcakes for ourselves on the way back…

After giving DJ Fuze his food, we went into Vocal Rush’s dressing room to fetch them for their performance. They sang two songs, including one of our favorite country songs, “Need You Now” by Lady Antebellum and did a fantastic job! Then Pamela spoke about how First Place for Youth helped her after she was finished with the foster care system. Her speech was extremely moving and made us realize how lucky we are to have such supportive families and be a part of a great community. While Pamela was onstage, the MC started to encourage the crowd to text in donations and they were able to raise an astonishing amount to help local foster children.

Then DJ Fuze took the stage and played some great mash-ups such as “The Cupid Shuffle” and “I Feel Good”. We also watched an incredible performance by Maya from backstage.  As she was finishing up, we went downstairs to Zion I’s dressing room and informed the duo that they would be going on stage in a few minutes. It was so much fun to watch an artist from backstage that we actually knew!

After standing backstage for about 15 minutes, Kelsey said that we could join the guests on the dance floor and watch Zion I perform from the crowd. Zion I taught the crowd to slam our hands to the beat of the music, and we did this dance move for pretty much the rest of the night. After dancing for about 15 minutes, we returned backstage and assured that everything was going smoothly before catching the Bart train home. Overall, it proved to be a very successful evening and it was great to see the behind the scenes role that Entire Productions plays during events!

All photos below were taken by Mary, Natalie & Kelsey's super professional iPhones.

An artsy photo from backstage

Maya sound check

Vocal Rush sound check

DJ Fuze performance

Maya Azucena performance

A backstage look at Vocal Rush's performance

Zion I performance

Zion I & dancing party guests

Zion I dancing along to the beat

Zion I performance - great shot!

By Natalie Garrett & Mary Crowgey, © Entire Productions

Port of San Francisco's 150th Anniversary Gala

The Port of San Francisco celebrated their 150th year by hosting an exclusive gala at the Ferry Building last month. The theme of the night was “San Francisco: Past, Present, and Future”, and we were honored when Leftwich Event Specialists asked us to come aboard (pun intended) to provide the plentiful entertainment elements.

The event kicked off with a VIP reception in the Port Commission Hearing Room, where guests delighted in the Latin melodies of solo guitarist Q Morrow.

When the main event began one hour later, two stilt walkers in playful handmade nautical costumes greeted guests on the red carpet that lead up to the second floor of the Ferry Building. Gypsy jazz quartet, Le Jazz Hot, played high above the crowd on the upper walkway for the duration of the night while guests enjoyed light hors d'oeuvres and beverages.

Throughout the evening, guests had many interactive activities to choose from, including: have their portrait drawn in a different San Francisco era by caricaturist Rene Pulido, witness a mind-blowing magic trick by “sailor” MagiKai, have a wacky photo taken in the photo booth, and munch on Ghirardelli squares from two strolling “Chocolate Girls”.

The night also featured a performance from Leung’s White Crane Lion Dancers who meandered through the crowd as their percussions echoed throughout the building.

Jam-packed with activities and great company, the event truly captured the spirit of the city and the history of the Port’s 150 years. Special thanks to the teams at Leftwich and Davis & Associates - you were a blast to work with!

Q Morrow during the VIP Reception - Drew Altizer Photography

White Crane Lion Dancers - Drew Altizer Photography

White Crane Lion Dancers - Drew Altizer Photography

Caricaturist Rene Pulido - Drew Altizer Photography

Guests having fun in the photo booth - Drew Altizer Photography

"Sailor"/Magician MagiKai leaving guests in awe - Kelsey's iPhone

Le Jazz Hot Quartet performing on the walkway - Kelsey's iPhone

Nautical stilt walkers - Kelsey's iPhone

Ghirardelli Chocolate Girls - Kelsey's iPhone

By Kelsey Pavao, © Entire Productions

Bishop Ranch Holi Celebration 2013

The spring festival of Holi – which is celebrated by Hindus primarily in India and Nepal – was observed at the Bishop Ranch business park in San Ramon last month. This “festival of colors” traditionally involves the throwing of brightly colored powdered pigment to celebrate the onset of a joyous and vibrant spring season.

Bishop Ranch hosted the San Ramon community and neighboring East Bay cities to a free festival in one of their building’s parking lots on a sunny Friday afternoon. We were honored to be a part of such a fun and festive event, bringing in some of our best henna tattoo artists, a bindi artist, and face painters to treat the community to free body art. We also brought a talented and colorful Dhol drummer to play during the pigment throwing, which really set the tone for an exciting celebration. Our rockin’ DJ Raffy played contemporary Indian hits which quickly turned into a dance party for all!

Along with our talented artists and entertainers, Bishop Ranch brought in food trucks and a local Indian dance company who put on a great performance. Toss in some colorful pigment throwing and you have yourself a Holi celebration!

Many thanks to Bishop Ranch for bringing us on board for this first annual event – we look forward to next year’s!

Throwing of colors with Dhol Drummer

Dhol Drummer

DJ Raffy

Dance party courtesy of DJ Raffy's beats!

Henna Tattoo Artist

By Kelsey Pavao, © Entire Productions

SF80 Venue Launch

Formerly known as “RF80”, the Design District private venue space was recently renamed to “SF80” and Bartenders Unlimited celebrated the launch with a fabulous party for event industry professionals.

Upon arrival, guests were greeted with sparkling wine as they entered the venue decked out by Hartmann Studios, Enhanced Lighting and Well Rehearsed. The elaborate decor and lighting set the mood for an elegant charm with a touch of sass while guests filtered in and out of the vibrant vignettes and private rooms. With music bumping, courtesy of Denon & Doyle’s DJ, guests made their way to the food stations and in-house bars for some unique flavors.

Caterers for the event included Michi Catering, Carrie Dove Catering, Work of Art Catering, Jane Hammond Events, Small Potatoes, Cake Coquette and Sweet Lauren Cakes. Feeling well fed, guests enjoyed signature cocktails courtesy of Bartenders Unlimited.

An event just wouldn’t feel complete without a little bit of ENTERTAINMENT! We were proud to be a sponsor for the launch as we brought along talented caricaturist Laura Gilmore to draw her best portrait of the guests. She is spot-on with her drawings, and everyone had a blast with their keepsake caricature.

Many thanks to Bartenders Unlimited and SF80 for including us in this fabulous event, and thanks to Orange Photography for the below photos.

By Kelsey Pavao, © Entire Productions

Are You Ready To Rock?

Two of our bands, Moscow Radio and Strong Like Bull, joined the long list of iconic bands that have performed on The Fillmore stage when San Francisco Travel hosted their Partner Business Exchange in January. When considering which bands would be appropriate for us to sponsor for this event, we took into account the professionalism of the event, of course, but come on…it’s The Fillmore! So naturally we turned to good ol’ rock & roll for this event, and boy was it fun!

Both bands rocked the house while SF Travel partners danced, ate, and networked in the historical building. With a variety of food prepared by Global Gourmet Catering and refreshments provided by the venue, attendees spent the evening mingling with friends, old and new, while enjoying the rockin’ sounds of these two bands.

Special thanks to SF Travel for asking us to be a sponsor – we were happy to do it! Also, thanks to The Fillmore for hosting the group in their unique venue, and upholding the tradition of a basket full of apples in the lobby – our team definitely took a few on the way out…

Moscow Radio at The Fillmore

Strong Like Bull at The Fillmore

By Kelsey Pavao, © Entire Productions

Event Professionals Mixer - Roe

Founded by Erica Ota of Erica Ota Events, an ever-expanding group called Bay Area Event Professionals helps bring professionals in the industry together for a night of networking at a different venue every other month. January’s mixer was held at Roe in San Francisco who served as the catering sponsor as well as the venue sponsor.

We were more than excited when Erica asked us to sponsor the entertainment for the night. Who better to bring with us than one of our talented caricaturists, Zach Trenholm?

Guests quickly lined up for Zach to sketch his best rendition of them, and by the looks of it, he did a great job!

Thanks to Erica and Roe for hosting us at such a fun event! 

By Kelsey Pavao, © Entire Productions

Oakland City Center Tree Lighting 2012

The community of Oakland came together at the Oakland City Center last month to celebrate the holiday season during the annual Tree Lighting sponsored by the Center’s management company, CBRE.

Complete with cookie decorating, assorted holiday snacks, beverages courtesy of Fountain Café, and pictures with Santa and his elves, families delighted in holiday sounds from local talent.

The evening kicked off with a performance from a cappella youth ensemble Vocal Rush, who wowed the audience with harmonies and beat-boxing. Next up was SoVoSo, who never fails to impress a crowd with their unique spin on classics. Then, the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier from the Oakland Ballet Company made a featured performance showcasing their flexibility and graceful dance style. Last but not least, the Oakland Youth Chorus brought the community together as they sang “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” as Santa lit the tree!

The night was magical and entertaining as the community rejoiced in the holiday season. Special thanks to Rick Herns Productions for their fantastic holiday décor, and to Barbara Llewellyn Catering for providing tasty gingerbread cookies for cookie decorating.

The Entire Productions team helping out at the cookie decorating station

Santa & his elves

The Oakland Youth Chorus

Oakland City Center Tree Lighting 2012

By Kelsey Pavao, © Entire Productions