How does a Midwest corporation elude arctic temperatures without losing the beauty of Wisconsin’s North Woods for their 25th anniversary celebration?  Step one: reserve conference space in a warm climate.  Step two: hire Production Plus to make the event happen. One privately held corporation did just that in January of this year. Production Plus helped them make their event happen in Nassau, the Bahamas at the sumptuous Atlantis Resort.

This corporation asked for dramatic scene changes for their event.  They wanted their show to open in a tropical paradise, then move to a replica of the company’s North Woods retreat in Wisconsin.  And, as with any corporate event, there were Production Plus’ usual list of priorities:

• Deploy an extraordinary gala
• Maintain budget
• Manage local labor contingencies
• Entwine the company philosophy into the event theme

Behind the Scenes
All the scenery, including a gazebo for the tropical scene, was built in the Production Plus shop in Burr Ridge, Illinois.  To capture the look and feel of the Midwest, a 50’ wide by 24’ high backdrop sporting pine trees and a serene forest lake was hand painted by Production Plus’ in-house scenic artist, John Archer.  The forest backdrop and approximately 56,000 pounds of production equipment were shipped to the Atlantis via sea container.

In Record Time
The initial installation required 16 hours of intense labor.  It is no mean feat to deploy 28 tons of scenery in that little time, but Production Plus made it look easy.  They took the time to prepare everything they could in advance. This kind of preparation helped during the show as well, when the balmy Bahamas scene had to transform into the North Woods of Wisconsin during a half-hour morning break.  There were other scene changes as well—dinner scenes and other minor scenic themes.  These were all completed in less than two hours, during breakout sessions and other breaks.

Highlights 1400 attendees enjoyed games for cash prizes, an awards celebration and a swank President’s dinner.  As a climax to the corporation’s celebration, the owner and his wife wowed the crowd with a magnificent entrance; they navigated their way through the center of the room to the stage on a 100th anniversary Harley Davidson motorcycle. All in all, the event was a huge success.  And Production Plus looks forward to helping them transport their clients to other exotic locales in years to come.