After five weeks of tales packed with tangible tips from a 40-person event, Simon Thewlis of Event Pty Ltd is back to talk about the other end of the scale – a 40,000+ people event for Melbourne’s ANZAC Day. Event organising EAs, listen up!
“The Melbourne ANZAC Day event is completely different in terms of scale to the last event we discussed. But as you’ll see, the learnings are just as relevant for all events…”
A high-profile event with a large live audience and TV broadcast also demands seamlessness
This is especially the case with an event like ANZAC Day where perfection was also about showing respect for those who gave their lives or had served.
Look at the Dawn Service, for example. The Governor of Victoria is part of the official party and gives a short speech then lays a wreath in the Sanctuary of the Shrine of Remembrance. While none of this is complicated, it had to be perfect. So…
- We provided the Governor’s office with a highly detailed run sheet. It included the detailed description of all of the ceremonial aspects of the event well in advance.
- A couple of weeks out we stepped through the whole event on-site with the Governor’s staff. They learned what the Governor needed to do at a very detailed level. And where their key people needed to be at every step, including from a security perspective.
- A week before the event, the Governor and her entourage came on-site. We went through everything so she was comfortable.
You may feel some people are too important to rehearse or sound check – or they might. But that’s not the case.
Other things to note:
- There were tape marks on the floor showing where to stand at various times.
- And double-sided tape to stop the wreath from sliding down.
- There was a full production rehearsal with our own stage management team and key ANZAC Day people.
- All key people were linked together on the talkback system. This meant every single move was called and tracked by the show caller.
Remember: While it may seem a simple thing, physically stepping through the key parts of an event really helps ensure everyone knows what they should do – and feels comfortable doing it.
Detailed briefings for all involved (in advance of getting to the event site) is essential
Much of my last couple of weeks pre-event was spent going from one briefing to the next – emergency services, venue staff, production suppliers, infrastructure suppliers, stage management, volunteers, security, police and so on.
The aim? Everyone would be fully briefed before we started to build the site. Because I knew I’d have precious little time once on-site.
Some briefings were online. Others were stepping through the site – or even the whole event precinct. But all included talking through the key risks to the event, and emergency planning. Everyone was across what they needed to do if everything happened as planned – but also what to do in emergency situations.
We also:
- Had highly detailed briefing documents for each of the groups. This was critical.
- Did a quick final five-minute briefing once they were on-site on the event day – for some groups only. A quick recap like this can be invaluable.
Remember: Regardless of the event size, the organiser will always be busy on-site during it. The more that can be done to get everyone completely briefed beforehand makes a huge difference.
Tune in for the last instalment from Simon next week…
Also read The event organisation process you will refer to forever (part five) | Executive PA Media