Warriors and Artists

The artistry of Underground Circus

"Warriors and Artists" This is how the hosts of So You Think You Can Dance Canada described their top six dancers. They are correct. Performances of this magnitude take endless rehearsal, injuries and dedication to make it all seem effortless.

My children both have their black belts in Tae Kwon Do. Three years of diligent practice of both body and spirit so far in this journey. In their recent testing they excelled at both forms (the black belt form has 81 synchronized moves), board breaks and sparring. Warriors and Artists.

This is also how we can describe Event Designers and Producers. Recently a fabulous colleague, Brock (@BLDBrock) was sharing success from an event in Lake Louise which had been particularly fabulous, but like all events, simply a ton of work. Or in this case, tons and tons with multiple trucks going out for multiple events over a number of days. (Our team had just done an event with a similar amount of trucks the month before and fully appreciate the efforts of driving 1000km with everything, loading it in often through inconvenient pathways, and making it all gorgeous). This was his takeaway "You event girls are TOUGH! You are mothers and lifters and moves and designers and you get right to work and you don't stop until it is perfect - whatever it takes". Warriors.

Each event we do also has to be aesthetically right. Right for the venue, right for the client, right especially for the guests. Artists.

We are perfectionists, logisticians, creators, budgeters, innovators, rule-shakers. We take on a challenge and we refuse to accept average. Artists. With our teams we begin the load in and work for 8 or 12 or 36 hours to get everything right, then rehearsals, then change into event clothes, welcome the guests, watch them have an excellent time, and then strike to do it all again another day. Warriors.

Giving each event thoughtful attention to details, engaging the suppliers to share the story and deliver beyond expectations - this to me is what brings the magic to what we do. The hours can be long and the work arduous, but when you see a well designed event come to life and guests share, learn, connect, enjoy and clients' objectives achieved, that is when this Artist Warrior stands back and smiles.