Marni and I attended the ISES Minnesota Star Awards on Friday evening. The event was held at the Children's Theatre Company, which I found to be a very pleasant venue for this type of event. After registering in the main foyer of the CTC and MIA, we went upstairs for a pre-ceremony reception of passed hors d'oeuvres and champagne. The expected crowd was 300 people (up 100 from last year!), and in this space you could really tell. But the mood was sunny and bright, with many fun, glam outfits, which definitely made up for the rainy weather outside.
The ceremony was held on the main stage of the CTC, with the first several rows completely filled with attendees. Comfortable, roomy seating with great sightlines of the stage. The ceremony opened with a video montage of ISES members talking about the importance of and the beginnings of the Star Awards. This was very interesting, I thought, to learn how many years the committee talked about doing an awards show before it actually came to fruition. The video was played on a long narrow screen that dropped down behind the presenter podiums. This is also where the nominees were listed before each winner was announced. A very nice touch.
The presenters, all familiar faces within the industry, were very well prepared and seemed relaxed to be up on stage. The winners gave thoughtful, and short, thank-you speeches, and they too seemed genuinely touched and not nervous to be on stage. In this regard, the Star Awards topped the Oscars, Grammys and Emmys, in my book. Of course, there were the necessary speeches of the nomination and judging processes, as well as the reading off of the sponsors. While they were necessary, these segments were quite long, so I think it was good planning to have them spaced throughout the ceremony. If they were at the end, you'd lose attention. (When planning our own event each year, this is always a point of the day that we're never sure where to place.)
Throughout the ceremony, little breaks were taken for entertainment. Either the envelope was presented in a unique way (on an alpaca (um...?), an ISES member rising from beneath the stage), or a fun Circus Juventas presentation of acrobatics and high-flying marvels. These touches definitely added a bit of a "wow" factor to the ceremony. I also thought one of the best parts of the ceremony was when, for the final award - Best ISES Team Effort - the Immediate Past President of ISES International and the President-Elect of ISES International were on hand to not only to help present the award, but to say some pretty wonderful things about our MSP Chapter. If you don't already know how on the cutting edge our event professionals are in this state, the fact that they're so on the International radar should tell you something.
All in all, a lovely ceremony that moved at a quick pace without any fumbles (that the audience noticed, at least). I know it seems like a given to be impressed by an event planned by event planners, but I really was. Very nicely done. And the after party, which Marni will write about, was also fabulous.
Congrats to all!
--Amanda Fretheim Gates
Managing Editor
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