Convene at the Movies: The King's Speech

Congratulations to last night's Academy Award winner for Best Picture -- The King's Speech. So, by the way, anyone notice the event that kicks the movie's plot into gear? It's a speech that Prince Albert gives -- or tries to give -- at the closing of the British Empire Exhibition in 1925. This is how the movie chooses to demonstrate the scope of the future King George VI's stuttering problem: He can't properly address the crowd at an exhibition! It's something that the real-life figure would struggle with for years -- as you'll see (and hear) in the newsreel above, which shows George VI speaking at the 1938 British Empire Exhibition in Glasgow. A neat piece of history in its own right, but also a pretty cool indicator of the ceremonial power of public events.

Event Management 101: The Oscars

Cheryl Cecchetto, who for the last 21 years has produced the Governors Ball that follows the Academy Awards, has an approach to managing guests that will be familiar to any meeting professional who has faced crowds of hungry, thirsty, seat-sprung attendees. From the Los Angeles Times:

Starting with the basics, Cecchetto knows to get a drink in guests' hands right away because "they need to be doing something -- it makes them more comfortable." There should be quiet music in the background because complete quiet makes people uncomfortable. And the food should be immediately available for the hungry hordes who've been sitting at the award show for at least three hours, and very likely four. The party planner has commissioned 30 banquettes for the evening at which the expected 1,500 guests can gather and get conversations flowing.

I should stress: I do not think that meeting planning is just another form of party planning. But crowd control is crowd control. And tell me this doesn't bring to mind images of your general session letting out, or the cocktail reception before your awards dinner getting underway.