Cityscape Christmas 2019
Bring on the party, Cityscapers! Addington Cup Week kicks off the season we love to love, and we are sooo ready. We bring you all the deets on the biggest week in Christchurch’s social calendar. Important information like what the judges are looking for in The Crossing Fashion Starts Here Best Dressed Competition and stuff about the racing as well, like pointers on how to pick a winner. And thanks to Callam Mitchell and his team at Team Event, Addington Cup Week is just the start of party season. We talk to the promoter putting the icing on Christchurch’s cake this summer. Ladi6 is just one of the fantastic artists he is bringing to town, and we check in with her as well (that’s her gorgeous self on the cover). The days are counting down to Christmas and with that comes the fun and the challenge of finding the perfect gift for all those on your ‘Nice’ list. We live to serve here at Cityscape, and so we have served up a curated Christmas gift guide brimming with ideas fresh and failsafe. Nailing that pressy list is the best reason possible for heading to the central city and exploring its retail hotspots, followed by a drink and some nibbles, of course. We shine our spotlight on what’s new in the inner city, from retail meccas to the hottest hospo hangouts. And if 2020 is looking like the year to put a ring on it, check out our feature on the amazingly creative community of jewellers we have in this city. As always, we also bring you what’s hot in cuisine, events, home and couture.
Bring on the party, Cityscapers! Addington Cup Week kicks off the season we love to love, and we are sooo ready. We bring you all the deets on the biggest week in Christchurch’s social calendar. Important information like what the judges are looking for in The Crossing Fashion Starts Here Best Dressed Competition and stuff about the racing as well, like pointers on how to pick a winner. And thanks to Callam Mitchell and his team at Team Event, Addington Cup Week is just the start of party season. We talk to the promoter putting the icing on Christchurch’s cake this summer. Ladi6 is just one of the fantastic artists he is bringing to town, and we check in with her as well (that’s her gorgeous self on the cover). The days are counting down to Christmas and with that comes the fun and the challenge of finding the perfect gift for all those on your ‘Nice’ list. We live to serve here at Cityscape, and so we have served up a curated Christmas gift guide brimming with ideas fresh and failsafe. Nailing that pressy list is the best reason possible for heading to the central city and exploring its retail hotspots, followed by a drink and some nibbles, of course. We shine our spotlight on what’s new in the inner city, from retail meccas to the hottest hospo hangouts. And if 2020 is looking like the year to put a ring on it, check out our feature on the amazingly creative community of jewellers we have in this city. As always, we also bring you what’s hot in cuisine, events, home and couture.
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THE CROWD WHISPERER
pieces I had made in Vietnam while on
holiday there last year that don’t see the light
of day too often! We’re definitely encouraging
people to get into the theme of the event.
This year you are taking the Great Kiwi
Beer Festival to Hamilton – what are the
logistical challenges there? Obviously not
being on the ground is a bit different for us,
but Claudelands Events Centre is a fantastic
venue with great support staff, which makes
our job easier. A purpose-built venue also
doesn’t have the same logistical challenges
as staging a festival in Hagley Park. Our team
will spend about a week in Hamilton in the
lead-up to the festival and we have support
from people within the industry up there as
well. How do you choose the entertainment
lineup of each festival? It differs from show
to show. The Great Kiwi Beer Festival and
Wine & Food Festival for example have a mix
of newer artists as well as a strong heritage
act such as Dave Dobbyn or Dragon. With
Electric Avenue, 50 percent of our audience
is aged under 25, so the lineup is reflective of
this. We look at artists’ touring histories,
Spotify statistics, and a number of other
tools to gauge their popularity in our market.
We also like to throw a couple of really
unique acts into Electric Avenue each year
that are often quite unknown to our
audience. It’s these acts that can really
surprise a crowd and create those special
‘wow’ moments that leave a lasting
impression. Parov Stelar I think will be a real
standout at Electric Avenue next year –
we’ve been trying to secure them for five
years now. What’s the key to securing such
great talent for your festivals and events?
Building relationships with other festivals has
been key for the growth of Electric Avenue.
Working with other festivals and promoters
both in New Zealand and Australia enables
us to make strong offers to international
artists for a whole Australasian tour, which
would be very difficult to do on our own.
With so many amazing beer, wine and food
offerings throughout New Zealand, how do
you go about selecting what to showcase in
the Great Kiwi Beer Festival and South
Island Wine & Food Festival? We’ve got a
few wineries and breweries who come to the
festivals every year and people really like to
check in with their tried and tested
favourites, but we also like to find some new
brands and products to keep the festivals
fresh. Fortunately the whole team are
enthusiastic about great wine and craft beer,
so you could say that we’re committed to
research all year round! You’re known as
‘the crowd whisperer’ for your ability to
accurately predict how people will flow
through a festival or event space – how do
you do that? Is it all down to experience or
is there some instinct involved as well?
Haha, that’s the first time I’ve heard that
term! It’s probably a mixture of experience as
Left: Electric
Avenue. Right:
Nostalgia Festival.
46 CITYSCAPE.CO.NZ Christmas 19
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