Think you have an idea of what after-hours events at a professional conference typically are like? Does the phrase “evening reception” trigger images of a hotel ballroom and cheese cubes?
Well, get set to wake up your senses and shake up your expectations alongside the Detroit River on Opening Night of the PRSA 2008 International Conference. No ballroom. No cheese bits. No same-old.
Not long after workshops and master classes end on Sunday, October 26, it’ll be party time from 7–9 p.m. in the GM Wintergarden — a five-story atrium in the company’s Renaissance Center world headquarters complex, which also includes the Conference hotel.
This stunning location overlooks the Detroit River and Ambassador Bridge linking the city to its Canadian neighbor — Windsor, Ontario. Twinkling lights outline the span’s graceful cables, enhancing the elegant backdrop for a sophisticated evening.
Distinctive sights are just the first “wow” of a party with the theme “Fire and Ice — Heating Things Up in the D.” The mix includes the major label band Day26, stroll-around dining at food stations with Detroit-focused cuisine, and a club-like setting with lounge furniture. The event is being guest hosted by Detroit’s own “Coco” — a comedienne and WJLB-FM personality.
More about the lineup: Season 4 of MTV’s reality show Making the Band turned the five members of Day26 into Bad Boy Records artists signed by Sean “”Diddy”” Combs, the label’s boss. Their debut CD came out in March and now the rising artists will share their soulful sounds with PRSA and PRSSA partygoers.
That’s right, PRSSA Chapter members also can create points of connection at Opening Night. A low fee of $15 on top of their regular Conference registration lets future professionals attend the event for the first time in years — a chance to network and plug right into the Conference energy.
And while checking out the food, participants can learn about Detroit’s culturally diverse population. Selections will feature traditional fare from the area’s sizable Middle Eastern, Polish, Greek and Mexican communities — as well as “bumpy cake” and ice cream topped with hot fudge from Sanders Candy, a local institution dating back to 1875.
New connections and reconnections with professional contacts can extend past the riverside party, thanks to free shuttles to an “Afterflow” event for PRSA guests at the Ignite club in downtown’s MGM Grand Detroit casino.
The Opening Night event is included in the full Conference registration package and can also be purchased as a separate event for any day or other Conference registrations through PRSA. For registration information, click here or call (800) 350-0111.
See you at “Fire and Ice” in the Wintergarden, where we’ll change what you think you know about business conference receptions.
By Alan Stamm, member, PRSA Detroit Chapter’s Host Committee for the 2008 PRSA International Conference, is a marketing communication consultant in Birmingham, MI. He is a graduate of Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Public Communications.
Join Alan Stamm at the PRSA International Conference: The Point of Connection from October 25-28, 2008, in Detroit, MI!
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