Bravo’s new series, Around the World in 80 Plates, took the culinary competition across the globe, with layovers in exotic destinations that included Morocco, Thailand and Argentina.

To celebrate its debut season and to provide a sneak peek into the highly-anticipated finalé episode, Bravo engaged Empire to design and produce an original event to transport guests around the world.

In response to the client's brief to create an event that would transport guests throughout the evening to different locations around the world, Empire developed a plan to transform the cocktail party space by building three large circular turntable stages—each decorated with three foreign vignettes—that rotated on cue with dancers, live musicians and of course, delicious food from around the world.

The first hour featured a scene of the French countryside set with cheese & charcuterie boards, a “fiery” brick pizza oven in Italy and live flamenco guitarists in Barcelona’s Plaza Real. Speciality cocktails, peach prosecco bellinis & Spanish tapas-inspired hors d’oeuvres were also passed to guests.

A duet by flamenco dancers focused the crowd as the lead-in to executive remarks and a sneak peek reel for the show’s upcoming finale. Hosts Curtis Stone & Cat Cora took the stage to unveil the “journey” around the world, commencing with a spirited Chinese lion dance that wove through the crowd. Guests were then delighted as the French vignette rotated to reveal a Hong Kong dumpling stand. Italy turned into a tropical beach serving Thai satay & noodles and Barcelona simultaneously transformed into India, complete with the sounds from sitar and tabla musicians. By the time guests were onto their 2nd helping of cocktail-of-the-hour Mango Mumbai, DJ Aaron James began to drop in Punjabi beats and a troupe of Bhangra dancers poured into the room for a choreographed Bollywood routine.

For the third act, Brazilian samba percussionists emerged from the back of the room as the stages rotated once more, this time revealing Morocco dishing up savory falafel and Buenos Aires serving assorted spicy empanadas. A duo of capoeira dancers tumbled & sparred by the stage -- now a lively street scene from Brazil set with shimmering streamers and bistro lights. To continue to spice up the evening, a pair of alluring dancers, dazzling in sparkles & feathered headdresses, took to the floor to top off the grand Carnival finale.

In addition to all of the live entertainment, Empire designed interactive games for adventurous guests. At the “Guess & Flip” game, contestants were presented with a wall of photos from foreign locales visited on the show and were asked to guess the country. At “Taste the Exceptional Ingredient,” blindfolded participants had to touch, smell or taste mystery ingredients to test whether their palate knew its exotic flavors.

All of the evening’s vignettes were fully designed with a mix of prop scenery, authentic furniture, and fresh cut flora & foliage. While France featured a floor of live grass, the beaches of Thailand were powdery white sand. Guests even jumped onto the vignettes as the evening progressed, enjoying the spirit of the evening that only comes from great food and music.Every component of the evening contributed to a completely immersive and international experience, as guests were able to taste the cuisine, touch the vignettes, hear live musicians, and see vibrant dance performances.Empire Entertainment provided full event production services including concept development, décor design and renderings, event layout, live entertainment, run-of-show development, graphic design, catering coordination, audio/visual management, logistics, and onsite management.

Empire was thrilled to once again work with Bravo, who constantly pushes event-innovation to deliver memorable experiences for clients and fans.

One of the toughest challenges when selecting a business speaker is finding someone with truly global appeal. Empire was presented with such a challenge by a global technology company, who looked to present a speaker that would appeal to an audience comprised of attendees from over 140 countries. To answer this challenge, Empire recommended a speaker that Time magazine heralds as one of the top 100 heroes and icons of the century, the founder of The Chopra Foundation and the Chopra Center for Wellbeing, Dr. Deepak Chopra. As an author of more than 65 books, that have been translated into 35 languages and sold more than 20 million copies worldwide, Dr. Chopra’s international recognition and profile as “one of the pre-eminent leaders of the mind-body-spirit movement” were the perfect fit. In the center of an audience of over 12,000 people at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Canada, Deepak Chopra circled the stage as he delivered a 15-minute keynote and participated in a 10-minute moderated Q&A discussion with a company executive, where he covered the topics of Leadership, Spiritual Solutions: Answers to life’s great challenges, and The Future of Wellbeing . The Future of wellbeing speaks to the world as it is today and the importance of wellbeing in all aspects of life: Spiritual, Physical, Economic, Career and Social. One of the highlights of the presentation was when Dr. Chopra spoke on the impact of digital and social media and the impact it is having on our wellbeing, which really rang true to the global technology audience that surrounded him. Following his presentation, Dr. Chopra participated in a meet & greet session with VIP guests and client senior management. Empire handled the negotiation and contracting of Dr. Deepak Chopra’s services, coordination of all logistics, including precision international arrival and departure planning between Dr. Chopra’s teaching schedule in Chicago, and his radio show in New York, as well as all onsite management.Empire is proud to present many of the world’s leading speakers and is a leading source for keynote speakers of global stature.

Following a successful installation in Los Angeles, renowned advertising firm Crispin Porter & Bogusky turned to Empire to recreate a unique consumer promotion for their client Old Navy in New York City & Tokyo. With well-established offices in both cities and a strong background in producing consumer-facing stunt activity in high traffic areas, Empire was the perfect activation partner for this project.

The purpose of the 3-city event was to generate public awareness of the Old Navy brand as the trendsetter in summer fashion and footwear.

The concept for the project was to create a giant, 10 ton ice cube with hundreds of colorful Old Navy flip-flops frozen inside. Through the course of the hot summer day, the ice would melt, thus freeing the flip-flops for the public to take. In New York, Empire took over the north side of East 17th Street at Union Square to install the mammoth 7' square block of ice. During the course of the day, thousands of passersby interacted with the ice block and got into the spirit of summer by participating in hula hoop competitions for prizes.In New York Empire assisted provided all onsite production supervision and staffing. Empire also assisted with venue selection, coordinated with the ice vendor, staffed and trained a team of brand ambassadors, produced custom 4-sided signage and provided onsite management of the event.In Tokyo, the event coincided with the grand opening of the first Old Navy store in Japan -- at Odaiba's premier shopping mall DiverCity Tokyo Plaza. Building the ice block at this prime location garnered an thousands of interactions and brand impressions over the course of the day. Empire's New York City and Tokyo offices oversaw every aspect of the Tokyo event including venue selection & acquisition, sourcing of and coordination with the local ice vendor, staffing and training a team of brand ambassadors, production of custom 4-sided signage, event budgeting, translation, cultural consulting, and onsite management of the event. Empire also worked closely with the Old Navy and Gap Japan clients to ensure effective communication amongst all parties in the United States and Japan.With abundant international resources, Empire Entertainment is a proven leader of executing innovative, consumer-face brand marketing projects across worldwide markets.

2012 marked the second year of Empire's partnership with Games for Change, and the ninth year of the G4C festival, itself. This year, festival-goers enjoyed more than 50 presentations — over three days and in four different venues — staged by the game industry's best and brightest. Outside the various conference rooms and auditoriums, presenters and attendees mingled and matched. Highlights of the 2012 Games For Change Festival included an awards ceremony honoring the best socially-conscious games of the year, an arcade where attendees could play the nominated games, and a keynote presentation by Atari founder and one of "The 50 Men Who Changed America", Nolan Bushnell.Games for Change is the leading global advocate for the development of games that contain and promote educational and social messaging. The Games For Change Festival is the cornerstone in the organization's event calendar.Empire is a leading producer of festival and not-for-profit programs.

To support the fast-growing music subscription service, Spotify, Empire again worked the Spotify press team to produce an innovative event in Los Angeles at West Hollywood’s Andaz Hotel.Hosted by recording artist and Spotify Artist-in-Residence, D.A. Wallach, the event would draw attention to announce the release of Spotify's Artists Apps, allowing users to navigate through the extensive 16 million song library by choosing options hand-picked by artists and music experts.

One of the newly-released Artists Apps was curated by the multi-Grammy winning-producer, Quincy Jones. In attendance for the launch was the man himself. Bruno Mars led a discussion with the legendary Jones about his decades-in-the making catalog and creative processes. Quincy spoke to the intimate crowd of 200 about his upbringing and his illustrious career.Closing out the event was a performance from 10-year-old piano prodigy, Emily Bear, hand selected by Jones as a rising star in the music industry.

Empire is the leading producer of innovative product launches and announcements and is a leading event marketing agency to some of today’s fastest-growing Internet and media brands.

More than 1,000 people stopped by Openhouse Gallery in NoLIta, New York to check out “The 2012 Korea Cosmetic Bliss,” a pop-up event showcasing top Korean cosmetic brands and healthcare services. The Korea Health Industry Development Institute (KHIDI), a Korean Government Agency based in New York City, partnered with Empire Entertainment to host this one-day event introducing Korea’s leading beauty products and services to the fashionable New Yorkers. The Korean companies that were introduced at this event were AMOREPACIFIC, LG Household & Healthcare Missha, and AIIN for cosmetics; and Seoul National University Hospital, Bliss Acupuncture Wellness Center, JK Plastic Surgery, Koreana Pacific, and Face Laser Clinic for healthcare. Vita 500 was the sponsored beverage of the day.The event was full of activities for the attendees to enjoy. 10 different companies had their own booth where the attendees received goodie bags, purchased select items for a special discount, and took complimentary health consultations. There were also makeup artists in the salon area who helped the attendees try out the featured cosmetics for free. Guests who wanted to find out more detail on the products and services were able to attend seminar programs in the video room conducted by the participating companies. A lounge with comfortable seating and pillows were provided for anyone who needed breaks in between.The promotional street team who were the beauty ambassadors of the event dressed up in Korean traditional outfits called “hanbok” and played a big part in attracting many weekend SoHo shoppers and a wide variety of New Yorkers. One of the most popular attractions was the crane machine filled with cosmetics which had a constant line of guests waiting to try out this game and win free gifts. At last, the most valuable products and gift cards were given out to 13 attendees who won the raffle.Empire Entertainment partnered with KHIDI on every creative and logistical aspect of the event, starting from concept, flyer design, venue rental, interior design, provision of staff and street team, crane machine, branding & signage, and more.

Gentlemen Jack put the BAR into BARbershop this June by taking over elite grooming lounges in Manhattan, Washington DC, Chicago, and Dallas. With a nod to an earlier era of Gentlemen's Lounges and Speakeasy culture, guests received gratis luxury grooming services, delicious southern bites, and an array of specialty cocktails featuring the Rare Tennessee Whiskey. Each BARbershop was custom-designed to suit each market and venue and presented a unique experience for the consumer. Gentleman Jack spread word of the event through a strategic social media campaign combined with well positioned and well appointed street teams in each market driving hundreds through each storefront in a matter of 5 hours.Unlike any other whiskey in the world, Gentleman Jack Rare Tennessee Whiskey is charcoal mellowed twice – once before it goes into the barrel and again after it fully matures. The result is an exceptionally smooth whiskey with a rich, rewarding taste. Jack Daniel’s is the maker of the world-famous Jack Daniel’s Old No. 7 Tennessee Whiskey, Gentleman Jack Rare Tennessee Whiskey, Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel Tennessee Whiskey, Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey, Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey-based Ready-to-Drink Beverages and Jack Daniel’s Country Cocktails.

Recently a major corporate CEO was scheduled to speak in Mumbai, India to an audience of thousands. But with only a day's notice his schedule changed unexpectedly requiring him to remain in Beijing, China. The simple solution was to videotape his keynote address and to get it to India to play at the conference but there were two challenges: First, how to arrange a professionally-produced shoot in China with only a day's notice and second, how to reliably transmit the files from behind the 'Great Wall of China' - China's internet firewall.The client's conference producer turned to Empire's New York office to solve both problems. Empire immediately connected with our Tokyo-based Asia Region headquarters for assistance and within three hours had identified three production teams on the ground in China who were available and qualified to produce the shoot. Overnight the details were arranged to create a small set in a ballroom at the CEO's hotel and to bring in camera crew, audio, teleprompter, backdrop, scenic and lighting. Early that morning the shoot took place and immediately afterward the video was edited onsite at a quickly arranged edit suite with graphics and audio mixing added and the final product approved by the client's communications staff.The next challenge was to get the HD video file to India in time to test it and play it that evening in Mumbai. A courier with a copy of the video left the shoot immediately to the airport as a backup while the Empire video team immediately began uploading the file via VPN to multiple servers on proprietary corporate networks not subject to Chinese firewall restrictions.Minutes later the client team in Mumbai was able to successfully access the file and confirm successful playback at the conference. The client was thrilled that the Empire team had been able to solve the problem and the best part of it all, the entire project only cost a few thousand dollars.Empire's growing global presence, network of affiliates in countries worldwide, experience producing projects in 65 countries and instant response make us an ideal resource for all types of event, communications and marketing projects worldwide.

The Webby Awards, honoring excellence online, is famed for allowing winners just five words to deliver their acceptance speech. After a fantastic opening monologue, host Patton Oswalt explained that much can be accomplished in just 5 words, and he referenced "One small step for man" during the 16th Annual Webby Awards at The Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City on May 21, 2012. The unique rule has led to some uproarious and poignant moments over the years, and 2012 was no exception.

Receiving a Lifetime Achievement Awards for his work online, Mayor Michael Bloomberg used his five words as an ode to New York, stating “Make it here, then anywhere”. Holocaust survivor Tibor Sands accepted the Cultural Institution Webby for the “Remember Me Project” on behalf of Blue State Digital. The octognerian took the stage to a standing ovation from the crowd, held his trophy proudly and told the viewers “Thanks for remembering me”.The quirkiest acceptance of the evening came from singer/actress Bjork, who was honored as Artist of the Year, and accepted by saying “A…E….I….O….U!”.Comedian Louis C.K., accepting his Person of the Year Award was not to be outdone, telling the audience, “When I die…….bye-bye”. Spectacular live concert performances by Passion Pit and The Key of Awesome, as well as appearances by Spike Lee and New York Knicks sensation Jeremy Lin brought tremendous energy to the room, but for the first time, the highlight of the Webby Awards may well have been a video.Justin Long and John Hodgman (of “I’m a Mac. I’m a PC” fame) introduced two-time Oscar Winner Richard Dreyfuss to the stage, where he explained that Steve Jobs had personally chosen him to do the voiceover work for the first-ever Apple commercial. After some words of high-praise for the Apple co-founder, Mr. Dreyfuss then introduced a video tribute to Steve Jobs, conceived by Empire producer Adam Kahan and shot almost entirely in iPhones, which included some of the greatest luminaries on the planet delivering just five words each about the late technology titan. President Clinton kicked off the video by saying “We thank you Steve Jobs”, and was followed by George Lucas (“For Making Technology into art”), Bono (“For saving lives with (RED)”), Buzz Aldrin (“For exploring beyond our reach”), Jimmy Fallon (“he made turtlenecks sexy again”), and even President Obama (“thank you for thinking different”). 2012 marked the eighth consecutive year that Empire has produced The Webby Awards. Incredible new partners this time around including Creative Directors Andrew Fried and Thomas Kail, scenic designer David Korins Design, Director Gary Natoli, and many more. Major League Baseball Advanced Media once again did an outstanding job handling the livestream of the event.

Empire is proud to serve as producer for the most innovative industry's most innovative recognition event.

Conservation International, one of the largest conservation organizations in the World, returned to New York City recently to host its annual New York Gala at the iconic Pierre Hotel. This year’s gathering of over 300 guests would celebrate Conservation International’s 25th anniversary and honor long-time Conservation International board member, Henry Arnhold. Empire worked closely with this client to create a memorable event highlighting the growth and accomplishments in the fight for conservation and sustainability for future generations.After an elegant cocktail reception in the Cotillion Room, guests were invited to dinner in the Grand Ballroom where Empire transformed the space into a lush forest. Woodland sounds filled the air as guests were seated immersed in nature. Beautiful and sustainable floral centerpieces made of live bonsai palm trees, succulents atop moss-adorned tables contributed to the earthy theme of the evening. As the program began, a warm amber glow throughout the room highlighting overgrown palm trees faded and the focus turned to the stage where an impressive wall created entirely of live moss and orchids set stood as the backdrop for the program.The stage program included tributes to Henry Arnhold (known to the family, friends and colleagues as “Uncle Henry”) for his generosity and efforts in conservation. Guest speakers including Chairman and Co-Founder of Evercore Partners, Roger Altman; President of the Council on Foreign Relations, Richard Haass and former World Bank President, James Wolfensohn who all commended “Uncle Henry” for his involvement in sustainability and his lifetime of humanitarian workMarrying Henry Arnhold’s support of the arts and the mission to ensure a sustainable future for generations to come, dinner host committee member, Jodi Arnhold invited students from the School of Dance of the world-renowned dance company, Ballet Hispanico to the stage to perform two vibrant dance numbers. The dancers’ lively flamenco and a whimsical ballet set a festive tone to the evening and reminded guests that all the efforts of Conservation International is integral to the vitality of the community. Conservation International Co-Founder, Chairman and CEO, Peter Seligman awarded “Uncle Henry” the Global Conservation Hero Award and unveiled the founding of the Institute for Environmental Sustainability and Peace at Conservation International. Seligman then took to the stage to highlight Conservation International’s accomplishments of the past 25 years including creating strategic partnerships with major corporations like the Gap, Wal-Mart and Starbucks to value forest eco-systems for forest-friendly methods that preserve and grow the environment.Board Member, Heidi Miller, concluded the evening’s program by inviting guests to continue the fight for a more conscious and sustainable world by donating to the Conservation International cause. The evening raised over $1 million.Guests continued the celebration mingling and enjoying a lovely dessert reception in the Garden Foyer.Empire and Conservation International were able to deliver a beautiful evening for gala attendees driving home the CI mission and recognizing achievement in the fight for a brighter future.