Our Work

The Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) recently held its 99th Annual Conference and Exhibition at Chicago's McCormick Place. To take advantage of this timing and to promote Korean medical imaging technology to this influential audience, The Korea Health Industry Development Institute (KHIDI USA) again engaged Empire to produce their Medical Forum at the RSNA conference.

Empire selected the Chicago History Museum to serve as the perfect venue for both the conference sessions as well as an elegant place for an evening reception. On the day of the event, over 250 professionals from the field of radiology and medical devices, including a wide range of doctors, government officials and executives, flocked to attend the cocktails and seminars on the future of Korean medical imaging technology. After an opening networking cocktail reception featuring guided tours of the Museum’s collection, guests moved to the Chicago Room for an enlightening forum.

At the conclusion of the Forum, guests were seated for a dinner featuring a mix of Korean traditional dishes such as pajun, chop chae, and daeji galbi, and also a taste of Chicago with mini deep dish pizzas and Italian beef.

Empire is a leading producer of events and forums to promote trade and exports for a variety of national governments and government agencies.

Jared Leto arrived at the Gotham Awards podium and held his cell phone up to the microphone. Matthew McConaughey wanted to say a few words of thanks for the 2013 Best Actor Award but could not be there in person…so he spoke through Leto's cell phone. It was weird and cool like the Gotham Awards themselves.

Weird and cool and stocked with screen stars: Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy, John Goodman, Isaiah Washington, Amy Poehler, Chiwetel Eijiofor, Forest Whitaker, Richard Linklater, Steve Buscemi, Shailene Woodley, Rashida Jones were among the famous faces milling around Cipriani Wall Street, with New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg rounding out the bill.

This was Empire Entertainment's sixth year producing the Gotham Awards, the first show of the film awards "season", and therefore hotly anticipated. "There's a lot of pressure," says executive producer James Donahower, "because you've got 900 people jam-packed into the room, and 100 of them are A-list celebrities. And it's live. So when you say 'start the show', you'd better be ready." Empire was.

When a corporate client sought a world-class headline musical artist to entertain an intimate group of their top clients and management on the final night of their summit, they turned to Empire to secure talent for a night that they’d never forget. After a length process of evaluating many options, the client chose and Empire delivered an extremely special, private concert with one of the best-selling rock bands in music history - Journey.

With their broad range of well-known hits, polished high-energy stage show, and powerful lineup (including lead vocalist Arnel Pineda, who has been with the band since 2007) Journey would deliver everything the client wanted for a successful evening.Prior to the performance, Journey participated in an intimate meet & greet with the guests, getting them excited for the performance to follow. The concert was full of non-stop hits including “Separate Ways,” “Anyway You Want it,” “Open Arms,” “Only the Young,” and “Faithfully.” The finale song, “Don’t Stop Believin’", brought the entire audience to the front of the stage, and left them clapping and cheering for an encore. When the band returned to the stage, they concluded the amazing night with an electrifying performance of “Lovin’, Touchin’, Squeezin’.”

Following the concert, DJ Mick Boogie kept the party alive, spinning greatest hits of yesterday and today, as guests danced the night away on a custom built black and gold dance floor. For this amazing night, Empire was proud to serve as overall entertainment producer, which included securing and contracting all performing talent and entertainment, providing all technical production, and managing all talent logistics, stage management, and onsite production management. Empire Entertainment is a leader in delivering the biggest names in entertainment for private performances.

Microsoft unveiled Visual Studio 2013, its ground-breaking and now cloud-based software development tool with an innovative, technological showcase that embodied the Visual Studio mantra: Connect, Create, Transform.

Serving as a platform for all Visual Studio 2013 news and announcements, the Keynote event hosted 250 in-person attendees at Highline Stages and 60,000 online viewers from around the world. Led by Microsoft Corporate Vice Presidents S. Somasegar and Scott Guthrie, this event was the worldwide corporate unveiling of Visual Studio and kicked off hundreds of launch events around the world. New York City's Meatpacking District, the epicenter of collaborative and creative design, was the perfect locale for Microsoft to launch the tools that developers use for just that purpose.

From registration to keynote to cocktails, every element was custom designed to enhance individual guest experience through digital optimization. LED walls illuminated in a digital heat map depicting the size and location of the online audience and pre-programmed event apps on individual tablets served as guests' personal concierges throughout the day, providing event attendees with the most connected, creative and transformative experience of the year.

After months of designing and planning every detail in collaboration with the Microsoft team, we were thrilled to see all of the components come together—in their words—“flawlessly.”

Since 2004, Empire Entertainment has been proud to serve as producer to Keep a Child Alive for the annual Black Ball Gala that has grown to become one of New York’s largest, most noteworthy and coolest fundraising events.On November 7, 2013, Empire Entertainment served as producer for the tenth anniversary Black Ball Gala at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City. Generously sponsored by Givenchy and Jynwel Foundation, the Ball featured extraordinary performances by Alicia Keys, Pharrell Williams, Carole King, Kathleen Battle, British soul singer Laura Mvula, and R&B jazz fusion master Roy Ayers.

Hosted by KCA co-founder, global ambassador and Grammy Award-winning artist, Alicia Keys, the Black Ball has raised over $22.5 million since it’s humble beginnings in 2004. A decade later, a proud Keys spoke of the 300,000 children and family members that have benefitted from Keep a Child Alive’s care in Africa and India. A star-studded guest list of over 600 came to support Keys’ charity, including Clive Davis, Diane Von Furstenberg, Tommy Hilfiger, Swizz Beatz, Steve Van Zandt, Padma Lakshmi, and baseball stars Robinson Cano and CC Sabathia.

The Black Ball raised $4 million dollars through table/ticket sales, sponsorships, donations and a live auction that featured a rare Givenchy purse, a Parisian vacation to see the Givenchy show, a trip to Jamaica, a Belstaff fashion experience and a private serenade by Alicia Keys accompanied with a special dinner with wines by Sherry-Lehmann Wine & Spirits.

Alicia Keys and her band put on an exceptional performance that, true to Black Ball tradition, featured several musical guests. The first of the evening was a beautiful collaboration with soul singer Laura Mvula, singing She. Followed by her breathtaking duet with Kathleen Battle singing Not Even The King and the classic, Ave Maria. Her next duet with R&B artist Claude Kelly, was an awe-inspiring song he wrote exclusively for Keep a Child Alive’s upcoming campaign. Carole King took the stage, Keys and King put on a phenomenal show when they sang a blended version of Superwoman vs. Natural Woman, creating an intense performance with their dueling pianos. Roy Ayers also performed alongside Alicia Keys, bringing his special brand of jazz and funk to the stage. Her last duet of the evening was with Pharrell Williams, as they sang Robin Thicke’s Blurred Lines and Daft Punk’s Get Lucky. The concert concluded with a stunning confetti blast that filled the cavernous interior of the century-old Hammerstein Ballroom with a glittering cascade of gold. Moments later, Swizz Beatz appeared on stage to DJ the after party, having all guests dance into the early hours of the morning.

Empire has been proud to partner with and serve Keep a Child Alive for the past decade, creating the Black Ball together and growing it into one of New York’s most anticipated annual fundraising events. To learn more about Keep a Child Alive, please go to www.keepachildalive.org

Lincoln Center, a beacon of New York City’s musical and performing arts culture, has recently added fashion to its famed programming repertoire with Fashion Week, industry events, and an annual conversation series honoring the industry’s biggest icons. Kicking off the inaugural conversation, The Lincoln Center Corporate Fund presented legendary Chanel and Fendi Creative Director, Karl Lagerfeld, on the Adrienne Arsht Stage of Alice Tully Hall.

The format for the presentation was an interview of Lagerfeld led by Academy Award nominee Jessica Chastain. Chastain led the audience through a revealing, deeply personal conversation about the life, career, and philosophy of this most enigmatic artist in the field of Fashion. The glamorous evening began with a "white-on-white" champagne reception in the Morgan Stanley lobby of Alice Tully Hall, just feet away from the red carpet glittering with nonstop flashes of photographers’ cameras. Once guests moved into the theater for the program, the same space was transformed into a "black-on-black" dining room for a black tie dinner. This stark, minimalist approach to the decor, punctuated by the contrast, created a high-impact and truly "Karl” experience, while minimizing costs and maximizing net funds raised.

In addition to continuing fashion programming in the Lincoln Center slate of events, this evening also marked the Lincoln Center Corporate Fund’s first gala fundraiser. All proceeds from the evening will benefit the Fund, which provides unrestricted support to 10 performing arts organizations at Lincoln Center including The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Film Society of Lincoln Center, Jazz at Lincoln Center, Lincoln Center Theater, The Metropolitan Opera, New York City Ballet, New York Philharmonic, The School of American Ballet, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, and The Juilliard School, Jessica Chastain’s alma mater. To learn more about the Corporate Fund and to donate please visit http://www.lccorporatefund.org

We were honored to be involved in another program at Lincoln Center in support of the arts.

Founded 25 years ago, New York's Robin Hood is one of the most ambitious, progressive, and effective not-for-profit organizations working to eradicate poverty in New York City. When Robin Hood and key members of its board decided to create a new event to expand its already impressive reach within the investor and financial community, they engaged Empire to serve as producer for the project: the inaugural Robin Hood Investors Conference.

As with everything Robin Hood does, the Investors Conference would be innovative, bold and utterly unique. The two-day event took place at the Sheraton New York, home to the Clinton Global Initiative. The conference played host to over 750 influential investors representing virtually every major firm on Wall Street, as well as key hedge fund and private equity firms. The Conference featured an unprecedented lineup of financial leaders, presented in a series of carefully crafted keynotes, fireside chats and panel discussions. Among the many noteworthy speakers and participants were U. S. Secretaries of the Treasury; Tim Geithner, Henry Paulson, and Larry Summers, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Ray Dalio, Howard Marks, David Einhorn, Daniel Loeb, Richard Chilton, Alan Schwartz, Mary Callahan Erdoes, Juan Enriquez, Lee Ainslee, David Tepper, Rob Citrone, John Griffin, Philippe Laffont, Laurence Fink, Barry Sternlicht, Bill Ackman, Julian Robertson, Mary Meeker, Jamie Dimon, and Jeff Bewkes. The final panel of the conference featured a conversation among two legendary investors, Stanley Druckenmiller and Robin Hood founder, Paul Tudor Jones.The conference sessions were emceed by Robin Hood's David Saltzman and Deborah Winshel.

To create a distinctive visual look unlike any other investor conference, a 100’ wide projection mapping installation that combined high resolution LED screen elements with HD front screen projection was installed in the ballroom and animated with images throughout the conference. At the end of each day, live data visualizations furnished by media partner, Bloomberg, were projected to the screens as wrap-up segments. The Investor Conference was underwritten by JPMorgan Chase so that every dollar of the tickets sold went to fund Robin Hood poverty programs. Other supporting sponsors included PepsiCo, and media partners Bloomberg and CNBC, both of whom broadcast live from the conference in temporary studios set up onsite.

This inaugural Robin Hood Investors Conference vastly exceeded its goal, raising over $5.5 million to fight poverty in New York City. Empire Entertainment was extremely proud to be chosen to serve as producer for this project, working hand-in-hand with Robin Hood's executive, creative and event teams, along with event partners First Protocol, Diversified Production Services, Performance Environment Design, Brian Oakes, Sheraton New York, and Elite Investigations. As producer, Empire was responsible for overseeing design and execution of the overall conference creative, including agenda and program content, visual design, scenic design, screen content, scripting, music, staging, branding, partners and event logistics. Additionally, Empire was responsible for all speaker coordination, communications and logistics for 50 program participants. Empire is a leading producer of innovative not-for-profit events, summits, and unique thought-leadership programs. To learn more about Robin Hood please visit www.RobinHood.org.

When the niece of one of Empire’s clients wanted to celebrate her Sweet 16 Birthday in New York City during Halloween weekend, Empire was asked to create an extraordinary costume party unlike any other Sweet 16.

To achieve the client’s vision of a Halloween Sweet 16, Empire quickly secured the Plaza Hotel’s spectacular Grand Ballroom and began working to transform the ornate space into a spooky, yet elegant lounge for 150 teenage guests.

The richly decorated ballroom was filled with large dripping candelabras of varying sizes that stood amidst groupings of tufted Victorian lounge furniture, all surrounding a giant central bar, complete with a Mocktail station with non-alcoholic juice concoctions.

Throughout the night, DJ Soul and a group of dancers in ever-changing Halloween costumes kept the crowd dancing. At one point, Thrill the World, a flash-mob zombie dance group, appeared and performed Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” with uncanny precision. To add to the magic of the night, illusionist Elliot Zimet engaged guests in unforgettable sleight-of-hand experiences. Additional activities included a make-up booth where artists were available to gross-ify, gore-ify and amplify guests' costumes, and a social media photo booth where they could instantaneously post party photos or leave with a hard copy.

The evening’s high point came when Pharrell Williams made a special birthday appearance. The famous singer-songwriter and producer serenaded the dancing crowd with his hits including “Beautiful” and “Get Lucky". His smooth voice and undeniable charisma had guests flooding the stage and dancing alongside him. He then led the crowd in singing “Happy Birthday” followed by an intimate meet and greet with the birthday girl and her closest friends and family.

Empire was proud to be a part of the evening and to help make the birthday girl’s Sweet 16 the most memorable night of her life.

On November 4, 2013, EBONY Magazine presented the 2nd annual EBONY Power 100 Gala, honoring the nation’s 100 most influential African-Americans. The invitation-only affair took place in New York City and Empire was honored to serve as event producer.

The gala took place at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Frederick P. Rose Hall and was hosted by the magazine’s Chairman, Linda Johnson Rice, and CEO Desirée Rogers of Johnson Publishing Company. The red carpet saw the likes of A-listers Earvin “Magic” Johnson, Harry Belafonte, La La Anthony, Reverend Al Sharpton Jr., Victor Cruz, Chef Marcus Samuelsson, Cynthia Rowley, Lee Daniels, and Tyson Chandler.

The dinner program was emceed by Power 100 Honoree, Nick Cannon, who introduced a wide range of Motown-themed performances from talent including: jazz pianist ELEW, DJ Kiss, 10-year old piano virtuoso Joshua Mhoon, and 12-year old vocal prodigy MaeYa Carter Ryan. The evening also featured a lively number from the cast of the Broadway’s “Motown: The Musical.” To finish off the evening, the legendary Jacksons, featuring Jackie, Jermaine, Marlon and Tito, performed their greatest hits including a medley of Jackson 5 songs.

This year’s gala honored the legendary founder of Motown Records, Berry Gordy Jr., with a Lifetime Achievement Award. The 2013 Power 100 list also honored President Obama, actress Kerry Washington, Earvin "Magic" Johnson, actor Michael B. Jordan, film director Lee Daniels, chefs Marcus Samuelsson and Roblé Ali and activists Harry Belafonte and Marian Wright Edelman.

After the dinner program, guests filed into the Atrium where they were treated to an after party with a sponsored lounge by Nationwide Insurance, and music by DJ Nick Cannon. Empire responsibilities ranged from securing performing talent, overall design & décor, coordinating with the venue and catering (provided by Great Performances), branding and sponsor fulfillment, staging, sound, lighting, video projection, video documentation, talent and presenter coordination, stage management, staffing, and security.

Empire Entertainment is a leading producer of high-profile events and is proud to have been chosen to support this remarkable program for EBONY Magazine and The Johnson Publishing Company.

To celebrate Halloween, AMC once again called upon Empire to produce their first ever Ad Sales event at the eerily lit Gotham Hall in Manhattan on October 30, 2013. As the most popular cable network, AMC always delivers on their motto “Something More.”

Donning their best Halloween costumes, guests first walked through a glowing blood red room and were then directed into the grand ballroom that was full of fog, large golden candelabras, and hand carved AMC branded pumpkins. Several Walter Whites, surrounded, of course, by his meth-making minions, sipped on hot apple cider as a clique of AMC cheerleaders and Three Little Pigs wandered by. Guests indulged in hot and cold apple cider, steak frites, tuna tartare, baby back ribs, white chocolate dipped ghost strawberries and more.

Throughout the evening, living statues painted in shades of teal, blue and silver danced the night away while guests had their fortunes told and minds blown by a slick slight-of-hand magician. Guests quickly took to the dance floor to enjoy spooky music curated by Donna D’Cruz. by Prior to announcing the best costume winners, guests were treated to a surprise flash mob performance of Michael Jackson’s Halloween classic “Thriller” by a slew of zombies. After all of the ghoulish fun and dancing came to an end, guests did some trick-or-treating at AMC’s candy bar full of lots of sweets and treats.

The Lowline has been rapidly gaining popularity for their effort to convert a former early 20th century underground trolley terminal on Manhattan’s Lower East Side into the world’s first underground public park. It will be a new kind of public space, using solar technology for natural illumination, and cutting-edge design to capture and highlight a very special industrial space. In order to help raise crucial funding for this incredibly innovative project, the Lowline team entrusted Empire to produce their second annual Anti-Gala Benefit Dinner and Speakeasy After Party at the historic lower east side venue, the Angel Orensanz Foundation.

Empire worked closely with Lowline to create a speakeasy theme for the event, highlighting the era in which the trolley terminal was in use. When guests arrived, they were led upstairs to the balcony where they were transported back to the early 1900s with gorgeous antique décor and design including an elaborate, miniature vintage trolley re-creation. A secret entrance was provided for VIP quests where they were greeted by a costumed trolley conductor and taken on a journey back in time with the performance of a vintage barbershop quartet.

A cocktail reception for 300 guests included a three-piece banjo band, costumed performers and contortionists. Guests were then taken downstairs for the seated dinner provided by Neuman’s Kitchen and renowned chef Gabrielle Hamilton from Prune Restaurant. A spectacular menu inspired by the early 1900s included turtle soup, consommé, fresh cherrystone clams, broiled mackerel, poached stuffed chicken breasts, French peas, Duchess potatoes, thinned white asparagus, and crème de menthe parfaits for dessert.

After dinner, Lowline co-founders Dan Barasch and James Ramsey spoke and introduced a live auction that raised over $300,000 for the exciting new project. A finale performance of entertainers emerged from the crowd and led the audience into an after party speakeasy. LCD Soundsystem Phil Mossman and Pat Mahoney DJ’ed, where guests such as Diane Von Furstenberg, Lena Dunham, Mark Ruffalo, Spike Jonze and Ed Norton grooved into the night.

Empire is a leading creative producer for innovative new projects and ideas worldwide. To learn more about the effort to build the world’s first underground park, the Lowline, visit www.thelowline.org.

Each year, one of the world’s top food and beverage companies, PepsiCo, flies its highest sales achievers and their spouses from around the world to New York to celebrate them and recognize their accomplishments.

The trip includes sightseeing, business programs and an evening at Ellis Island. The highlight of the annual trip is the awards dinner called the Circle of Champions, held at the spectacular Milstein Hall of Ocean Life at the American Museum of Natural History. For the past several years, this company has consistently turned to Empire Entertainment to deliver a program of interstitial performances and post-awards ceremony entertainment.

This year, Empire was charged with creating a program of entertainment that translated amongst the multinational attendees and that could segue naturally into a night of dancing and celebration. Empire presented three different international dance groups: Mystic India, performing a dramatic Bollywood dance routine, the Mariachi Bustamante, with the traditional sounds of Mexico accompanied with Jalisco dancers, and Barynya, who showed the crowd how exciting traditional Russian dance can be.

For the after party, Empire booked The Eturnity Band, New York City’s best R&B, Funk & Motown dance band, who kept the audience dancing to all the best oldies and the latest pop hits until the end of the night.

Empire Entertainment is the leading producer of talent and performers for corporate events.

The Coalition for the Homeless is the oldest advocacy and direct service organization helping homeless men, women and children in the United States. More than 3,500 homeless and at-risk New Yorkers receive assistance each day through the Coalition’s initiatives, which provide housing, job training, emergency food, crisis intervention and youth programs.

Empire Entertainment once again served as producer of the Coalition for the Homeless 19th annual ARTWALK NY, New York's premier contemporary art auction event. More than 800 Coalition supporters, artists, art collectors, and celebrities gathered in 82 Mercer’s expansive Soho loft for a night of festivities, including a live and silent auction. Artist Roxy Paine was honored for his contribution to contemporary art, and Kim & Michael McCarty were honored for their continuous philanthropic support of the Coalition over the years.

Sotheby’s Aileen Agopian auctioned off over 115 works of contemporary art, donated by some of the world’s most celebrated artists, including Chuck Close, Jenny Holzer, Wade Guyton, Christo, Roxy Paine, Kim McCarty, Chuck Close, Israel Lund, Jenny Holzer, Pat Steir, Ed Ruscha, Alex Katz, Wade Guyton, McDermott & McGough, Adam McEwen and Ryan McGinness. The evening’s program also featured an impromptu and celebratory Irish Jig, danced by co-hosts Alec Baldwin and Coco Rocha after raising $100,000 for the Coalition's Camp Homeward Bound, a summer sleep-away camp for homeless youth.

The evening, generously sponsored by Dolce & Gabbana and Vogue, began with hors d’oeuvres by Pinch Food Design and cocktails graciously provided by Absolut Vodka, Peroni and City Winery. Several of New York’s best restaurants, including Michael’s, The National, Indochine, The Odeon, Crown Hospitality Group and David Burke Kitchen provided tasting stations.

The rest of 82 Mercer's multi-room space served as a gallery for the silent auction and featured vignettes of 18th century French and Italian style furniture, kindly donated through Dolce & Gabbana’s relationship with Newel. Throughout the night, guests bid on and purchased works from established and emerging artists while grooving to tunes spun by DJ Chelsea Leyland.

Working closely with Coalition for the Homeless’ events team and title sponsor Dolce & Gabbana, Empire Entertainment served as overall producer of the event and was responsible for aspects ranging from event design, layout, production and logistics to décor and restaurant coordination.

ARTWALK NY raised over $1 million to benefit the Coalition’s programs. Empire Entertainment is honored to have worked in collaboration with the Coalition for the Homeless and its many supporters, to make this year’s ARTWALK NY event the most successful one yet.

To learn more about the Coalition for the Homeless or to get involved and donate, visit www.coalitionforthehomeless.org

Brazil is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, and its culture, brands and exports will become increasingly influential as the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympic Games focus the global spotlight on the country. To seize on this moment to promote the Brasil brand and its products, Brazil's trade and investment promotion agency, APEX, along with its global marketing firm, Profero, worked with Empire to create a Brasil brand experience in New York City. The resulting project took shape as a week-long, open-to-the-public pop-up experience showcasing Brazilian brands, innovations, products and culture.

To deliver this message in an authentic environment, acclaimed Brazilian architects and design duo, Guto Requena and Mauricio Arruda, were engaged to help design the three story retail space in the heart of SoHo into a vibrant, interactive Brazilian experience. A multi-story work of Brazilian graffiti art, produced directly on the venue's staircase walls by Banzai Studio artists of Brasil, tied together the floors.

Focusing on retail, technology, and cuisine, Brazilian companies and brands including Embraer, Havaianas, Louloux, and Bauducco were represented throughout the interior spaces. On the ground floor guests could “fly” over various regions of Brasil by controlling a custom-designed Kinect app, that manipulated scenic views projected on 30’ of LED screens. On the lower level retail shop, guests could try on (and purchase) jewelry made of natural products found in the Brazilian rainforest, beauty drinks and sample shoes, denim and other fashions. On the second floor guests could relax in the Botequim (Brasilian Café) where traditional Brazilian fare could be sampled.

In addition to the open-to-the-public daily experience, a wide range of additional Brasil-centric programming were presented including private, invitation-only events, musical performances, wine & cachaça tastings, and informative TED-style talks by Brazilian experts in an array of fields, including Chef Alex Atala. Nights at the Be Brasil experience were filled with live music programmed by Empire Brazil Region Director Beco Dranoff and featuring artists Kay Lyra, Alexia Bomtemp, Eliano Bráz and DJ Greg Caz. For this project, Empire served as producer and was responsible for venue selection, café and event food and beverage management, design and decor execution, staffing and management, technical direction and execution, and partner management.

Empire is a leading producer of innovative pop-up and branded experiences for government clients and consumer brands. To learn more about the project, visit: http://bebrasilnyc.com

When The Gere Foundation and the Tibet Center invited His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama to present his teachings in New York City, they engaged Empire to serve as both producer and production company for the project. 2013 marked the third time that Empire has had the honor to produce these teachings following successful appearances in 2007 and 2010 at Radio City Music Hall.

Working in partnership with The Tibet Center, The Gere Foundation's Executive Director Mollie Rodriguez and the Beacon Theatre, Empire worked on every aspect of the program including stage design, logistics and technical production. As in past years, where footage of the teachings and public talk were packaged into television projects for National Geographic Television and Adam Yauch's Oscilloscope Productions, each session was recorded via a multi-camera HD set-up. This year however, Empire helped expand the reach by live-streaming all of the sessions, as well as simultaneously translating them into English, Mandarin Chinese and Russian.

Over the course of three days, His Holiness’ delivered five two-hour teaching sessions on the topics of the Heart Sutra, The Sutra of Truly Remembering the Sublime Three Jewels, and The Wisdom Chapter from A Guide to the Bodhisattva Way of Life. To finish the weekend, His Holiness held a public talk on “The Virtues of Non Violence”, which included a question & answer session and introductory remarks by Richard Gere.

In addition to its role as producer, Empire was able to secure sponsors to donate services in order to keep event costs to a minimum. ABC Home & Carpet generously donated carpeting and furniture. Empire is honored to have had another opportunity to present His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama. Empire is a leading producer of major public and civic event and programs.

Fitch ratings is one of the world's largest ratings agencies, responsible for providing data to financial firms around the world to help them assess risk and opportunity. On the occasion of the company’s 100th anniversary, Fitch Ratings and its branding agency, Addison, launched a new online and live event series entitled the Why? Forum to underscore Fitch’s commitment to qualitative and quantitative research, and to promote greater transparency by showing how Fitch asks the ‘why’ questions that provide deeper insight into the events that move markets.

For the inaugural Why? Forum event, Fitch and Addison tapped Empire to serve as event producer to bring the vision to life. The event took place at the New York Public Library in the historic Edna Barnes Salomon room with an audience of 150 senior financial executives and analysts from the world of institutional investing. The Why? Forum featured a panel discussion with former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, former Secretary of Defense William Cohen, and former National Security Adviser Robert Gates. The panel was moderated by Esquire Editor Mark Warren, and Fitch rating’s Asia-Pacific head, Brett Hemsley.

Following the panel discussion, which largely focused on risk and threats around the world, historian and best-selling author Niall Ferguson delivered a keynote address entitled “Why is there cause for optimism?” which provided a powerful counter-point to earlier perspectives. At the conclusion of the stage program, the extraordinary gallery of historic artworks in the Edna Barnes Solomon room was illuminated with a colorful series of Why? Forum projections, which modernized the room tnexpectedly coorng as the cocktail reception began.

For this ambitious and forward-thinking program, Empire served as overall producer, helping to secure the keynote speaker and contracting the panelists, handling all technical production, scenic and staging, catering, and guest logistics.To learn more about this innovative series, check out the Why? Forum website at www.whyforum.com.

Empire is a leading producer of thought-leadership forums that provide insight to business decision-makers worldwide.

Since launching over 2 decades ago, Travel Channel has become the world’s leading travel media brand. Their emphasis on providing experiential programming featuring high-end adventure, foreign lands and exotic palates has won over a highly-coveted viewer demographic. So when it came time to plan a Fall Ad Sales event, they wanted the party to represent the authentic experiences reflected in their programming.

Empire signed on to produce this year’s party dubbed “1 Night, 4 Countries, No Jet Lag.” Held at ESPACE on West 42nd Street, the blank canvas space was transformed into four large vignettes – Spain, Italy, Croatia and Morocco.Spain’s substantial backdrop included a fully-fabricated representation of Barcelona’s Plaza Real, complete with archways, orange trees, rustic wooden bar tables and a live flamenco band with dancers. Alongside a buffet of delectable Spanish tapas, guests enjoyed a Jamon Iberico carving station while tasting a selection of Spanish Sherries.

In Italy, a contemporary Milanese street café offered seating on black leather banquettes under outstretched awnings. An oleologist (a sommelier of olive oil) from Eataly taught guests how to properly taste and appreciate premium olive oils, while guests posed for Instagram photos on the Vespa scooters parked beside the café. Croatia -- the gem of the Mediterranean now known for its chic seaside resorts, featured terracotta-topped beach cabanas and sleek white lounge ottomans. Dubrovnik’s medieval walled city could be viewed through carved stone ruins.

Draped fabrics in blue and purple jewel tones created a sultry setting for Morocco’s souk filled with antique colored glass lanterns, pottery, glasses and rugs. Guests relaxed in the hookah lounge and received henna tattoos and haggling lessons while Moroccan musicians played traditional instruments accompanied by belly dancers.Watery blue LED lighting transformed the central bar area into the Mediterranean, perfectly tying in all four countries.

Travel Channel on-air talent was integrated into each of the vignettes in a variety of ways including a printed itinerary with expert tips that helped guide guests through the authentic experiences. For this highly detailed event, for which every element needed to be authentic, Empire was responsible for sourcing the venue, design, technical direction, site management, entertainment & activities, and overall event management.The travel Channel client was thrilled with the execution of the event and felt that it captured exactly the quality and authenticity embodied by their programming.

Empire is a leading producer of upfront and advertising sales events for the media and advertiser supported industries.

For the first time in college league basketball history, The BIG EAST Conference hosted Media Day for the men's and women's college basketball teams on the same day. To bring this carefully-watched event to a wider audience, Empire was contracted to produce a livestream webcast of both conferences. The conference kicked off at The Chelsea Piers Lighthouse and included star college players and nearly 300 members of the media.

The event was webcast live on www.BIGEAST.com and can be viewed via the link below.

https://new.livestream.com/bigeast/mediaday

Empire served as the webcast producer including technical production and creative direction. Empire is a leading producer of live webcast and broadcast events.

A catwalk is inherently glamorous, but the charity: water WaterWalk is a reality check. In 2013, W Hotels partnered with charity: water, a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing clean and safe drinking water to every person on the planet, to help raise funds and awareness in new markets. As part of their sponsorship of the previous year’s charity: ball, the W Hotels pledged to host cocktail parties touring charity: water’s signature Waterwalk to six different cities- Boston, New Orleans, Chicago, San Francisco, Scottsdale, and Los Angeles.

Together, we helped create an evocative and enriching experience that brought the reality of how far people in developing nations have to travel for clean drinking water. For each participant who walked the Waterwalk, an assembled catwalk that symbolizes the distance it takes for 800 million people to find water, W hotels Worldwide donated $45 to bring one person clean water in Orissa, India. The local hotels invited tastemakers, hotel guests and press to this special cocktail party for their chance to walk the walk and give back, while enjoying drinks courtesy of Tito’s Handmade Vodka.

charity: water Founder Scott Harrison, came to the kick-off event at the W Boston. W Hotels Worldwide’s Global Music Director, internationally acclaimed DJ and music producer Michaelangelo L'Acqua also made it to W Boston to help launch the Waterwalk campaign and set the beat to this Happening. At the W French Quarter the Stooges Brass Band kept guests dancing all night, including the Pussyfooters, local Mardi Gras celebrities. Ultimately, every city created it’s own flair while helping spread charity: water’s mission.

We’re honored to continue to help produce charity: water’s events, while helping W Hotels Worldwide implement their corporate sponsorship.

For more information about the organization, please check out their website: www.charitywater.org.

Coined the “Greatest Show (and Tell) on Earth,” the Maker Faire is a family-friendly festival of invention, creativity and resourcefulness, and a celebration of the Maker movement. Part science fair, part county fair, and part something entirely new, this all-ages gathering of tech enthusiasts, crafters, educators, hobbyists, engineers, artists, students, and commercial exhibitors celebrate what they have made to share with the world.

When Zazzle, a leading e-commerce website specializing in custom made products and one of Maker Faire’s valued sponsors debuted in their first New York Maker Faire, they turned to Empire to help curate the Zazzle experience during the weekend-long, highly publically attended event at the New York Hall of Science in Queens, New York.

Empire worked closely with Zazzle to create an inviting family oriented interactive experience set under a 40’ tent in the center of the festival. Over the course of the weekend where over 10,000 enthusiastic innovators attended, children and their families gathered in the Zazzle space to create their own arts & crafts. From coloring in Empire’s custom designed Zazzle robot postcards to dressing up in mini robot costumes while posing for a photo booth, to creating personalized buttons, kids of all ages unleashed their inner “maker.” Empire also created a unique display showcasing Zazzle’s unique and customizable products.

Empire was proud to work with Zazzle on the Maker Faire, showcasing innovation and experimentation across the spectrum of science, engineering, art, performance and craft to bring about a nurturing ground for this growing community of creative and curious people.

To learn more about the Maker Faire and to find the nearest Maker Faire near you, you can go to http://makerfaire.com.

Empire was proud to manage the tour of The Gazette in Helsinki for their 2013 World Tour finalé. The Gazette is a popular Japanese visual Kei rock band (a Japanese genre similar to glam rock) formed in 2002. The five band members are known for their extravagant visual kei makeup and hairstyles, with each member having his own defining style and personality. They have huge fan bases in Japan and all over the world, and tickets for their show in Helsinki sold out within an hour.

On event day, fans of the Gazette started to line up at 7:00 a.m. carrying carefully-crafted gifts for the band members. Once the doors to the Circus were opened, they quickly filled the 1,500 seat venue. Empire Asia’s Tokyo office was responsible for managing the Gazette’s tour in Helsinki including overseas promotion to the band’s fan base. The concert was a huge success, ending with fans crying audibly and hugging each other, overwhelmed by joy.

Empire is a leading producer of global concert events, both public and private.

First Lady Michelle Obama hosted a luncheon at the Studio Museum In Harlem for the spouses of visiting heads of state in town for the United Nation’s General Assembly. Along with Obama and Teresa Heinz Kerry, wife of Secretary of State John Kerry, 50 first ladies from around the world toured the museum, dined on a special meal created by chef Marcus Samuelsson, owner of Red Rooster in Harlem, and enjoyed performances by television and Broadway star Audra McDonald, The Dance Theatre of Harlem and the LaGuardia School musicians. The Studio Museum of Harlem was selected for its historical and cultural importance; “There’s a reason why I wanted to bring you all to Harlem today,” Obama told her guests. She said the neighborhood “is infused with a kind of energy and passion that is quintessentially American,” which acts as “a thread that connects all of us here today, no matter where we’re from or what language we speak.”Performances by children from the Dance Theatre of Harlem and The Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts inspired audience to remember the importance of youth and the first lady encouraged the women in the room to use this “opportunity” to share ideas on improving the lives of women and children in their respective countries.The First Lady went on to encourage dialogue stating “Don’t be shy, make sure that you talk to the ladies at your table about the great work that you are doing in your countries, because you are all doing some wonderfully powerful work. Ask others about what they are doing in their countries.”

Empire provided all décor, design, production, stage and talent management and logistics for this important diplomatic initiative. Empire is proud to serve the White House and U. S. Department of State and to have been chosen to support this historical event.

Empire Entertainment’s Tokyo-based Asia Division recently introduced Japanese Kawaii (“cute”) Culture to Paris with a tour of Kawaii fashion ambassadors during the peak of Paris Fashion Week.

The Tokyo Crazy Kawaii Committee chose Paris, France because of its influence in world fashion and beauty and the fact that France hosts the highest number of annual visitors in the world.

Kawaii is a word that means “cute,” but it also contains other nuanced meanings such as having a generous attitude towards others or being accepting of various styles. With this three-day convention, simulating a mini Tokyo through fashion, food, music, and anime, Tokyo Crazy Kawaii Paris was successful in promoting awareness of such aspects of Japanese culture and creativity to large and influential audiences in Paris.

Empire Entertainment was responsible for bringing Kawaii to Paris by coordinating and directing a 109 Booth, which simulated 109, the iconic teen-fashion shopping mall in Tokyo.

The event was a huge success and attracted large crowds each day. A follow-up event has already been scheduled for 2014.

After serving the Japanese Prime Minister’s Office (Kantei) at the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting project in Davos, Switzerland, in January 2013, Empire Japan was again chosen to be a content producer for the Annual Meeting of the New Champions, otherwise known as Summer Davos held in Dalian, China.

For this amazing event, Empire was responsible for the core elements such as an event emcee, content producing and stage direction. Everything from titles, themes, copywriting, speaker liaison, stage direction and production were managed by the Empire team. The president of Empire Entertainment Japan, Theodore Miller, had the honor of being selected by the Prime Minister’s Office to serve as the event emcee throughout the night, presenting and interviewing the roster of distinguished speakers. One of the evening’s highlights included a speech and facilitated interview by Miller of Mr. Hakubun Shimomura, Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, and Mr. Yuki Ota, Olympic Fencing medalist and Tokyo 2020 Bid Ambassador. Both Minister Shimomura and Mr. Ota had just returned from Buenos Aires, where they played key roles in helping Japan and Tokyo secure the 2020 Olympic bid, and newspapers on the day following the event announced that Japan’s Prime Minister had decided to appoint Mr. Shimomura as Minister in charge of the 2020 Olympics.

Other speakers at Summer Davos’ Japan Night included: Mr. Ichita Yamamoto (Minister of State for Science and Technology Policy / Minister of State for Space Policy / Minister in charge of Information Technology Policy), Mr. Yasutoshi Nishimura (Senior Vice-Minister of Japan’s Cabinet Office), Mr. Klaus Schwab (Founder and Executive Chairman, World Economic Forum), Mr. Yorihiko Kojima (Chairman of the Board of Mitsubishi Corporation), Mr. William Saito (CEO and Founder InTecur), Mr. Yoshiaki Fujimori (President and CEO of LIXIL Corporation), Mrs. Lin Kobayashi (Founder and Chair of the Board of International School of Asia, Karuizawa), Mrs. Nancy Singleton Hachisu (Author of the best-selling book “Japanese Farm Food”).

Empire is proud to serve governmental organizations throughout the world with creative and production services for their leadership forums and conferences and is a leading producer of Head of State events.

With the designation of Tokyo as the location for the 2020 Summer Olympics, Empire’s Tokyo-based division is uniquely positioned to serve global brands and clients with their future events, hospitality and Olympic activations.

On September 27th, 2013, Start Today CO., LTD., which manages Japan’s largest and most frequently-visited fashion shopping site “ZOZOTOWN”, launched a new online fashion site targeting young women called “LA BOO.”

To achieve maximum exposure, the client sought to secure on the most recognizable faces in the fashion world today, international supermodel Cara Delevigne. Empire’s Asia division negotiated for and contracted the world famous supermodel and also coordinated the arrangements for the photo and video shoot in London.

Using a top notch shooting crew, the television commercial, along with an outdoor campaign and a tie-in with Japan’s iconic mascot “Fu Nasshi,” the LA BOO campaign yielded excellent response across the board and has exceeded all of the clients goals.

Check out the commercial here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jz81YyowP_Y

Empire is a leading source of talent for advertising and marketing campaigns across all platforms.

On August 2, 2013 Empire worked with longtime client, Accent on Cincinnati, to present two fantastic headline concert artists for a major Ohio-based insurance company. The 2,000 insurance representatives (and their spouses) gathered at the Duke Energy Convention Center were first treated to an opening set by The Midtown Men, four of the original cast members of the Broadway smash-hit "Jersey Boys", backed by a 7-piece stellar band. Recommended by Empire for their high-energy, charismatic performances, The Midtown Men did not disappoint, giving the crowd some of the great Frankie Valli songs featured in the Broadway production including "Sherry" and "Big Girls Don't Cry." Their set also included a number of surprises including the Beatles' "Can't Buy Me Love", the Jackson Five's "I Want You Back", and the Mamas and the Papas' "California Dreaming". The set left the crowd on the dance floor begging for more. And more was what the audience received as Michael McDonald and his band took the stage to perform the songs that has earned him five Grammy Awards, including "Keeps You Running", "You Belong To Me", "I Keep Forgetting", and "Yah Mo Be There". McDonald's set also included a number of the Motown classics that he has covered over the years such as "Heard It Through The Grapevine" and "Ain't No Mountain High Enough". Saving the best for last, McDonald ending the set "What A Fool Believes", followed by encores of his Doobie Brothers hit, "Taking It To The Streets", and a phenomenal rendition of Stevie Wonder's "Living For The City."Empire is a leading provider of headline musical entertainment for corporate events for over 20 years and has delivered artists including Aerosmith, Keith Urban, Bon Jovi, Usher, Prince, Elton John, Alicia Keys, Rihanna, Bruno Mars and hundreds more for our clients' events, galas, and parties around the globe.