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LuminaTO

Mediacaster, 4/18/2008
Luminato Lights Up with Multi-Platform Marketing
http://www.mediacastermagazine.com/...y_id=&link_targ=DailyNews&link_source=aypr_CC

Luminato, the Toronto Festival of Arts & Creativity, has launched a comprehensive marketing campaign, complete with an integrated interactive marketing program.

This year's festival, running June 6-15, features a new website with full festival details.

Mary Pompili, Luminato's Vice President, Marketing & Communications, describes Luminato 2008's marketing strategy as "a fully integrated, multi-channel marketing communication plan that includes print, outdoor, broadcast, cinematic, online, direct mail and mobile, and is designed to build awareness and understanding of Luminato, and ultimately to encourage attendance at the over 100 free and ticketed events planned for this year."

The overall festival brand creative for the 2008 edition was created by The George Partnership International Inc. and has been designed to appeal to a broad cross-section of people, engaging the devoted arts patron while at the same time connecting with the general public, the producers describe. Gerald George, CEO and Creative Director of The George Partnership International Inc., says their goal is to "create a brand language that clearly defines and projects the experience of world-class creativity and performance in the arts as only Luminato can deliver."

Endeavour Marketing has been commissioned to develop Luminato's advertising, including print, outdoor, radio, television and cinema production as well as media planning this year. "We are proud to be associated with a true arts pioneer and play a role in continuing to make Toronto a world renowned cultural centre", said Barry Avrich, President, Endeavour Marketing.

Expanding its interactive marketing campaign this year, Luminato is developing a presence on various online social networks, such as YouTube, MySpace, Facebook and Blogger. Using these free, highly popular social networking sites, Luminato aims to reach young, tech-savvy audiences by inviting them to interact with the festival on an informal, personal level, year-round.

Recognizing that mobile devices are rapidly becoming the most important source of digital communication and content delivery, Luminato's interactive marketing initiatives include a mobile marketing campaign consisting of mobile alerts, contests, and interactive voice recordings (IVRs). At event and installation venues throughout the festival, patrons will be invited to text to receive a voice recorded message from the artist or curator on their mobile device which will explain the exhibit or show they are viewing.

www.luminato.com is a key element in a multifaceted, multi-tiered interactive marketing strategy for the festival. The site is user-friendly, experiential, fully transactional, and provides multiple access points to events through a simple visual navigation. During the festival, visitors can share their Luminato experiences by posting their photos.

Pompili, who reigns from a luxury marketing background – her role prior to Luminato was Vice President of Marketing at Holt Renfrew – joined Luminato in December of 2007, and emphasizes the similarities between marketing an arts festival and marketing a luxury brand, "At the core of any successful luxury retail marketing campaign is the creation of an emotional connection with your audience. It's about establishing the desire for an experience. Luminato is a full spectrum of experiences, ranging from a day with the family, sitting outside enjoying a free concert, to a night out at the ballet. The diversity and accessibility of these experiences simply needs to be communicated."

ABOUT LUMINATO
For 10 extraordinary days in June, the vibrant city of Toronto's stages, streets and public spaces are illuminated with arts and creativity. Luminato is an annual multidisciplinary celebration of theatre, dance, classical and contemporary music, film, literature, visual arts, design and more. Luminato 2008 is June 6-15.

For more information on both free and ticketed Luminato events, including dates, locations and schedules, visit www.luminato.com.

The Festival's first donors, called Founding Luminaries, were vital to the visioning and success of the inaugural Festival and establishing a world-class annual celebration of arts, culture and creativity. The Festival's Luminaries ensure Luminato continues to present Canadian and World premieres, innovative new work and unexpected collaborations that result in memorable moments of artistic excellence.

Luminato gratefully acknowledges the generous support and vision of its Luminaries; corporate sponsors, particularly our presenting sponsor, L'Oréal; our dedicated government partners, especially the Government of Ontario, the Government of Canada through the Department of Canadian Heritage, and other supporters.

Founding Luminaries – Mohammad and Najla Al Zaibak, Charles and Marilyn Baillie, Avie Bennett, Helen Burstyn and David Pecaut, Kate Alexander Daniels and David Daniels, Joan T. Dea and Lionel F. Conacher, Ian and Kiki Delaney, John Donald and Linda Chu, The Duboc Family Foundation, Margaret and Jim Fleck, Linda Frum and Howard Sokolowski, Kevin and Roger Garland, Anthony and Helen Graham, Lucille and Urban Joseph, Michael and Sonja Koerner, Chetan and Clara Mathur, Judy and Wil Matthews, Robert and Cheryl McEwen, Pierre L. Morrissette, Sandra and Jim Pitblado, Jonas and Lynda Prince, Richard Rooney and Laura Dinner, The Slaight Family, Marisa and Edward Sorbara, Larry and Judy Tanenbaum, and Robin and David Young.

Luminaries – Tony and Anne Arrell, David and Stacey Cynamon, Lonti Ebers and Bruce Flatt, The Ira Gluskin and Maxine Granovsky Gluskin Charitable Foundation, Jay and Barbara Hennick & Family, Joan and Jerry Lozinski, Joseph Mimran and Kimberley Newport-Mimran, David and Audrey Mirvish, Nancy Pencer, and Geoff and Megan Smith.

Founding Corporate Luminaries – BMO Financial Group, Ivey Foundation, MacLaren McCann, Manulife Financial, RBC, St. Joseph Communications, TELUS, and Tourism Toronto.

SuperNova Program Development Fund – Margaret and Jim Fleck, Rob and Cheryl McEwen, Sandra and Jim Pitblado, and Gretchen and Donald Ross.

Luminato 2008 Sponsors – L'Oréal, TELUS, CTV, The Globe and Mail, Cineplex, St. Joseph Communications, BMO Financial Group, OLG, National Bank Financial, Manulife Financial, Toronto Star, Scotiabank Group, Toronto Life, The Weather Network, Mill Street Brewery, and Four Seasons Hotel Toronto.

Government Partners – The Government of Ontario, the Arts Presentation Canada program of the Department of Canadian Heritage, Tourism Toronto, The Ontario Trillium Foundation, Ontario Cultural Attractions Fund, Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, and the British Council.

Corporate Supporters – The Boston Consulting Group, Endeavour Marketing, The George Partnership, MyThum Interactive, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, Stikeman Elliott LLP, Strategic Counsel, and ThinData.

Foundations
J.P. Bickell Foundation, Hal Jackman Foundation, The McLean Foundation, Sidney Lee Dream Foundation, Inc., and the Toronto Community Foundation.

This list represents commitments as of April 11, 2008. Additional Luminaries, sponsors, government partners, and individual donors will be announced shortly.
 
I'm going to a couple of the Mark Morris dance performances, Black Watch, the Indian and Sri Lankan Dream, and Fiddle and the Drum. Next year, if it's this good, I think I'll book the whole week off.
 
Group Discounts to Luminato 2008

THE Group Tix Company is your best link to great Group Discounts for Theatre, Happenings & Events around Toronto. We want to make certain you know who we are and are aware of our exciting show line-up. Take advantage of the many great benefits in booking your group with us-including pre public on sale opportunities, savings of up to 15% off single ticket prices, best available group seating and friendly staff to enhance your group's experience. Call today for information or to book your group to these and other great shows.

- Black Watch, Varsity Arena

- A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Canon Theatre

- Mark Morris Dance Group, McMillan Theatre

To order please contact Sara, Vanessa or Barb at THE Group Tix Company 647-438-5559 or outside the local calling area 1-866-4-GRPTIX (1-866-447-7849) or email info@thegrouptixcompany.com

Keep checking our website at www.thegrouptixcompany.com for updates on Theatre, Happenings and Events:)
 
Looking forward to seeing the Dream this Friday. Learning Tamil, Malayalam, Sinhalese, Hindi, Bengali, Marathi and Sanskrit in less than a week should be a breeze.
 
Luminato to Light Up Yonge Dundas Square + City Hall & CN Tower

I can't wait for LuminaTO to start this weekend! You can feel the buzz and excitment building in the city about it with street banners and ads across the city.

I was excited to see that construction of the interactive light installation talked about below has begun at Dundas Square. It appears to be quite the operation as the square was closed off and towers being and the ropes being hung around an across the square.

Should be as equally as exciting as the Pulse Front down at Harbourfront Centre last year.

Adding to the light show across the skyline will see both the CN Tower and City Hall be decked out in Luminato blue lighting during the festival.

Louroz



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Luminato, Act II: Dancing will ensue
Get ready to move your feet at Yonge and Dundas, where spectacular engineering will shed light on an awesome party scene
IVOR TOSSELL

Special to The Globe and Mail

May 31, 2008

When it came to finding a second act, Luminato had its work cut out for it. The arts festival launched in a particularly visible fashion last year, announcing itself to the city with a forest of pulsating searchlights on the waterfront. With this year's festival (running June 6 to June 15), how do you top that?

In the wee hours of the night next week, the answer will start to come together in Yonge-Dundas Square.

With the help of some of the city's top architects and designers, the plaza is about to be transformed into a surreal dancehall.

"It's like a hybrid between installation art and a stage set, at an epic scale," said Tom Payne who, along with Bruce Kuwabara, his partner at KPMB architects, designed and art-directed the project.

Inspired in part by a concept from noted set designer Michael Levine, the square's temporary overhaul will see a canopy of sorts raised over the plaza, in the form of 250 illuminated industrial-strength balloons hung from cables that span the square. Each balloon will be lit from inside with an LED light, the same kind that are used to light up the CN Tower by night.

And, much like the tower, the balloons will be putting on their own computer-controlled light show. Not only can they be programmed to provide a variety of different ambiences for the square, but they will respond in real time to sounds picked up by microphones placed around the square.

The need to create different ambiences on the fly was acute. For the first six nights of the festival, the square will be given over to a different kind of dance each night. In what Luminato calls "Light on Your Feet," instructors will offer free public lessons in different styles every day, from swing to tango to Bollywood, with live music to dance to afterward.

Beyond the dancing, the physical creation of the installation itself, titled Light Play, has proved to be a tall order, bringing together architects, engineers, artists and a variety of contractors who might never have worked together otherwise.

Stringing 250 oversized PVC balloons, each 1.2 to 1.8 metres in diameter, from kilometres of specially ordered nautical ropes isn't as simple as it sounds. Contractors had to be found who could tie the nautical knots that hold it all together. Lashing everything down requires the force of 73 concrete cubes - the engineers involved say the weight is equivalent to three lanes of Volvos encircling the square. Custom-made telephone poles will be used as masts to stay the ropes, each placed in footings designed to provide the necessary "give" to the flexing structure. The problem isn't just weight, but wind.

"When you have 250 balloons side by side, you have the biggest sail in Toronto," says KPMB's Brad Hindson, who is managing the project. (KPMB provided its services to the festival pro bono.)

The installation is keeping an eye toward the environment; helium being an increasingly scarce resource, the balloons are being inflated with air instead, and donated afterward to professors at York University, who can use them for atmospheric research. Meanwhile, the entire project is designed to come and go without so much as scuffing the square below. Not that, surrounded by blaring light boards and the hulk of just-completed multiplex Toronto Life Square, it's necessarily a neutral venue.

"Dundas Square has always been a contested space. Is it public? Is it not public?" notes Gabe Sawhney, the artist who is responsible for the interactive lighting installation. "Whatever happens, it's going to be interesting."

Mr. Sawhney and his colleagues will be patrolling the square with their laptops throughout the event, using a wireless network to continually adjust the lighting. He says he is particularly interested in seeing how the public interacts with the installation in the hours after the crowds have dispersed. "People will be interested in sticking around to play around with the lights and give it a shot for it themselves," he says.

Much like the searchlight installation that lent an icon to the festival last year, the installation will let people play with light on a grand scale. David Pecaut, Luminato's co-chair, says he sees it as a kind of home base for the festival this year - and one that intractably ties itself to the city's landscape. "I hope, in the end, that Luminato feels like an event that could take place nowhere else."

Installation runs June 6 to 12 in Yonge-Dundas Square. Program details at http://www.luminato.com.

Light Play

Among the bits and pieces of the Light Play installation:

250 PVC balloons and LED lights

2.35 kilometres of rope

73 concrete cubes

0.91 km of aircraft cable

805 connections (bowline knots, cable loops, nautical cleats)

47 turnbuckles (a device for adjusting the tension of ropes, cables and tie rods)

8 microphones

3 computers

Ivor Tossell
 
Is anyone else going to the opening gala at the ROM tomorrow night? I haven't a clue what to wear.


Was at the one last year, had a good time, although it wasn't at the ROM.. How does one go about getting on the guest list this year? or does anyone else have any extra passes? If so, let me know:)

RJ
 

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