Dear Valued Community,

We want to invite you to join us on an adventure! 
It’s a mission that really matters to us, and we hope it will to you as well.

You’ve known us a long time, and in creating EnJoy Productions, you know we’ve spent many years working business to business, which is a different path than creating our dream projects. In envisioning events for Clients, our work is super creative and employs loads of artists, and we’ve had amazing successes: our company has created and performed with and for Teatro Zinanni, Cirque du Soleil, Bumbershoot and hundreds of nonprofits and corporations.

But now, we ARE creating a dream project. it’s time to create something original, something inspiring and beautiful - because the world needs it, our city needs it, we all need it. We have an opportunity to make an uplifting contribution, at a time when people are isolated and overwhelmed. It’s why we do what we do.

What’s the dream show? It’s a vision I had years ago, and it came alive during the pandemic as a clear response to the human need for connection. Now the time is right to bring it to life, and we need your help, because this production literally won’t happen without our community’s investment. Today is the first day of our Kickstarter campaign, and we really need you to join us as we get the ball rolling. 

Venus & the Vixens: Games of Love is an interactive rock circus musical based on the iconic love story of Cupid and Psyche and accompanied by a kick-ass all-female rock band, with food and drink! Its world premiere is May 30 - June 16, and many pieces of this epic production have already come together - the songs are written, the script is being dramaturged, and the cast is ready to roll.  It is our hope that Venus & The Vixens: Games of Love is going to redefine the meaning of immersive, interactive theater and forever imprint itself on the Seattle performance art scene.

We have been committed for over 30 years to paying artists living wages, and supporting nonprofits. Right now, our most significant challenges are paying our cast and crew the wage they deserve, and paying SANCA and Emerald City Trapeze to rent their amazing venue for rehearsals and production. 

Our Kickstarter campaign runs Feb 1 - 27, and we need to raise $60,000 to complete the funding for Venus. Ticket sales will cover only 24% of the cost of this production. It’s very different from working for a corporation! We’re hiring 35 artists and working harder than we ever have to create this show - A show that we will ALL be proud of.

So here’s the ask: I’d like you to please consider backing the campaign today at any level from $250 - $1,000. Or more, if you’re able and inspired! You'll receive some incredible rewards for your support, as well as the assurance that you are making quantifiable investment in this production. It’s literally being generated by and with our community, and you’re a big part of that.

Please click here to view the rewards, learn more, and back the campaign. LINK HERE

With deep respect, and sincere gratitude for considering this. You have my deep respect, and thank you for your time!

Martha Enson, 

Writer and Director, Venus & The Vixens

It's an electrifying time here at EnJoy Productions, and we're thrilled to share our journey with you! We are currently in full production mode for the world premiere of "Venus & the Vixens: Games of Love." While many pieces of this epic production have fallen into place, our most significant challenge lies in the costs associated with bringing a show of this magnitude to life in Seattle.

   To help make this exciting project possible, we're launching a Kickstarter campaign throughout the entire month of February, and we have only 27 days to raise the funds. But we're not just asking for your financial support; we want to celebrate our journey with you in style! That's why we're throwing two unforgettable parties, and we'd love for you to be a part of them. All info above.

    Picture this: games, delectable food and drinks from the amazing Ruby Brink, captivating performances, and a gathering of our dearest friends. It's a free event, and we want you to join us as we kickstart our campaign with a bang!

     So, join us, bring a friend, and please help us spread the word! Your Attendance at our February 1st or February 4th party will make a world of difference. Please RSVP by clicking the link below at your earliest convenience so we can ensure a memorable experience for you and your guests. See you there, and let's make history together! 

Warm regards,
Martha Enson and Kevin Joyce

P.S. Mark your calendars for February 1st and jump on your phones to help EnJoy Productions - Sharing our Kickstarter with the community is where the real magic happens. Are you interested backing the campaign BEFORE we launch? We love you already! Reply to this email and let us know your interested.

As fall settles in, EnJoy is gearing up for a flurry of fabulous nonprofit and corporate events. One upcoming event we’re excited to tell you about is the annual conference for the Washington Festivals and Events Association held this year in Issaquah, Washington from Oct. 9-11.

Martha and I are engaged as featured presenters in the conference, and in addition to hosting the opening reception, facilitating round table discussions, and emceeing the awards ceremony, we’re thrilled to be leading conversations about how fundraisers and events more broadly can be re-imagined and supercharged with meaning! (https://www.wfea.org/wfea-conference)

Our two breakout sessions, “Revamping Live Auctions” and “Why Customization Matters: Celebrating our Clients’ Stories,” will provide us with a chance to connect deeply with the festivals and events community of our region. This is a opportunity for us to guide conversations with industry leaders on the critical “tweaks” that can be made to live events - so that attendees leave feeling more alive and more committed to that organization and community!

As we look at patterns and trends in a post-pandemic event industry, there are incredible opportunities for innovation in how we craft our gatherings. For our part, EnJoy is more committed than ever to bringing joy and connection into our events and helping our clients create experiences that move people, inspire them, and give them a sense of hope.

Over 20 years, EnJoy designed, produced, and hosted nearly 1000 events nationwide and abroad. It’s an honor to be part of this industry and to be part of the WFEA Conference!

EnJoy Productions is excited to provide entertainment at the historic opening of the new Sound Transit light rail line in Tacoma on September 16th. We’ll have characters embedded on the train to provide historical context to the grand opening of the line. It is an honor for EnJoy Productions to be a part of this important event. Performance dates are still to be determined, but the public is encouraged to stay tuned for more information.

The opening of the light rail line is a major event for the Tacoma community and EnJoy Productions is proud to be a part of it. We look forward to providing spectacular entertainment and education to the rich Tacoma public on this historic day.

We hope to see everyone there on September 16th!

The first half of 2023 will see EnJoy traveling all over the country with its popular Communication Survival Guide trainings for teams, as well as auctions for some wonderful nonprofits. Affiliates of Seattle Study Club from California to Boston, Colorado to Alabama, Minnesota and Florida will spend a half day exploring how stress makes us lousy communicators & collaborators, and what to do about it! It’s a program we’re super proud of and the seminar, which combines neuroscience and improvisation, plus using several incredible tools from Liberating Structures. ™

The Communication Survival Guide is as enjoyable and worthwhile to lead as it is (so they report) for the participants. One of the most rewarding aspects of the work is witnessing hundreds of people every week who are committed to showing up as their best selves, and in service of others. The diversity of personalities, the different levels of exposure to the material we present, and the sheer numbers of people that we are engaging in this work makes for some inspiring trips! People are hungry for tools to be less…tweaked, let’s say. It’s humbling to work with people who are on healthcare’s front lines, especially folks in dentistry who are constantly dealing with patients who are terrified! Amazing to witness them work to be at the front lines of conscious communication as well!!

When Kevin isn't producing events or raising critical funds for organizations his passion is playing music! On November 20 Kevin will perform 2 sets of his original songs at Vashon Center for the Arts in the gorgeous Kaye White Hall. The evening is themed "Music and Healing", and will be a rollicking exploration Kevin's 30 year history as a songwriter. He'll be joined onstage by a selection of Vashon and Seattle music luminaries, and the show will feature new tunes from the pandemic, others Kevin has never sung publicly, and songs from the campfire that make fun of everything and everyone. Tickets and livestream information here:

TICKET INFORMATION

Videos

Photo credit: King County Metro photographer Thomas Hawthorne captured during Welcome Week with the Downtown Seattle Association 07/2021

Let me start by saying I fully support the social distancing restrictions that have been in place, and that not gathering in large groups for the past 2 years has been, in my opinion, the right course of action. Full transparency: it nearly decimated our business, amounting to an 80% loss in revenue in 2020, and a slow claw-back, adapt, pivot (hate that word) in 2021. It also goes without saying that nearly 1 million deaths in the US has been far more tragic than not being able to gather, and the personal and collective sacrifice has been, I believe, absolutely necessary. And…I write this on a day that both nationwide and Seattle covid cases (95% Omicron) have come down 75% from their peak, and are predicted to come down much further in the very short term.

It seems clear that that more and more people and institutions are ready to have a different conversation, and to move to a different set of restrictions and limitations – in public norms, and in their own hearts and minds.

I was thinking “the inevitable return…” would have been better in the title, but instead of talking about the how - new norms, collective agreements, best practices - I wanted to address the why - the urge, the need and the critical importance of coming back together to our collective health. And in this case, I’m focusing on the Live Event Industry – not workplaces, or schools, restaurants or movies. I’m talking about those experience we participate in mostly for the sake of being together.

There’s plenty of evidence to suggest a robust return to live events is anything but inevitable: the only partial re-opening of workplaces; the large percentage of workers deciding that it’s better for them to work at home; the seismic shift of fundraising to virtual (or other methods that aren’t galas). Much of this is what we all had to do (by law or survival necessity for our businesses) during the most dangerous phases of the pandemic. What matters for this discussion is the extent to which we decide to continue behaving that way when neither legal restriction nor survival necessity are any longer at play. To be clear, I’m talking about the survival of our businesses and cultural institutions here, and not ignoring the continued mortal danger of infection for a portion of the population. But I am making the argument that continuing the level of restrictions and the refusal to support public gatherings is at this point doing us more harm than good (especially if politically motivated and mostly “performative”, but that’s a whole other conversation)

That was a long preamble to these propositions: live events are in fact going to come back with abandon; they can help meet some deep collective and individual needs (healing trauma is not too strong a phrase), and; we in the industry have an opportunity to deeply reflect on what values we bring to this work, and to engage new criteria for success.

Two years of distance and isolation has messed with our social skills and the practice of connecting with others. How might we bring attention to empathy and intimacy to our events? And by that, I mean qualities of kindness, generosity of spirit, and sensitivity to the gentle onramp that might be needed for people to feel delighted by (and not just safe in) connecting with others. It may mean more time and different structures for the informal parts of events, perhaps designing different kinds interactivity that provide some “guardrails” for connecting.

I can imagine agoraphobia in returning to large groups gatherings. How might we increase the opportunity for depth, for hearing each other’s stories, for minimizing overwhelm? For many communities and organizations, large gatherings have always provided a sense of social home, of being in our tribe. Talk about something that is essential to our sense of psychological well being! Research suggests that modern humans, just like 30,000 years ago, can manage somewhere in the range of 125 close relationships. Since we’ve clearly NOT been able to be with (most of) our larger tribe of late, it's interesting to think about what we might do to turn our events into really good medicine? In order to give each other a felt experience of that comfort zone, what changes in space design, décor, seating arrangements, size of stages, and length of segments might we consider to reduce the sense of being amidst a disquietingly large crowd?

In the hosting, scripting, curating, directing and design work that we’re engaged in, I feel challenged to help construct and lead events with a new attention to narrative, to beauty, and…stay with me…to ritual. Narrative for the sake of telling the story of our shared values, our hopes and dreams, the very mythic importance of what we’re about. Beauty for the healing of the body and soul – for the endorphins, the dopamine and the oxytocin of it all, the sense of love, of pleasure in the world. Beauty for the sake of reminding us of what matters, of meaning. And ritual because we can create our events with care and deep attention to the user experience - in the sequence, the language we use to guide attendees, the punctuation of beginnings and endings, the production values that make things “pop”, the guests’ sense of being led through an experience by people who care about them, so that they leave feeling fuller than when they came, and somehow more able to bring that into the world.

That’s why I’m excited about the return of live events, and to all of us bringing our hopefulness, adaptability and leadership to their design. Our gatherings need to be reimagined, and created, with the care and genius that reflects how much they matter! They’re not extra, not nice-to-haves – they define us, and ground us in our communities. They are gotta-haves. So here we go…let’s nail this!

See you soon…and SO looking forward to it. - Kevin Joyce

photo: Michelle Bates

It is easy to look at the last couple of years as a big dose of loss. Loss of family members, loss of beloved pets, loss of work and work contexts. It has also been an incredibly rich time of growth and learning. And it has, for me, been a time of assessment of what matters most.

This past July I had the opportunity of an amazing reunion with two groups of performers on an island in the Northwest where I live and create. 

There are long roots betwixt and between these groups – my aerial partner is in one group and my theatrical family is in the other.  Independently, each group is made up of relationships that extend back to our earliest times of making theater and music. There are literally decades of creative joy and conflict, both personal and professional, in both circles, and once a year we all gather at a festival of fairy lights, stages, art mayhem and camping at the Oregon Country Fair.

For those of you not familiar with the fair – and no, it’s not the Oregon County Fair – you might imagine it as a cross between a Grateful Dead concert and the Shire in Lord of the Rings, with 5 days of truly unpredictable beauty, fantastic art, massive freedom, and music all night long. Throw in camping cheek and jowl, no matter the weather, and stage shows daily, no matter the lack of sleep, and you can begin to get the feel.

Well, you know how it has all been cancelled. Of course you do. The weddings, the reunions, the work, the travel. All our celebrations, memorials, graduations, competitions and trips. The on-going letting go, the stoicism, the disappointment and an ever-creeping sense of exhaustion at it all; the idea that maybe the effort is not worth it – the hoping, the modifying, and the accommodation – and that maybe the insular, predictable, already complex and unending daily grind isn’t really so bad, and that it might be easier to let those events and gatherings just go on by.

Well, I’m here to tell you –It is WORTH it! After 2 years of the fair  being cancelled we decided to have a mini fair ourselves. and it was so worth it.

First of all, let’s talk about the people. Being in the presence of their real, dear, complex, fun and funny selves – worth it. People from all over the country. People who managed  food for 50 with a portable kitchen and hose hook up, and never once got grumpy!  The creative juices cross- pollinating, and rehearsing group choreography on the fly with the predictably smart and bossy people back seat driving;  the long nights sitting around a campfire singing – worth it! The communal meals after so much solitude – worth it!

The chaos of new dogs and growing kids practicing adulting in a larger family setting; the tenting and the competitive wiffle ball; basking in other people’s gifts of beauty and bringing my own to share – WORTH IT!

I had to exercise my poor atrophied muscles of gathering, and get my stamina hat out for the early morning coffee crew and the late night party, but as the saying goes “you can sleep when you’re dead”.

So, what does all of this have to do with EnJoy Productions? 

In our company, below all the costumes, the skill acts, the characters and songs; underneath the fund raising and messaging, training and communication, is a profound dedication to joy and connection. Find the joy in every group, organization, conference or business, and then share the appreciation.

I say it is worth is – let us be together creatively and partake in joy together. Let us help you find your community of best practices that unleash your fun and creativity and let us all practice re-building towards connection. It’s worth it. Won’t you join us?

As we move into the fall, and closer to the time of harvest, we’d like to take a moment to reflect back on one of EnJoy Production’s larger projects of the summer, our partnership with the Downtown Seattle Association for their Welcome Back Weeks. In a time when being in public space, in close proximity with others, is complex and concerning; the work and initiatives of the Downtown Seattle Association (DSA) and the Metropolitan Improvement District to bring joy, performance, and art to public spaces could not have been more essential. 

Partnering with DSA as one of their selected producers, has been one of the highlights of our summer at EnJoy productions, as artists, creators, and producers the work of bringing arts and culture to people of all walks of life is right in the pocket of who we strive to be as a company. 

So far this summer we’ve had the pleasure of producing Over 15 different productions throughout downtown, reaching hundreds of residents hungry for a sense of civic celebration! We've also been able to employ and engage close to 100 performing and visual artists with opportunities to share their work.

Throughout these times, we have witnessed moments of extreme joy and wonder on the faces of countless audience members, and unexpecting bystanders. Whether the audience had come specifically for an event, had just happened to walk by, had been driving in a car, or riding by on a bus; the joy of being caught off guard by the beauty of art and performance in public space in the middle of the day, was palpable and illuminating.  

At EnJoy we like to think of ourselves as creators of extraordinary events, and it’s exactly in this place of creating the extraordinary moments that we find joy and hope for our collective futures. Yes, the work is challenging at times, and yes, the countless hours of preparation can be daunting, but it all pays off by seeing the joy emerge during an event. 

We find joy in the simple wave of a puppet to a child, or in seeing an innocent bystander suddenly be compelled to dance. We find joy in people’s faces as they take pictures with beautiful stilt walkers stretching above them, not unlike the high rise horizon. We find joy in hearing local citizens hoot, holler, laugh and applaud as tap dancers twirl, breakdancers flip, salmon puppets parade, live painters paint, musicians play, aerialists fly, jugglers toss, and WE share moments of true connection together. 

It’s in these moments of awe, and wonder that we forget about ourselves, our preoccupations, and our perceptions of each other. Our hearts open, and new possibilities for hope and understanding begin to emerge. By witnessing the grace of these moments, we reaffirm our commitment to the arts, to our partners, and to sharing our vision of joy with our beloved Seattle community.

Of course NONE of this would have been possible, without our team of producers, stage managers, artists, the Downtown Seattle Association, and you the public. Our hats go off to us all! Thank you, and the fun isn’t over!!! Stay tuned for exciting news regarding new activations by EnJoy is downtown Seattle, and including the activation of 6 different vacant storefronts with visual and performing arts in this winter! Check out DSA’s full summer calendar HERE. If you’re wanting to have some fun, come check out an event in one of your local parks, downtown. You will not be sorry! ;) 

On March 6th and & 7th EnJoy co-produced Phare Into the Future, a live-24 hour Guinness World Record attempt, and virtual fundraising campaign to support Phare Ponleu Selpak, a Cambodian circus and visual art school that serves literally hundreds of families in Cambodia. Globally more than a half of a million people tuned in online to watch the event, and more than $125,000 dollars were raised to support Phare’s educational programs. We’re humbled to announce that in addition to the critical funds raised, and winning a Guinness World Record for Longest Circus Show, Phare Ponleu Selpak and EnJoy Productions have also received three international awards for our innovation and creativity with this event.

We received a Gold and a Silver trophy in the Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards, one of the most prestigious business awards in the world, and also a Gold at the Hermes Creative Awards, for our work on this event. Some of the other competitors were global giants like AstraZeneca, Bruce Springsteen, LG, IBM, Pepsi, UNICEF, Hewlett Packard, Manulife, and Reuters. If you aren’t familiar with these awards please take a moment to check out the links below! 

Our work with Phare over the last year has been a beacon of hope, driving us forward towards the end of a very long tunnel. It was a labor of love built during a global pandemic, and inspired by the desire to stand in solidarity with our community during times of deep struggle. 

Our hope is that these awards will continue to uplift and sustain the spirit of Phare Ponleu Selpak as they continue to fight the COVID crisis, and remind us all that the power of the arts combined with the fire of the human spirit truly has the ability to change lives. If you would like to donate to Phare Into the Future you can do so by following this link: 

https://phareps.org/make-a-donation/#makeadonation

Many thanks to everyone to our partners Phare Ponleu Selpak, Box Clever Creative, and everyone who made this possible!! 

A special shout out is in order for Bonnie Steussy & David Edfeldt, who on a whim decided to take motorcycles taxis to see Phare’s circus before leaving Cambodia, and then made the effort to connect us. Just goes to show that even the smallest of gestures can produce gigantic results, and art truly does save lives.

We’re thrilled to announce the launch of EnJoy’s digital services: live-streamed virtual auctions, trainings, teambuilding, and corporate content!

The landscape of our world has drastically changed, and we're adapting to the times, finding silver linings - all while practicing social distancing! EnJoy Productions is partnering with some of Seattle’s premier audiovisual companies to ensure your organization can stay connected to your donor base, colleagues and communities through these challenging times.

We’re combining our proficiency in production, expertise in improv, and our partnerships with the brightest local stars in live-streaming and digital content. Most importantly, we’re able to bring EnJoy’s special sauce - hilarious and soulful connection to audience, and best-in-class production capabilities - to all these new platforms - virtual live auctions, trainings, and corporate content.

If you’d like more information on how your company can host a virtual fundraiser, deliver critical content to distributed team, and produce a hilarious, team-building morale boost, click the link below, or contact us directly.

EnJoy's Virtual Services Promo Video

We’re here to help you thrive.

"Compassion is the radicalism of our time.”    His Holiness the Dalai Lama