Soho House West Hollywood’s Halloween Party, Los Angeles, October, 2021
Soho House West Hollywood celebrates the 50th anniversary of Willy Wonka on Halloween 2021, with Rupaul’s Drag Race S13 winner Symone & the House of Avalon.
Role: As “Head of Events, West Coast” for Soho House (2021-2022), I was responsible for conceptualizing the event, theme ideation, talent booking, creative direction, production & on-site event & staff management, on-site artist relations & content management, and more.
from concept to creation,
come with me
& you’ll be
in a world of pure imagination…
🍭🍭🍭🍭🍭🍭🍭🍭
Event Overview
Halloween 2021: Symone and the Chocolate Fec’try
This Halloween, we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the original Willy Wonka and transform Soho House West Hollywood into a wondrous chocolate factory where everything is edible, if you dare. The iconic and illustrious winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 13, Symone, walks us through her delicious world of wonders, kicking things off where it all began – with a lucky golden ticket. Then, take a ride up The Great Glass Elevator, where you’re welcomed with a drink from Bacardí. But be sure to sip slowly –you don't want to end up like Violet the blueberry, or Charlie and his Grandpa on the roof of the bubble room. Grab a bite in the candy cafeteria pop-up in Maya, before heading up to Wonka's wonderland in all its glory in the Sitting Room. In the garden, the chocolate river is guaranteed to be a treat, but only if you can pass through the tricky tunnel of terror. Don't be late – on the other side awaits a special performance from our extraordinary chocolate maker and ‘Fect’ry’ owner, Miss Symone.
Entertainment
Headline Talent: Symone
Concept: Symone and the Chocolate Fec’try — Most famously known for stealing the crown of Rupaul’s Drag Race most recent US Season 13 winner, the iconic Symone will host Halloween with us as a reimagined Willy Wonka. In one of Symone’s most hilarious challenges, she established herself as the queen of the ‘Fect’ry’ indeed. Symone performs in the Garden:
11.30PM: Take Me Higher - Symone x Diana Ross
12AM: Candy Shop - Symone x 50 cent
We also had voiceovers playing on a loop in both the elevators as guests arrived welcoming everyone into the wonky world of Symone’s Chocolate Fec’try, and the hallway from the Sitting Room to the Garden that was transformed into the Tunnel of Terrors, with a recreated version of the song from the film!
DJ Lineup:
9PM-11PM: DJ Noah Passovoy in Garden & DJ K in Sitting Room | 11PM-2AM: DJ HappyDevilBoys in Garden & Zomanno in Sitting Room
Context:
Halloween is fast approaching… it’s 2021, what will WeHo do that’s both old & new?
As the Head of Member Events, I urge my team to curate remarkable experiences that bring our members together in a real and thoughtful fashion. The origins of this department, why it was created in the first place, is to add sparkle to the member experience. We take pride in the work we do to bring important and diverse programming to our creative community, to positively impact the lives of those who’ve entrusted us as docents of culture.
Coming out of Covid, Soho House West Hollywood wanted a fun, light & colorful theme for Halloween, so Willy Wonka came up. In thinking of ways to take a more unique angle, a voice in my head said “Charlie and the Chocolate Fect’ry” & I burst out laughing. That voice was Rupaul Drag Race winner Symone, who thankfully thought it was funny too and next thing you know her House of Avalon came through as carebears and we threw ourselves a party complete with a re-creation of the film’s bubble room, a chocolate fountain, & a midnight performance of ‘Candy Shop’ (naturally).
