Posts Tagged ‘NYC’
Partner Shout-Outs: VH1 Save The Music Trivia Night
Tuesday, June 7th, 2011
One week from today, on Tuesday, June 14th, we are thrilled to be producing a very special trivia fund raiser for VH1 Save The Music, a foundation devoted to keeping music education in public schools. I have long been passionate about this cause, a passion which I share with my wife, a New York City public school music teacher. While we at TrivWorks are working incredibly hard to ensure that this event is a success, it simply would not be possible without the ongoing support of many other parties.
Below is a list of all of the partners who have come together, in order to make this incredible event for an extremely important cause possible:
VH1 Save The Music – The foundation has been enthusiastically behind this event from the start, and we are so appreciative of the generous amount of time and effort they have devoted here.
The Bell House – What better place to host an event supporting music education than Brooklyn’s premier live music venue! With a long track record of curating fund raisers for a variety of important causes, including the Haiti earthquake and recent Japan tsunami, we are thrilled that the home of our monthly Brooklyn trivia night has so graciously joined forces with us to create an event supporting VH1 Save The Music.
P.S. 58 – Located in Carroll Gardens and just a stone’s throw from The Bell House, we are honored and overjoyed to be welcoming band students from P.S. 58, the very first school to receive a VH1 Save The Music grant, to perform an introductory song – on instruments donated by Save The Music, no less!
Off-Broadway Productions – We could simply not think of more appropriate prizes for this event than tickets to see off-Broadway musicals, and appreciate so much the productions which have donated tickets! We would especially like to thank Avenue Q, The Awesome 80s Prom, The Sphinx Winx and others for being so very generous, and have no doubt that our prize winners will enjoy seeing these performances live!
NYC Harbor Cruise – The elegant private yacht company Classic Harbor Line took advantage of the musical theme of the evening by graciously donated two tickets to one of their famous Sunday jazz cruises!
Bananagrams – The insanely enjoyable and addicting Scrabble spinoff has generously donated games to be given away as prizes, and we couldn’t be happier!
Finally, we can’t forget to thank our “Special Host” Pat Kiernan for so generously donating his time to this event, and know that everyone who loved The World Series of Pop Culture is going to have an absolutely incredible experience seeing Pat back at his hosting perch!
For more information about this event, or to make a media inquiry, please visit the official VH1 Save The Music trivia event page, or feel free to email me directly at david@trivworks.com. Looking forward to seeing you there!
Why New York City Team Building Events Are Tops
Wednesday, May 18th, 2011
New York City corporate team building events are awesome. That may seem like a rather broad, stereotypical NYC-centric statement, but it’s true. Our city is really like no other in terms of diversity, density and sheer variety of options for truly everything imaginable, and team building activities are no exception.
Prior to starting a professional live trivia company, I had the unique pleasure of working for two years with one of the city’s best scavenger hunt companies – yes, there are scavenger hunt companies in New York! These events were so much fun for participants, but were even more fun for me, who’s job it was to write & produce them. At my disposal? A city with so many museums, parks, zoos, landmarks and historical sites, I was like a kid in a candy store. I ultimately decided that live trivia events were more convenient and customizable for team building purposes, but the fact remains that NYC is just a perfect place for scavenger hunts.
New York City is perhaps also the greatest food town in America. If you love to eat great food from a variety of cultures, this is the place to do it- and you’d better believe there are options for food-related team building. Competitive cooking can be found at culinary schools and specially-designed lofts, and with so many star chefs and “foodies” jammed into this city, you can be certain that some of the biggest names in the business are willing to open up their famous kitchens for the ultimate food lover’s cooking experience (for a price, of course- but the option remains none the less).
Speaking of stars, let’s also not forget that many celebrities of all stripes live and work in New York City, making them available for appearances at events - which are suddenly more impactful and memorable. Of course, for the ultimate in employing celebrities for team building purposes, they should do more than simply attend, but should actively engage with the audience somehow – serving as a special celebrity host at a trivia event, perhaps?
Manhattan island also happens to be surrounded by water, creating even more possibilities for team building – competitive rowing, sailing, kayaking, even swimming (for those who dare). For the ultimate group bonding experience, there’s also the Polar Bear Club, but I wouldn’t recommend it.
While there is absolutely a thriving presence of both team building professionals and enthusiasts in other cities, in my opinion no place beats the Big Apple for corporate team building in terms of sheer variety of activities, range of experiences and overall convenience of choice among many, many options.
Do you think that your city has got New York beat by a mile as far as team building goes? Sound off here! The comments section awaits you.
Hitting the Right Note: Using Trivia for Fund Raising
Thursday, May 5th, 2011
Since becoming a blogger, I have used this space to explore the many aspects of using live trivia as a means of corporate event entertainment, employee team building or brand awareness. Today, I would like to discuss another important use for trivia events, and that is to raise funds for a good cause.
Trivia events are perfect for fund raisers. They are entertaining, challenging and compelling enough to drive a crowd, even in attention-overloaded New York City. Additionally, the questions may be customized so that they serve as an awareness vehicle for the cause- a natural pairing with the raising of dollars, which every fund raiser organizer strives for. A trivia party which captures the passion and enthusiasm of the attendees and hosts alike truly is a recipe for success.
Next month, trivia will once again be used as a means for raising dollars and awareness for an exceptionally good cause as TrivWorks teams up with The Bell House to support VH1 Save The Music foundation. Hosted by our “Special Host” Pat Kiernan, a veteran TV game show host who’s roster includes two seasons with VH1’s “The World Series of Pop Culture,” we will be tapping into people’s love for pop culture and music to raise money and awareness for an organization dedicated to keeping music education in local schools. Attendees will love the “live game show” experience, including a special “showdown” finale, as well as prizes including tickets to off-Broadway musicals graciously donated by numerous theater companies.
VH1 Save The Music was founded in 1997, when then-president John Sykes visited Brooklyn’s P.S. 58 and realized that the band students had no instruments. He started the foundation shortly thereafter, providing P.S. 58 with Save The Music’s first grant.
It just so happens that P.S. 58 is located about 1,000 yards from The Bell House, Brooklyn’s premier live music venue. It is in this spirit of “brainpower” championed by Save The Music that we have all come together to support this extremely important cause; to further drive home the impact and importance of Save The Music, as well as celebrate the special role of P.S. 58, we have arranged for a very special appearance by the school’s band students, who will open the event with a piece performed on instruments provided by Save The Music!
As a lifelong saxophone player who got his start in public schools – as well as a Brooklynite married to a New York City public school music teacher - this cause is one which I am extremely passionate about, and which means a great deal to me personally. I am so very proud to be involved in this special trivia fund raiser, and am grateful to all of our partners who have come together to make this event happen.
Click here to see the official announcement of this event, or purchase tickets by clicking here.
End of an Era – Saying Goodbye to a Longtime Pub Quiz
Friday, April 1st, 2011In the summer of 2006, I first stepped foot into a new bar that had just opened in my neighborhood on the Upper East Side. It was at this large Irish pub that I had my first experience with “real” Irish bartenders, played my very first trivia night and, not long thereafter, embarked on an exhilarating, highly unexpected journey as a “quizmaster.” Almost 5 years and over 200 Gael Pub trivia nights later, I can look back on many fond memories, a fantastic and unique experience, and the knowledge that I helped create one of the best, consistently well-attended trivia nights in New York City.
As a recently-married Brooklynite, however, I am now in a much different place than I was when I first started out. Much as I have enjoyed being the writer & host of one of the most popular trivia nights in town, TrivWorks has expanded significantly in the past year; in addition to servicing a rapidly-growing roster of corporate clients, we have also welcomed Pat Kiernan, NY1 morning news anchor and former host of VH1’s “World Series of Pop Culture” as our “Special Host.”
In order to continue providing our clients with the best possible trivia events, I will need to dedicate even greater time and attention to developing TrivWorks’ core business of corporate event entertainment and team building activities; as a necessary result, I am afraid that I can no longer devote my Tuesday nights to hosting pub quiz. Although it has been a truly incredible and unique life experience which I shall always cherish, I feel that the time has come for me to let go of my longtime UES trivia night, in order to take TrivWorks to the next level; as such, I am announcing today that I have resigned as the Gael Pub quizmaster.
I take great pride in having helped develop what is regarded as one of the best bar trivia nights in the entire city by New York Magazine, Time Out New York, CBS New York, Yelp and more, and am extremely grateful to the Gael’s owners, Gene Lennon & Billy Ferguson, for letting a little Jewish guy with zero alcohol tolerance work behind the bar. I wish the Gael the best of luck, and am confident that they will find a capable replacement to continue their Tuesday night trivia.
FYI I will be officially hanging up my microphone later this month, with my final night being Tuesday, April 12th. I look forward to seeing you there, and can assure you that my last Gael trivia night will have some special surprises in store!
Please note that TrivWorks will still be hosting weekly Monday night trivia at Social Bar & Lounge in Manhattan, as well as monthly trivia nights at The Bell House in Brooklyn.
Thanks so much to the many, many trivia night enthusiasts who have attended Gael Pub quiz over the years, it’s been a great ride. As they say in Ireland, “Erin go Braugh” – which is Gaelic for, “L’Chiam!”
Maintaining a Packed House on Pub Quiz Night
Tuesday, March 29th, 2011
By November 2006, barely 2 months after starting my new gig as the volunteer “quizmaster” at Manhattan’s Gael Pub, the bar had to buy a new laptop so that I could score the 30+ teams each week on Excel, rather than by hand. I was still in shock with the overwhelming response I’d received in a short period of time. Over 100 people were coming out each week- each week!- on a TUESDAY NIGHT, to play trivia- and they said it was because of ME!
Really?
Who the heck am I??
I’m just some guy, a dude who lives around the corner and works as a junior event planner at The 92nd Street Y. What was I doing that made people come out like this?
I still don’t have a good answer to that question, and am both baffled and humbled when I think about it. My theory, however, is that people responded well to my basic premise, the one lens which I made sure to view my new role as “quizmaster” through every week when I picked up the microphone, and which I still do:
It has to be fun.
I knew instinctively – as well as though my limited experience playing pub quiz – that the host had to make the event enjoyable, or there was no point in being there. Sure, people like to feel smart; they revel in competition, and love a good mental challenge with quality trivia questions after a long day at the job. But if the experience isn’t fun, well- than they might as well stay at home and work on a crossword puzzle.
So, that became my thing. Make it fun! For me, this meant injecting humor wherever I could (but not forcing it); make a big thing out of funny team names, rip on the ridiculously wrong answers people give, even make fun of myself a bit (“I’m a quizmaster- and yet, surprisingly, single” went over well, back when it was true).
It worked. Not only did people keep coming back week after week, but they kept approaching me afterwards and telling me how much fun they were having, and that I was doing a great job- wow!
Do you have a similar experience starting up your own trivia night?
TrivWorks founder David Jacobson blogs daily on a wide range of topics relevant to corporate event entertainment, team building and live trivia. 
