Welcome to Knight Talks, the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications talk show produced by students for student I'm Gracie Davis, a junior studying journalism.

And our guest today is Wendy Edw a CJC alum whose career has incl a wide variety of roles within the live family entertain and touring museum industry.

She's now Executive Producer and Director of VStar Entertainment which is part of the affiliate s division of Cirque du Soleil Ent Group, one of the worldwide lead in live entertainment.

Hi, Wendy.

Thank you so much for joining us Hi, Gracie.

You've had a fascinating career in the live entertainment indust What does the live show experien mean to you personally?

The live show experience, it's just that, it's an experience.

And, you know, you've got a group of individual and mine is definitely touring.

I had 17 years on tour.

So it's that camaraderie of a gr on tour, crew, cast, staff, with every day, and that's to get the and get it opened on time because doors are going to open and showtime is never going to c And it's a lot of work and long But in live show, live entertain you get the immediate payoff tha because you get to see the rewards of your work in the reaction and interaction with th So all the hard work, by the end 16 hour day, you get your payoff It's naturally there because your audience is experie your show with you every night.

As a native Floridian, were you always going to be a Florida Gat What led you to attending UF, and what drew you to studying the communications field?

I was always going to go to a public school and UF was the top of the list.

The journalism college was well known at the time.

It was very accredited.

And one of the top, not only in the state, in the co And UF in Gainesville, if you look at Miami, Tallahasse or the other cities, Gainesville offered such great outdoor recre and other light curriculum outside of just the education.

Gainesville was always the top c UF was always the top choice.

And the journalism school is, I spent junior high, high school, a lot as editor of And so naturally progressed that that was kind of where my passion was when I got out of high school.

So I wanted to go into the journ field.

I actually did the exact same th Junior high and high school, I was editor in chief of my year I helped start the program, and when I was coming up through high school, it was just and the journalism college.

And so I really relate to that.

That's really, really cool.

After graduating, you held various positions in touring shows, including audio engineer.

Tell us about some of those role I started in audio and I learned actually here at UF.

I was flipping stage sets at the Orange and Bre worked at the O'Connell Center, did som changeovers at the Hippodrome.

And then when the Performing Art opened up, it was my junior year when it first opened up.

So I started working there doing and events and learning the trad I did audio, lighting, carpentry, props, but I liked the science behind audio And so when I graduated, I got o Audio with my foundation or my t and from there it kind of progre I did some stage management, went into production technical, moved over to opera patients and then eventually went over into like director of production My career has been very fluid, but I've been able to work in all of the kind of trades and that's kind of progressed my car And the live entertainment indus what's really great about it is you get to be fluid in your c You can have lateral moves, you can have upward moves, and it just allows everyone to kind of take their foundation and then move into different rol Most of my current team, you know, started in lighting pr We all have our bases and now we've kind of moved up into director positions and higher management roles, but we still have our base craft that kind of supports us and what we kind of gravitate to and like Was there anything that you did specifically with the CJC during your time here that kind you towards working with audio?

The Performing Arts Center.

But at CJC- long time.

But I recall maybe it was with the station, w go out and record seminars to pl So kind of doing a little bit of recording around campus.

That and mixing for shows at the Performi Center was really what got me st and got me passionate about it.

You've been a director of produc and a technical director and ran tour operations as part of your various scopes.

What are the differences between these positions?

There's similarities and differe Think of the Project Triangle, where they say it's time, qualit and you only get two of them.

A show doesnt work without thos Like, they make the core triangl Production focuses on more the creative side of it.

Music, costumes, talent casting, the creative teams, managing the So they're all three in simplistic way or project man but over their own areas.

So production is the creative si Costuming, scenic, talent and casting, and definitely creative team man Technical: audio, lighting, soun with scenic, but it's more of th precision technical area.

And then operations.

They're kind of what I call the Jim Cantores of the world because they always need to know what the weather is, because they're the ones moving trucking trailers, logistics, moving personnel, and they're the problem solvers.

Like if production has a problem tech has a problem, they're looking over at the ops to say, I need help, you know, o So the three areas all are tied together for a successful project.

They just have their specialties they all work together and colla And there's always overlap betwe Which of those roles did you prefer working in?

Oh, you know, at different times I liked all three.

I think and they developed different ski Like, you know, operations is de they're the problem solvers.

You know, they've got to keep the show mov You know, it's got to be everyon got to make their plane on time.

The trailers have to deliver.

There's so many variables that t in operations and they've got to be quick on t Technical, you know, there's a lot of science behind Lighting, its very precision wo You know, you're having to be in with what's happening on show, e if you're writing front of house you know, because you are kind o an extension, of the talent on s because you're hitting your cues And then production, like for ne development, you get that creativity aspect f So I think at various times I gravitated towards all three.

I think I lean a lot these days with production and new show dev What are some of the biggest obs in making a show successful?

Oh, there's a lot.

For like new show development, it's really the unknowns.

You know, you've got a concept and you're trying to fulfill the intent of that vision.

But there's such a journey from concept to execution, and you quite don't know, are you going to get the musical rights to a song that kind of anchors the creativ You know, is the vision of the c really going to come out the way you intended with the sc And it's really a collaborative and sometimes in production side of new show development, if your creative team can't get along or producers and the creative team don't have the same vision, you can hit a roadblock pretty q I believe best idea at the table no matter whose idea it is, because the ultimate goal should be the best show.

On the touring side, it's the va you're going to have.

Domestically, a lot of the venue are constructed similar, right?

But you go international and like a good example is when I was in audio, we were and we played a beef slaughterho and it was a weird configuration that didn't work with the audio So I was having to like re engin the system to work for that one building because it was almo like the Eiffel Tower.

It was a bit crazy.

And so the variables in touring are usually the venues.

You could have a floor that's 22 feet, and this is very specific because I left at 22 feet short.

So you're having to restage the right before doors.

Or another good example on the ops side was we were advancing to go into Bar with the show and three weeks ad with the event managers, the ven everything we could think of, except it was the New York City that day.

The trailers were trying to get into the building, you know, So it was like rolling roadblock And we're trying to figure out how to get the trucks in.

And, you know, I get there and I'm looking at m and we're like, yep, forgot that So it's the unknowns.

And you can try to plan for all the what ifs in the worl But the one that's going to happ is for one you didn't think of.

You freelanced as well.

Tell me more about that and what during that part of your career.

So freelancing, you know, I worked many years for some large corporations and some large companies.

And, you know, freelancing for me was a way to kind of go out and explore and expand my you know.

Freelancing can be a huge learni because it's a time stamped proj and you get contracted with a te you might never have worked for on a project that you might never have done.

One was the Copa America opening closing ceremonies, which was br I've never done either.

So it was a six week project.

My scope was the production and of the opening and closing cerem It was walking in to saying, Her the concept, here's what we want Go find the vendors, you know, help support the produ and the talent and what the show program was go The other one was operations and production for Kellogg's USA Gymnastics Tour.

So when the team came back from the Rio Olympics, we did a ten week tour with them, exhibit of what their Olympic routines w And there it was hiring the crew, hiring the vendors, and then running the operations of the tour from trucking, bussi and then being on site and just making sure all the var other contractors had what they when we got into the venue.

And, you know, so they were both new projects.

They're really fast and quick.

But freelancing helps you expand your world because you start building that you need in the industry and the network helps you get th or get the next contract.

And it also test your ability.

Like for me it was like, Do I know only what And freelancing helped me to und Yeah, I only know what I know.

So I learned a little bit more by taking some time and freelancing for a couple of In 2016, you began working as Di Operations for Vstar Entertainme Tell us about this company and what prompted your move ther Vstar Entertainment actually con to do the USA Gymnastics tour, so I did that for them as a cont And while I was on tour, my predecessor had left the comp So the CEO had asked if I would and fill the gap for six months while he was recruiting for the position.

Three months into it, he was lik Will you take the position?

So it kind of led me in.

One contract led me into the ful position of Vstar.

Vstar Entertainment's of Family Entertainment company.

We do live entertainment shows a for demographics of 6 to 12.

You know, we specialize in the 2 with our IP partners of PAW Patrol, Troll We take animated series and we adapt them and bring them through puppetry, costumed chara They're full, almost Broadway st Everyone sings live.

We have a full moving light rig, So yeah, it's kind of like Broadway style show using animated series and bringing them to life on sta What was the transition like from freelancing and having those different contracts into that role?

A lot more responsibility for ot When you're freelancing, you kno have a responsibility to your cl to your contract, to your scope With Vstar, in this role, it's like as a leader, I had to a lot more departments, had to be responsible for what t and make sure that they had what they need to do their jobs.

And with Vstar, the role kind of expanded.

You know, I started out in touring operations and produc and then kind of moved up in the as well as some other promotions and took on larger roles for it.

So you kind of have more responsibility to more people in a company, whereas when you're freelancing, you understand your limited proj What does the position of Director of Operatio and how much work goes into the and planning of a tour?

So Director of Operations, we're responsible for hiring the the staff, trucks, trailers, DOT, venue advances, making sure that with collaborating with boo if they want to put the show int does it fit?

Can we get in?

With operations, you always want to make sure you can get out of the building before you actually load into on And transportation of the person Is it can you get there by bus?

Do you need to fly?

So it's really that broad map an of a four year tour connecting city to city to make that the show can fit, it can pl it can get there on time.

It meets the needs of production the needs for booking, meets the needs for the technica So operations is that kind of bi that makes sure that every depar can actually go to that city and play the show and keep the o intent of the creative intact.

You don't want to say you're going to play a venue, sign off then have to cut 50% of the prod So that's kind of the operations of touring and what I was doing, Little over a year later, you became the Senior Vice President of Touring Operations and Executive Producer.

What did this advancement mean for your involvement with Vstar and what did you oversee as SVP?

So as SVP, that umbrella kind of got larger and it was more of corporate ope So I oversaw- Vstar Entertainmen vertically integrated.

So for touring shows, we do ever from ops to production, booking, marketing, finance, and we also our own scenic and costume shop.

So we were building our own show internally.

So Senior VP, I oversaw the cost shop, the fabrication shops, bot and scenic.

And then the corporate operation I oversaw the facility.

We built a new facility and moved in there.

IT department, shipping and rece So I basically called the expens of the company fell under me.

So anything that wasn't revenue, all of us that spend the money kind of fell into that position.

And then executive producer became the role of business deve Finding the IP, finding the new bringing the creative teams together to create the new shows and develop the pipeline for the so that we were producing new sh and putting new product out ther In 2018, Vstar was acquired by C du Soleil Entertainment Group.

How were you involved in that tr and what did that represent for the future of Vstar?

How I was involved in the transi or the acquisition was due dilig When you're in an acquisition between two companies, the buying company wants to know everything.

So financial models, financial reports, schedules.

So it was a lot of due diligence explaining to Cirque du Soleil who Vstar was, what we did, and providing them with the information they needed to do their own due diligence.

And it brought Vstar into a bigger creative company.

It allows us Cirque du Soleil entertainment group.

It's Blue Man group, it's the works, it's Vstar Entertainm and, of course, the parent compa Cirque du Soleil.

So it just opened us up to a broader network internally of creatives and prod And again, it's we know what we So being part of a bigger compan is you learn what you don't know Your role changes to executive p a few months before the world sh due to COVID 19.

How did this impact your job and entertainment world as a whole?

Well, for live entertainment, you know, they said we were the to shut down in the last to open And it was true because of that of collective experience that you've got a lot of people watching a show.

So the shut down, you know, we closed the tours on And then slowly, because the com was based in live touring, the f shops supported theme parks and all of that live entertainment e slowly throughout the week, we just sort of shut down and different departments closed And everybody kind of did what t to do or look for different posi Some people moved out of the ind others kind of took other positi or jobs waiting for the industry open or to come back open for while I didn't have work and was let go.

But then they brought me back because they realized they neede of an operations person, then fi or accountants, which was good.

And then my role was slowly to get things prepared for when we opened, you know, to make sure everything was read When we were finally allowed to into the theaters and the venues So what were some of the prepara that you guys made preparing to go back into t Technical equipment, everything that sits for two yea we still had the shows, the tours and trucks and trailer So it was, you know, testing the electronic equipment Does everything still work, pulling out costumes?

How did the costumes survive?

What kind of cleaning was needed So it was a small team that was okay, everything's sat for two y Does it all work?

How did it deteriorate or not?

Did it survive?

Dusted off basically, so that we didn't have to do tha Once we were ready to go, everything was kind of ready to when we were allowed to go back and open back up.

As of 2021, you've been back as executive pr for Vstar and now also managing What productions have you relaunched since return We have relaunched three international tours of Paw Patrol, Race to the Rescu The Great Pirate Adventure.

We've opened up Nick Jr live in and did a new race to the rescue in Brazil.

We brought back our two paw patr domestically.

Trolls live toured for a year do and then we did the new show dev for Heroes Unite, which is the t show for Paw Patrol.

And we've opened up three Cirque Dreams holiday show which are seasonal Christmas Cir shows that tour domestically.

So this year we have three.

We're playing 78 cities in seven Between the three of those, and three of those productions were completely renew as of last year And then we're currently working on another new project, two new projects for Nickelodeon So we've hit the ground running pretty fast.

What do you look for when seeking out a new show or p So business development, you kno what is in, you know, the public consciousness.

You know, is the product relevant?

Is it trending?

Is it in its ascendancy?

Has it plateaued?

Does it have it's called a symph platform or a flywheel, but does it have, you know, consumer products to it?

Does it have a series?

Does it have a tentpole events such as a cinematic release?

You know, is it streaming for the next two So it's kind of that we call it the flywheel of if you have a pr what else is in its orbit that's going to keep it relevant I would say, four years because it takes about 18 months to find one and to get a new show out on the And then you want it to tour for at least two years.

So you're looking for something a life span of a minimum of five in the kids space and something you can adapt to the stage well, that creatively will translate.

And with animation to stage, it' like you've got to have that vis how are we going to recreate thi animated character into something that's authentic on the stage?

What advice would you share that served you in your career?

Your reputation is everything, e in live entertainment, especially in freelancing.

It is a small industry.

It is, really is.

And if you know your reputation to anchor you on to the next pos on to the next contract, onto the next recommendation.

You know, and your reputation is how you treat others, your wo You know, your skill, too, but i that, you know, who are you as a That reputation really is going to that successful pathway and move your career to where you want to There's a lot of innovation in media spaces, but what's changing in live ente A lot of things are moving towar and a lot of conversations about active versus passive stor How to create an active storytelling ro in like a live theater show where it's immersive or experien or is bringing in the person in an emotional wa that brings that connection.

A lot of co viewership, especial in the family entertainment spac where the parents and the kids and the family can view together And tying that in with the techn of AI or virtual reality and how to keep the live experie with the new technology and where that line is before, you're not creating a live experience anymore, but you're just creating a anoth sitting at home watching a movie Because the technology it's crossed over and become too predominant and you l live experience.

But it's really how that active storytelling is, how to take a live theater show you're watching and make it feel and be immersiv where it's not a passive experie And I think those are the lot of conversations that the industry is having post and the balance of where that AI and virtual reality and the tech no longer makes it a live experience.

And so those are the things that we'll see trending how they are articulated or exec I think we'll see in the next couple of years of r where the live entertainment space is Thank you for your insight, Wend I really enjoyed learning about your career and h and UF kind of set you up to sta building off that base of audio.

And thank you, our viewers, for joining us.

Until next time, goodnight.