We were bowled over to be approached by the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 to provide sports event entertainment for all the Championship games right across the UK between May and July. Our stand-out acts needed to capture the attention of 1.5 million cricket fans attending the matches and many millions more tuning in worldwide.
We’ve had plenty of experience working with sporting events and providing them with amazing entertainment – from race days to county cricket, football, tennis and rugby events – but this brief and the scale of it were a whole other ball game!
Teaming up with the client, we dove into ideas on how to bring the opening and closing ceremonies to life, keep the crowds buzzing as they entered the grounds, and ensure there were plenty of mid-inning surprises.
To truly capture the spirit of the World Cup, we needed to choose cricket entertainment that reflected the rich and varied cultures of the competing countries. Concentrating mainly on music, dance and drumming acts, we put our heads together to come up with the ideal performers who would help the teams and supporters have a memorable, enriching – and fun! – time.
With a love for World Entertainment and the countries involved in the Cricket World Cup 2019 – including the West Indies, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan – we knew we could make this event a ripper! We have the privilege of working with an incredibly talented array of performers from across the globe, so it was just a matter of selecting the right high-calibre ones to bring this iconic sports event to life.
Once we had a vision, it was down to the nitty-gritty of choosing the right acts. A meticulous process followed, with consideration given to sporting entertainment that would be meaningful for each country, as well as performers who could be self-sufficient in style, be able to perform outdoors, roam around the grounds and, most importantly, create an unbelievable atmosphere for everyone attending.
There were also lots of technical requirements needed, especially around availability as all the entertainers involved would need to work a wide range of dates due to the unknowns of the match outcomes and the uncertainty of who would be playing whom in the final matches.
Factor in budgets and travel to locations right across the country, and we found ourselves with quite the puzzle to solve!
So what did we come up with? Well, we chose Bhangra drummers for Pakistan, drummers and dancers for Bangladesh, and Bollywood dancers and musicians to represent India along with our Giant Elephant (though sadly logistics ultimately prevented this from featuring).
For Afghanistan, we enlisted the skills of our energetic Whirling Dervish dancers, drummers and dancers for Sri Lanka, wow-factor African acrobats to entertain at the West Indies fixtures, an mbira band for the South African matches and our incomparable Junk Percussionistas to represent England.
Precision and attention to detail were part of the game plan too! We knew how important it was that our drummers nail the beats specific to each Asian nation, acknowledging the subtle style differences despite their geographical proximity. The same care was given to the costumes and colours of each and every act, as it was vital that they fully resonate and represent the competing nations.
As you can tell, the programming and logistics of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 were complex, to say the least! We’ve learnt from a wealth of experience that entertainment for sporting events requires a lot of adaptability and flexibility, and this one certainly kept us on our toes.
Day matches, night matches, last-minute changes – you name it, we handled it! And with the championship given high-security status, there were lots of health, safety and security measures to contend with too. From all performers needing to be accredited to organising RAMS for our entertainers and relaying a near-constant stream of information around timings, set lengths and dates, we kept our lines of communication open at all times so we didn’t find ourselves on a sticky wicket!
In the end, we booked nearly 200 performers for 38 matches in 11 venues, and we’re thrilled to say every single game ran smoothly with our match entertainment. With an enormous amount of preparation, complex logistics and plenty of last-minute changes, the hard work paid off with all our acts feeling respected, well-cared-for, and proud of their performances. The audience’s positive reception to our cricket entertainment was overwhelming too and we couldn’t have been happier with the result.
After the event, it was wonderful to be given the following feedback:
A really huge thank you to you and your team for all the time and work you put into working with me, and the team, to achieve what we believe is one of the most successful World Cups in Sports Presentation the UK has ever seen.
It has been trials and tribulations over the past 6 months but one which has allowed me to meet and work with some incredible people, exceptionally talented at what they do, as well as flexible and adaptable to the many changes that have occurred (in the main!) from the beginning, middle and right up to the end!
At last, we reach the finish line, all intact and still smiling, I hope you too come away with pride at what you have helped us achieve.
No doubt we will speak next week but in the meantime, maybe you will get a chance to sit down and watch the final tomorrow – and perhaps see some of your acts if Channel 4 show some of the Wellington Road and Lords grounds before the coin toss!
– Morag Morrison Red Sky at Night Events Ltd
Howzat!