PreParty
If you have a large, much anticipated event, smaller events in the run up to it is a fantastic way to build hype, create community, establish your event culture, and leave people who might be intimidated by attending solo with new connections who are going where they’re going. It’s part of building anticipa….
…tion (sorry not sorry.) Whether it’s a pre-festival costume sale, a Burning Man precompression street festival, or a coordinated dinner or drinks before a theater production, creating spaces for attendees to meet and mingle is priceless.
Because pre-parties are smaller, and generally much less complicated or formal than the events they are in anticipation of, you don’t need to worry about engaging your entire community with them. Pre-events will provide a chance for people who have a desire to meet others in the scene, people who want to feel a little more prepared, and your most enthusiastic fans, with a place to gather.
An event doesn’t have to be a big festival to include a pre-party gathering. In the lead up to a 200 person fancy-dress costume party I hosted in February ’24, I put on a crafting party for friends to come and work on our outfits together. We spent a Sunday afternoon drinking champagne, listening to music, and spending quality time together while we sewed, hot-glued, pinned, and rhinestoned our outfits for the following weekend. The afternoon was an explosion of color, tulle, moss, and silk flowers. Ideas were exchanged, skills shared, and we all came away feeling more prepared for, and more hyped for, the next weekend’s festivities. Better dressed, too.
when there are large pre-events, much like after parties (or “afters”), they are more often than not run by different people or orgs than the hosts of the main event. It’s a great chance to outsource and use as an opportunity to collaborate with, and cross-promote with other event producers whose energy matches yours. Holding a pre or post event party for another organization can help grow both of your attendee bases at the same time, so it’s a nice opportunity for a win/win collaboration. Consider other event producers your esteemed peers rather than competition if you want to have a lasting career in the events industry. This is a chance to connect with people whose work you admire.
Much like a wedding rehearsal dinner, the pre-event event is more intimate than the gathering that follows it. It caters to the most active members of your community. Pre-parties are a prime opportunity for acculturation, and immersing your most engaged attendees in the goals, energy, and style of your gathering so they are better equipped to act as social hosts and facilitators within the main event itself. This is especially valuable as actual experience is a far better teacher than pamphlets, posters, or text-on-a-website.
What you want most for a festival to run smoothly, is for your attendees who know how to have a good time in the environment you’re creating.
People who understand what they need to bring themselves versus find on site, who know how to dress for both pragmatism and festivity, who understand what consent practices are in play, how to get help if they need it, and so forth have a better time at the event and help others in their social sphere have a better time, too. The more complex or unusual your event is, the more labor goes into teaching these things, and pre-parties are perhaps the most prime opportunity to educate your new guests, so more of them can help one another.
And lastly, if your pre-party does successfully convey the heart and culture of your event, but it’s less expensive and less of a commitment to attend, it can also be a wonderful way to both include more people and market your event. People who aren’t committed enough to get tickets to a festival may be interested in learning what you’re all about by attending a pre-party, and if what they experience there really resonates with them, they’re more likely to be interested in your main event.
