Hellish anticipation for Secret Vampire Club 22nd October 2011

After a very positive start we were in shaky territory. Our antiquated gothic warehouse venue was being pulled from us at the very last minute due to council problems & having crashing the rented van into a lamp post the consequence was a smashed up wing mirror and a very angry nearby pedestrian...

The van was curable but the question of cancellation was posed with the venue situation..., BUT never considered; 120 tickets sold, decorations purchased, make up artists at the ready, food ordered and a line up & DJ to kill for..it wasn't really an option.

The only thing hanging in our favour was the secret nature of the event - how could anyone possibly note the change in venue when it was only revealed the night before to the guests?
Regardless of this fortune we were on tenterhooks as the hunt began. A very cool warehouse in Shoreditch shouldn't be hard to find..but 2 days before a saturday night near impossible...so our mission began....

In the meantime we were busy briefing dancers, models, organising the canapés and catering staff & organising the delivery of tables, chairs, various pieces of equipment, staging etc. All moulded to our prior venue it's hard to be logistical when this is not really firmed up..

Joshua purchasing loo roll in Hackney's Bestways Cash & Carry (this job is all glam).


Our day rolled closer and finally everything's in place...a suitably eerie basement which couldn't be considered for anything other than a ghastly halloween themed bash has come our way & it's pretty much opposite in terms of location, to our first choice - which makes supplier instructions vaguely easier.
What is NOT easy is the fact that it's down a hole, carrying an array of temporary kitchen equipment, enough food for 150 guests, lighting, decks & a whole bar is really not much fun. Practice at weight lifting or long distance military walking would certainly have come in handy but as it happened we had four strong boys on hand to help and we managed it in good time.

The military schedule that had been put in place was actually being out performed - plenty of time for shredding the place with fake cobwebs & smearing fake blood down the walls. Thank god for work experience Jessica Henderson who really got things going.

At about 4pm all the dancers, models and make up artists arrive for the transformation. The places is a haze of white face paint, blood, shadow & of course lots of running bodies desperate to find somewhere to change in to their slutty outfits (the theme is "Deathly Sex).

7.30pm, slight hiccup with the technical equipment, something's been lost in translation as the band appears not to have the right drum kit...doors are due to be opening and we can't as the sound WON'T WORK.

7.45..15 minutes late already, sound technician arrives, all is well. Sigh of relief. Doors open.

In flood the creatures of the night, everyone's made the effort & hopefully this late start has just given the guests little more anticipation..

Sexy vampires everywhere, happy men & lots of Alibi Pretox drinks are being sipped in the themed chemistry lab vices...a couple of the guys have been duped and turned up in Rocky Horror; full blown stilettos, hot pants & net tights. They actually don't look bad..

In Zanadu are up & playing and we're all dumfound as to their brilliance. Milly & Ulyses rock the vocals whilst the five other instrumentalists add to the sheer intensity. We're relieved to have such  brilliant band confidently seducing our guests.

The band come to a welcome pause and our starving vampires are ushered to their tables..the model waitresses begin to serve and everything to our relief is going smoothly..

The three eerie statue dancers are performing and providing entertainment for those not fully engrossed in conversation with the other guests on their table.

                  

Everyone seems to be relaxing and getting into the swing. Our guests are mingling and it seems that the "wedding -style" forced seating arrangement is working. Despite the initial murmurs and complaints about sitting next to a stranger, it's what makes the party work and by the end of the night everyone will be best friends and thanking us for this forced fun....

or lovers...

Four courses later, we've seen In Zanada play their final set, watched the most incredible acrobatic performance from the dead vampire dance group & Jack Dexter is ready to get on the decks.

The dance floor begins to move & after some table scraping everyone's up. A long night of fun ensues...

RCA - SECRET ART

This is a brilliant concept that the RCA have come up with. It's an exhibition run annually and the best thing about it is that all the art displayed is anonymous...it comes from professional established and non-established student artists,illustrators and designers, none of it is named. 

Thus, despite the fact that the likes of Emin, Yoko Ono, Sir Peter Blake...(to name but a few) exhibit, every piece is anonymous so there can be absolutely no biased towards fame. It's done purely on merit and taste. 

The best thing is all the money is donated to the RCA. AND WIL HELP RETAIN THE GOODNESS OF ART!

Art Sells last night organised by Higher Pitch was excellent.

 

Some incredible talent at ART SELLS last night, we felt privileged to be part of such a wonderful industry.

Chatting to Nat Turton from BMB and we all agreed people in the industry (on the whole) SO nice, so interesting and what a wonderful group to be part of.

Very much enjoyed the food which was "Niche Quiche" by "Vegetarian imaginarium" the new imaginative start up ...the spicy coronation chickpea was delicious and a suitably creative food to match the setting. Check them out at nichequiche.com.

Particularly liked Pablo and Howard's quirky Christmas Cards.. a nice step away from the a-typical waste of trees:

You can buy them directly by emailing: pabloandhoward@hotmail.co.uk




Overall - an excellent night, we could do with more of these to inspire and affirm.

SECRET VAMPIRE CLUB - 22ND OCTOBER 2011. 7.30pm - LATE

“Secret Vampire Club” will be the next pop-up party for RF-London;

it follows  on from “Secret Safari Club”, the hugely popular launch party which was held in August this year.

We're hoping to get an as brilliant guest list as we did last time - Londoners in their 20's and 30's or those with a young heart and with a penchant for something different are more than welcome!

Secret Vampire Club will be held on the 22^nd of October at a top secret, suitably haunting Zone 1 location, which will be revealed the night before the event.

On arrival bloody cocktails & sumptious canapés will be served by the walking dead dancers whilst uber trendy and a definite watch-this-space band “In Zanadu”  fresh back from Texas music festival, and whom recently frontlined with the Kooks, will be rocking the stage.

Guests are then lead to their tables and a decadent sit-down, four-course supper is served.

After dining out on chef Mama Paxos delicious courses, a few aperitifs and some more walking dead dances, DJ Jack Dexter is hitting the decks for a night of sheer indulgence and fun.

Charismatic, and sought after Jack has played at all the big festivals this summer, including Glastobury, Big Chill, Kings of Stars, Secret Garden – you name it he played it.

Tickets are £38 each and includes a free cocktails on arrival, canapés, a four course supper and all the entertainment.

Purchase:

http://buytickets.at/rf-londoncom/1531

www.RF-London.com/events

*Vegetarian options are available to those who let us know in advance Email: info@rf-london.com.

In Zanadu:

SECRET SAFARI CLUB - launch party success

JACK DEXTER ON THE DECKS

KAT WESTMACOTT

After a nerve-racking few months of preparation, PR, decoration hunting, snake hunting and general madness we finally kicked off  - we had reached the launch party date for SECRET SAFARI CLUB.

A review from the London Word is incredibly supportive and we do hope that the night went as well as they say it did!:
http://www.thelondonword.com/2011/08/secret-safari-club/

We loved every minute, we had a wonderful crowd - everyone was terrifyingly beautiful, completely up for it and brilliant fun.

Fergus Shields pulled off the near impossible bearing in mind the venue limitations with regard to kitchen facilities, Andrew Balkwil and his band got the dance floor pumping, and then Jack Dexter couldn't have managed to pull off a better set.

Judging by the fact there was a scuffle to turn the lights off every time the owner decided it was time to shut down at 3.30am and the mess for clearing up the following day we're hoping it was a fun night!

Thanks to everyone who came and got stuck in. We hope to see you at the next one.

RF-Launch Party Press Release: SECRET SAFARI CLUB. 20th August 2011.

RF London brings debauchery back to London with the SECRET SAFARI CLUB

With a capital of late wedders the ‘gap group’, those city dwellers in their mid-twenties to early thirties, are facing a problem. They are an ever growing awkward section of society who are getting a little old to hang around in those gritty east end raves or sleazy west end clubs, yet are still a little too young to hang up their party hat for good in favor of dinner parties and long walks in the country.

RF London have come up with a new concept - a hybrid of supper club meets private party, the first being SECRET SAFARI CLUB on the 20 August at a secret central London location. 150 partygoers will attend the evening and have the experience of a private party, with far more pleasure and decadence.  Aimed at both the single and partnered up, these parties will aim to bring together different friendship groups for an evening of good conversation and a whole lot of fun and naughtiness sprinkled in for good measure.

Guests will be greeted with cocktails and sumptuous canapés served by creatures of the night - a tasteful theme which will break the ice. The guests are then seated for a five course taster meal cooked by Fergus Shields, ex Head Chef of the Hospital Club, accompanied by a selection of carefully picked wine. A few subtle seat rotations and post supper shots later and the place becomes alive as a rising London DJ takes to the stage.  Snake charmers, Belly dancers and an evening of debauchery ensures that the ‘gap group’ are back in business.

Jessica Russell Flint, Creative Director of RF London, said “These parties are going to target a new group of city dwellers, and will bring an exciting twist to the supper club format we’ve all become so used to.  RF London will take-over a London venue for the very first time - I’m excited to see how Londoners will react.”

When: 20 August 2011

Where: Secret central London location

How much: £58 (including cocktails on arrival, 5 course taster menu, wine, shots after the meal and dancing) 

www.rf-london.com

Launch Photoshoot 26th Feb.

After several weeks of organising, spending and begging, the 26th February 2011 finally arrived. The big day. Possibly the most important part of the RF business was riding on the success of today and it all came down to whether we could pull it off...

Despite a few speed bumps in the approaching days (and hours) everything seemed relatively under control. The London traffic on a Saturday morning provided the inevitable slow start, but allowed the early birds a chance to settle in with a coffee and get their heads around what was to come. Did anyone really know what was going on? We hoped Jess did, but you can never be entirely certain.

The Paradise is a well-known little place just off Ladbroke Grove, often associated A-listers and celeb-spotting low-lives. It was therefore little surprise that various 'models' were offered some class-A's barely 30 seconds after arriving. Needless to say, the offer was politely declined and the day began to gather momentum and the venue was ideal, with Jess' research evidently paying off.

As all the models, make-up artists, stylists, photographers and chefs set to work there was an exciting buzz in the air. This was a new experience for many of us, and the male models seemed to thoroughly enjoy having their make-up done. There were some very interesting outfits, most noticeable were the Mad-Hatter and the White Rabbit from the Alice in Wonderland tea-party scene. The Mad Hatter, played by Richard Verden, appeared to be in his element surrounded by young girls and plenty of alcohol. He fitted the character superbly and I wonder if he has changed out of his costume yet. For all we know, he is still propped up at the bar in The Paradise.

Kenzo Ejiri was a last-minute recruit for the photography following a minor disaster earlier in the week. True to form, he did an amazing job and will no doubt produce some magical shots. It's well worth having a look at his work.

Olivia von Halle pretty much saved the day, yelling instructions left, right and centre. She ensured the timing was bang-on throughout the day, and encouraged all the models to mingle and perform. The canapes and drinks continued to circulate, resulting in a hugely enjoyable and productive day. So many people contributed to the success, and the RF venture must be hugely grateful for all the hard work. This is surely a perfect platform from which to launch.