The Art of Mass Gatherings: Event & Emergency Electrical Systems Workshop

Temporary Electrical Systems Workshop for Festivals, Events and Emergencies

FREE Workshops: Sept. 30th, 9AM at McNichols Civic Center Building and Oct. 1st,  8AM in Civic Center Park
Gatherings like festivals, concerts and other special events are simultaneously powerful and vulnerable. They can be joyful, life-giving experiences, but they can also be a forum for disaster. The Arts & Cultural Network for Emergency Preparedness network led by Denver Arts & Venues, Performing Arts Readiness and Colorado Creative Industries intends to build and support a broader regional network in order to prepare people to produce extraordinary events by embracing the full complexity of a gathering.
As a follow-up to the inaugural Art of Mass Gatherings Symposium, we present this free workshop: Temporary Electrical Systems for Festivals, Events and Emergencies, a 4-hour class and hands-on demonstration.
Mass gatherings are a ripe training ground and class room for skill-sharing between creatives, events producers, and the agencies and businesses that serve our communities. Providing a clear understanding of the myriad systems involved, including planning for water, waste, electricity, communications and shelter, will allow everyone to collaborate better in times of celebration and crisis.

Sept. 30th, 9AM - 1PM This 4-hour class at McNichols Civic Center Building will be led by renowned author and entertainment electrics educator, Richard Cadena, with assistance from Matthew Kowal (emergency preparedness consultant and sustainable festival pioneer) and Stephen Collum of Sunbelt Rentals. The class will cover temporary power systems theory, distribution and safety.

Oct. 1st, 8AM - NOON The Civic Center EATS food truck festival will provide a real world, hands-on opportunity to deploy distributed grid power in lieu of dozens of noisy generators. Sunbelt Rentals will provide temporary power and climate control equipment (such as spider boxes, cam-lock and twist lock distribution, cable ramps, AC/Heat units, fans) commonly used during events and emergencies. 

WHO SHOULD ATTEND?
Individuals, organizations and businesses interested in:
• EVENT PRODUCTION IN INDOOR AND OUTDOOR SPACES
• PERFORMING ARTS ORGANIZATIONS AND FACILITIES 
• TEMPORARY HOUSING AND SHELTERING
• COMMUNITY RESILIENCY AND PLANNING 
• SUSTAINABLE AND GREEN EVENTS
• LIFE SAFETY, HEALTH AND PUBLIC WELFARE
• MAXIMIZING SOCIO-CULTURAL ENGAGEMENT
• ENHANCING ACCESSIBILITY
• EVENT WASTE REDUCTION AND MANAGEMENT
• ENTERTAINMENT, EMERGENCY AND ALTERNATIVE POWER SYSTEMS
• EXPERIENTIAL EVENTS, INTERACTIVE CONTENT AND INNOVATIVE PROGRAMMING

AGENDA:

MONDAY SEPTEMBER 30th
8:30AM Registration and coffee
9:00-9:05AM Native land recognition 
9:05-9:20AM Welcome and introduction to Art of Mass Gatherings, Performing Arts Readiness and the Arts & Cultural Network for Emergency Preparedness 
9:20-10:20AM Richard Cadena presents: Theory of Electricity, Terminology, and AC Power Basics
10:20-10:30AM BREAK
10:30-11:00AM Matthew Kowal presents: Sustainable waste, water and power systems for mass gatherings
11:00AM - NOON Richard Cadena presents: Electrical safety, grounding/earthing and overload protection
noon-12:10PM BREAK to get lunch provided by network partners 
12:10-1:00PM  Richard Cadena, Stephen Collum, Anne Drake and Matthew Kowal present: Temporary and portable power distribution system design for festivals, events and emergencies.

TUESDAY OCT. 1
8:00AM - NOON Civic Center Eats hands-on Power-Distribution Demonstration.
PLEASE BRING: Gloves, close toed shoes, water bottle. 
Noon Lunch in park, provided by network partners 

WHO ARE THE EXPERTS?

RICHARD CADENA, AUTHOR AND EDUCATOR FOR ENTERTAINMENT ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS 
STEPHEN COLLUM, SUNBELT POWER 
ANNE DRAKE,  GENERATOR AND DISTRIBUTION SPECIALIST
MATTHEW KOWAL, PERFORMING ARTS READINESS - EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS CONSULTANT, MAJESTIC COLLABORATIONS 

Please contact with questions:
Matthew Ché Kowal
matthew.kowal@denvergov.org
720-865-5572

For more about the Arts & Cultural Network for Emergency Preparedness, please visit artsandvenues.com/ACNEP
The Arts & Cultural Network for Emergency Preparedness is home to the intermountain regional survey and study for performing arts entities of all kinds, and is led by Denver Arts & Venues, Performing Arts Readiness and Colorado Creative Industries. We intend to build and support a broader regional network in order to prepare people to produce extraordinary events by embracing the full complexity of a gathering.
 
For Spanish translation services: BROOKE.DILLING@DENVERGOV.ORG
For sign Language interpreter or cart services: SIGNLANGUAGESERVICES@DENVERGOV.ORG
For other ability accommodations: DISABILITYACCESS@DENVERGOV.ORG