Their event was hosted at the WGBH studios, a state-of-the-art facility in Brighton, Massachusetts. Relocated in 2007 WGBH studio is complete with a chic and modern lobby, a soaring 3500 square foot atrium, and a luxury high quality theatre.

While taking into account the clients colors and the season, NXTevent was able to create  a warm yet ultra modern atmosphere in this spectacular venue.

The evening began with a keynote speaker and transitioned easily to a four person panel discussion inside the Yawkey Theatre. Guests were able to learn from and interact in comfort inside this intimate yet state-of-the-art theatre.

After the panel discussion it was time to unwind, have fun and network!! The guests were greeted outside the theatre with passed hors d’oeuvres and a specialty martini bar from our friends at Max Ultimate catering! They are a preferred caterer for NXTevent that offers innovative new foods and some old classics with a modern and fresh approach. Keeping with the theme and the location the drink special for the evening was the Bostini. Guest continued to dine, drink and enjoy the event.

When all was said and done at the end of the evening, NXTevent not only met our client’s expectations but exceeded them in all ways possible.

The first night consisted of a welcome reception for 1000 people at the Sheraton Boston.  Background music was provided by Boston String Quartet.  Since its formation 2004, the Boston String Quartet has been a creative leader in contemporary classical music in New England.  BSQ performed arrangements of classical chamber music, rock, jazz, world music, and much more.

On the following night guests got to experience an elegant fundraising gala at Boston’s famous Museum of Fine Arts.  Guests toured the museum before sitting down for a three course dinner and enjoying tunes from Mystique and acapella songs from Harvard University’s Din and Tonics.

NXTevent topped off their Boston experience with a sit down dinner at the Harvard Club in downtown Boston.  Guests once again danced the night away to the sounds of Mystique and also enjoyed watching professional ballroom dancers from Miami.

In addition to providing tours, NXTevent managed an event for the group at the New England Aquarium.  Founded in 1969, the New England Aquarium is a global leader in ocean exploration and marine conservation.  The Aquarium is one of the premier visitor attractions in Boston, with over 1.3 million visitors a year, and a major public education resource. This environmentally friendly group of 350 guests arrived by the T.  They mingled with penguins and sea lions while nibbling on hors d’oeuvres and socializing with their colleagues and counterparts.

On this crisp fall morning, participating members of the American Academy of Pediatrics arrived friendly faces from NXTevent and a DJ greeted the group as they entered the castle gates. The turn-out was diverse including groups of friends, couples and families. With a remarkable time of only 18 minutes and 43 seconds the reigning champ Brian Lynch once again took the wining title. Awards, pictures and refreshments concluded this fun run!

            The course included wrap around views of Boston Harbor and then Boston’s skyline, as well as looking south to Quincy and the Cape.  Our client thanked us for choosing this location to showcase the hidden gem of a location out at Castle Island, not only for it’s views but for it’s community feeling.

Here at NXTevent, we thought we would share the history of this great New England tradition, and on Thursday, November 24, we will be sharing in our own holiday traditions with family and friends.

Thanksgiving: Born in New England – An American Tradition

(In 2011, Thursday, November 24)

A beloved American holiday, Thanksgiving is a time to share thanks with family, friends, and vistors and remember just what we have to be grateful for. Today’s Thanksgiving includes NFL football and the famous Macy parades as well as opens the “shopping extravaganzas” across American malls and online stores, plus a lot of feasting, resting, feasting, resting. Almost all the same was true in 1621, sans the modern day amenities, electronics, and sports, when the Pilgrims of Plymouth on Cape Cod celebrated their bountiful harvest and good fortune.

In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln established Thanksgiving as an American holiday, a movement that started by the Continental Congress as far back as the American Revolution. Nearly 100 years later, President Franklin D. Roosevelt then officially set the day for Thanksgiving as the fourth Thursday of November.

The First Thanksgiving by the Colonists of Plimouth

(Sources: History Channel & Kathleen Curtin, Food Historian at Plimoth Plantation)

In 1621, the colonists of Plimouth (Cape Cod) and Wampanoag Indians shared an autumn harvest feast which is acknowledged today as one of the first Thanksgiving celebrations in the colonies. This harvest meal has become a symbol of cooperation and interaction between English colonists and Native Americans. Although this feast is considered by many to the very first Thanksgiving celebration, it was actually in keeping with a long tradition of celebrating the harvest and giving thanks for a successful bounty of crops. Native American groups throughout the Americas, including the Pueblo, Cherokee, Creek and many others organized harvest festivals, ceremonial dances, and other celebrations of thanks for centuries before the arrival of Europeans in North America.

Interestingly, historians have also recorded additional celebrations of thanks among European settlers in North America. Whether at Plymouth, or throughout the new world of the Americas, the heritage of thanks, and particularly of the legacy of the ceremonial feast, have survived the centuries as people throughout the United States gather family, friends, and enormous amounts of food for their yearly Thanksgiving meal.

 The Menu

 Today, our Thanksgiving menus are full banquets. A must is the traditional turkey, roasted or fried depending on your taste, served with mashed potatoes and a little personal flair, as well as green bean casserole, sweet potatos and a slew of pie. As diverse as America is today, its general population are likely to blend in some regional influences and ethnic heritage from sides dishes to the main course. Not unlike where it all began 400+ years ago.

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Truth be told, the only two items identified in history records that were on the menu are venison and wild fowl. Edward Winslow details and describes the “First Thanksgiving” from A Journal of the Pilgrims at Plymouth, in 1621:

“Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice together after we had gathered the fruit of our labors. They four in one day killed as much fowl as, with a little help beside, served the company almost a week. At which time, among other recreations, we exercised our arms, many of the Indians coming amongst us, and among the rest their greatest king Massasoit, with some ninety men, whom for three days we entertained and feasted, and they went out and killed five deer, which they brought to the plantation and bestowed upon our governor, and upon the captain, and others. And although it be not always so plentiful as it was at this time with us, yet by the goodness of God, we are so far from want that we often wish you partakers of our plenty.”

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Here are some of the NXTevent team’s favorite parts of Thanksgiving! Martha loves the smell of turkey and stuffing roasting in the oven and finds this time of year a great time to give thanks and reflect peacefully on the year gone by. Toni takes on the incredible task of pie making – she cooks everyone’s favorite pies! Her record is 21 pies from scratch which includes Apple, Banana Cream, Pecan, Blueberry and Pumpkin which she then delivers to all of her family members! She also finds it’s a good time to start addressing her Christmas cards to get ahead of the game! Ally spends time with family and friends, usually preparing a thanksgiving feast with an open house feel, but this year she heads to Brooklyn to visit with her brother and family. While there, she and her family will experience the newly opened 911 Memorial as well as a trip to Ellis Island and Statue of Liberty, all in thanks and memoriam to those who have served, those who have emigrated, and the heritage of our nation.

What’s your favorite part of Thanksgiving and the holidays?

Upon arrival at the International Terminal at Logan Airport, our guests were whisked away for a highlights tour of Boston as the coach made its way to a historic seafood venue, overlooking the piers of Boston, much anticipated New England seafood supper.  After long hours of air travel, the fresh air and walk followed by fresh bread rolls and lobster bisque enticed our guests to give in to a warm Bostonian tradition of soup and bread, followed by the American brownie sundae a la lava bomb!

With our comprehensive database of the best Boston tour guides, we added 3 wonderful German-speaking guides to our NXTevent team. Thanks to our very own Laurence Honan and these lovely lades, who are like the Charlie’s angels of German guiding, communication and language barriers were no problem!

From surf to turf, the following evening our group wined and dined at one of our favorite steakhouses, Grille 23. The night began with hors de oeuvres and classic Caesar salad, followed by a divine selection of steaks. To be sure, guests were once again surprised by the American portions and quality of meat! To put the group at ease, NXTevent made sure to provide translated menus so everyone was able to order their steak cooked to perfection!

Rise and shine! To really give our international travelers a taste of New England, we headed north of the city to America’s Bewitching Seaport – Salem, Massachusetts. There was a sense of anticipation in the air as we glimpsed scenes of preparations for the fall season and Halloween festivities. First stop, The House of the Seven Gables – Built in 1668, this is the oldest surviving 17th century wooden mansion inNew England. After an in-depth tour of the property (also translated into German for our group), it was onto America’s Oldest Seaport and Fishing Town – Gloucester, Massachusetts. After a gorgeous seaside walk on the Boulevard from the Fishermen’s Wives Memorial to the Man at the Wheel, guests made their way to Lenny and Dottie Linquata’s restaurant – The Gloucester House.  Out to the Seven Seas Café, directed adjacent to the harbor and the docks where the seafood you eat is delivered to the chef in the kitchen.  The group was in awe of the buoys hanging from the ceiling and the gigantic lobster steamer piled high with steamed lobster, fresh corn and potatoes cooked to perfection. To welcome the group, Lenny shared history of Cape Ann, a few Gloucestertails / tales and demonstrated how to successfully eat a lobster as the group looked on with lots of smiles and laughter.

Filled with lobster and strawberry shortcake, the group continued their tour of Cape Ann and stopped into the quaint town of Rockport for some exploration and shopping. Bearskin Neck offers gift shops, crafts and jewelry shops, candy stores amidst artist studios and delicious cafes. The clouds cleared and it was truly a delightful bright sunny afternoon. As our German guides and NXTevent team escorted the group back to their Boston bound buses, we had a little surprise waiting for them on their bus. After a long day, guests  received a petite bag of Dancing Deer Fall Maple Butter Leaves and Gingerbread Acorns – what a sweet way to end the day.

But we weren’t quite done – a final hurrah at The Harvard Club Back Bay. The only Platinum alumni club inMassachusetts, high ceilings, rich crimson walls, wooden staircases and a glowing fire surrounded the group with the history and prestige of Harvard University. It was the ideal setting for the Harvard Din & Tonics a capella group to perform some of their American jazz inspired repertoire during the cocktail reception. These 13 gentleman performing in their white ties, tails and lime green socks, have an enviable reputation for their impeccable musicality, snappy choreography and hilarious antics. They then escorted the group into the Great Hall for a nicoise salad and tuna tartare “Martini”, mouth-watering surf and turf topped off with a trio of scrumptious desserts (including a modern version of chocolate terrine and traditional Boston cream pie – yum!)

After a great few days – our group returned with fond memories, lobster eating skills and historic insight into our beloved New England.

Check out some pictures from their New England visit

Auf Wiedersehen!!

First stop, deCordova Park and Museum - larger than life modern and contemporary sculptures and installations welcome you and we loved the idea of having an event in a space filled with such innovative and creative pieces of art! With only a few hours and many sites to see, we were onto WGBH studio – a well-known name in New Englandwhere their “blank canvas” approach to their theater, atrium, and filming studios allows you to customize your event in novel ways – maybe even have a TV or radio personality give a speech. Not deterred by the rain, we stopped in at the EMC Club at Fenway - looking over Fenway it would be pretty cool to have Jim Rice make an appearance and sign baseballs for guests. With one last big rain puddle to jump over (the Charles River) we headed to The American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Nothing is more inspiring than looking down a wall to see the acceptance letters of legendary members such as George Washington, Albert Einstein, and Martin Luther King Jr. – truly a unique and groundbreaking site for a company looking to enhance their theme of progression from century to century. Final stop – the amazing  Media Lab – a perfect experience for a techy crowd but hard to reach this lofty location, between it’s University rules and regulations on use (but just call us and we will make it happen if it’s available!)

Rain or shine we always make the best of any challenge and we saw some great sites – and thank goodness we were up in the clouds by the end of the day!

See some pictures from our day out and about!