‘Everyone’s always complaining that there’s nothing to do,” said Lauren Tuck, enthusiastically talking with her hands.
“So we’re trying to do something different for people — give them some options.”
“We want to put on an event where people can get together with art, music, dancing and food,” added David Prodan, only a little more reserved.
“We want to do something unique.”
Tuck and Prodan are the excited young promoters behind Two Forward Productions.
And hearing the two of them gush about their first event is like listening to proud parents talk about a beloved child.
The affair’s called the Northern Masquerade and will take place at the transportation museum on October 27.
Planning for the Halloween party has been underway since July.
“We were tossing ideas around and came up with the idea of a gothic masquerade New Year’s party,” said Prodan.
“Eventually the gothic part got dropped and we decided that we wanted to do it now.
“There hasn’t been an event organized for Halloween in a long time,” he added.
“We wanted to create an opportunity to meet people without having to go to the bar,” said Tuck.
“And tap into people’s secret desire to get dressed up.”
To encourage everyone to get into the masquerade theme, prizes will be awarded for the best dressed.
The party will include three separate rooms.
The bands and DJs will be playing in the main room with a large dance floor.
There will also be a Brave New Works video installation by Jessica Hall, which Prodan describes as a sort of northern psychedelia.
The second room will have a licenced bar run by Nakai Theatre as a fundraiser for the company.
Gourmet catering from local restaurants will be available in this room as well.
And for those looking for a break from all of that partying, there’s also a chill out room.
A DJ will play mellow lounge music as masqueraders sprawl on comfy couches and sample the wine bar replete with coffee and desserts.
The two know that the secret to a good event, among other things, is the food.
“We like people having a good time and dancing … and we like eating,” said Tuck.
“Yeah, Lauren insisted that we have the best food possible,” said Prodan with a laugh.
To help work up a healthy appetite, both French and English artists will be on hand to keep the crowd dancing.
Nicole Edwards will be headlining along with Soir de Semaine and DJs Jonny Gel and Nemo.
The young promoters are trying to bridge the gap between Whitehorse’s French and English communities.
All of the posters and flyers have been printed in both languages.
“Part of our name comes from wanting to think two steps forward, being two steps ahead of what’s going on here currently,” said Tuck.
“And part of that is acknowledging that we live in a bilingual country.”
The event is attempting to accommodate everyone, she said.
There will be food from the Alpine Bakery so that vegan and vegetarian fare is available.
They are also offering a shuttle service.
For $10 each way, partygoers can get a safe ride to and from the masquerade, but you have to book in advance.
“We’ve both worked in the entertainment business for a while,” said Prodan.
Both have been involved in producing a number of different events in the past, including Frostbite Music Festival, new years parties and a recent Canada Day celebration.
The two also co-produce Brave New Works, but this will be the first event for Two Forward Productions.
Prodan and Tuck are confident that they will sellout the event, which has a capacity of 300 people.
Already, over 50 tickets have been sold and nearly as many have confirmed that they will be attending on Facebook.
However, the measure for success for the Northern Masquerade won’t necessarily be a sold-out crowd.
“We’re not motivated by money at all,” said Prodan.
“If we were, we’d be crying right now,” added Tuck.
“We just love organizing parties and cultural events,” said Prodan.
“This is what we want to be doing for the rest of our lives.”
Tickets to the Northern Masquerade cost $30 and are available at Nakai Theatre, Well-Read Books, Arts Underground, and the Centre de la francophonie.