Live, from the Kodak Theater in Hollywood!

Every once in a while I get to be part of a very fun event. This was one of them! I was hired to be an additional photographer for a Japanese network marketing company's awards event at the Kodak Theater. That's where they hold the Oscars. Cool place. I'm one of those people who always watches the show so I was very glad to have a chance to see inside! The photography and video was coordinated by Greg Russell of Tandem Digital and the stage events were produced by Anthony Bollatta of Bollatta Entertainment.

Getting to see a cool space like the Oscars stage is nice, but....

what I really enjoyed was seeing how much the guests enjoyed themselves. The group was mostly Japanese housewives and it was evident that this event was very special to them. They dressed up like famous actresses coming to the Oscars. The VIPs arrived in stretch limos with a crowd on the street. Doesn't take much to create a scene there! And the dresses! At one point there was a break in the ceremony so that they could take photos on the stage. It was all silk and smiles.

It was one of the more unusual awards ceremonies that I have seen. Even though it was in Japanese I didn't get bored. Too much happening!

After the ceremony they went to the ballroom for dinner and a "Salute To Hollywood" show that Anthony produced. I've seen a lot of these kind of shows, but this was the most high-energy version that I've ever seen. Kudos to Anthony for including music from what I consider a strange but beautiful musical "Moulin Rouge". Below are some photos from the entertainers. More photos can be seen here.

When the Michael Jackson performer came on, the audience rushed the stage screaming and reaching out for him. At one point I seriously thought they were going to pull him off the stage, and so did the performer! I noticed that he kept his distance after that. People really enjoyed his songs the best, and he was over the top.

Then the DJ came on and started playing some crazy dance music. The ladies were dancing in the aisles and just about anyplace. The take-home image is of a lady in a beautiful kimono doing the Macarena. What a crazy world we live in!