December 2019 - Parks & Recreation - 20

MEMBER TO MEMBER

and expectations. Be descriptive
about what you are looking for in
terms of the date and event. Also,
be specific about the location and
other parameters that might impact
the size of the shells used or how
they will be fired. Some questions
to ponder: Is it a traditional aerial show? Will it be electronically
fired? Will it be choreographed and
set to music? What is the budget?
Yes, the typical way to bid a fireworks display is to declare your
budget upfront. Your budget will
drive the length of the show, and
that is where agencies sometimes
make mistakes. They may not have
the budget for a 30-minute display,
but they demand it as a part of the
RFP. A budget metric we have used
is $1,500 per minute.
Another key to your RFP is to
have clear evaluation factors laid
out. Since you declared your budget, you will be evaluating the proposals for the best value. In addition
to the size and number of shells,
company reputation and experience are all key factors in getting the
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Parks & Recreation

best value for the money. Too many
agencies rely on the sheer number
of shells with little regard to types
and size. This can be very deceiving
unless you are familiar with the production of fireworks. Bottom line, a
good RFP will help you generate a
good pyrotechnics partner.
Customization
Once you have your vendor, you
have the ability to work within
their proposal and customize your
own fireworks display (show). Typically, a fireworks show has at least
three parts: opener, middle segment
and closing or finale. Fireworks
vendors allow you to move shells
around to highlight certain portions of your display. An example
would be to craft in a " false finale, "
which is basically a portion of the
show where you want the audience
to believe it is the end of the show,
but, in fact, you're coming back
with something even bigger and
better. When using displays choreographed to music, various songs
can lend themselves to these " false

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finales. " Work with your vendor
and choose the songs yourself. Do
not simply approve the song list
they provide. This is a good way to
take ownership of your show and
help to control tempo, pace and, ultimately, your audience's response.
As previously mentioned, the length
of the show is always a concern, and
you have the ability to stretch the
show using certain techniques. For
example, in displays choreographed
to music, dramatic pauses based on
the song, can help create anticipation.
In past displays at the Naval Station
Great Lakes, we have regularly played
segments of particular songs without
any fireworks going off to create that
dramatic effect. More importantly, if
used correctly, this technique allows
you to use more " shells " at different
times for a stronger impact. Another
way to lengthen the show is by using selected narration throughout.
Narration allows you to set the tone
or theme, get messages out to the audience, and most importantly, send
kudos to your agency and corporate
sponsors, who might have helped pay
for the event. Using these methods
could easily add up to five minutes to
any show.
Finale
The goal when managing the oversight of a fireworks display is to be
knowledgeable of the entire process. This can be a true mystery to
many of us in the park and recreation field. However, with that acquired knowledge and the ability to
take control of your own show, you
are on the road to a great fireworks
display!
John Prue is Installation Program Director
at Morale, Welfare & Recreation (MWR),
Naval Station Great Lakes, Illinois (john.
prue@navy.mil).

December 2019 - Parks & Recreation

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