A night to remember - the Cactus anniversary party
Friday, 8th May 2009
May 7th 2009 marked the celebration of our 10 year anniversary. Yes...the time was nigh for another legendary Cactus bash!
There are parties and there are parties. Category-wise, it’s fair to say that ours generally fall into the latter of the two, and last night was no exception.
After months of expert planning and arranging the stage was set for a night of dining, dancing and...er ...drag! Who knew Richard Bradford looked so good in stockings??
The event took place at Brighton‘s premier comedy venue, Komedia, and was enjoyed by almost 150 guests. Revellers included Cactus employees both past and present, and associates and partners within the industry.
We asked people to dress to impress, seduce and delight in evening wear - Hollywood/Euro glamour, burlesque. Iggy, Ziggy, Bond girls and boys, Tony Montana, Ol’ Blue Eyes, Sofia Loren and Liza Minnelli were all around. The ladies looked divine and the gents were dapper, but scooping the unofficial award for best costume had to be Chris Mawer and Earl Debenham, who could quite easily have been transported from 18th century Versailles, and of course the fabulous Richard Bradford in his (extremely convincing) Priscilla Queen of the Desert turn.
Food and drink was, as usual, in abundance. The wine flowed, as did the vodka… through the giant Cactus-shaped ice sculpture! Guests were treated to a slap-up tapas-based meal, which was accompanied by a string of languages-themed acts, including the excellent ‘Flamenco Flow’ (comprising guitarist Ricardo Garcia, dancer Anna Dueñas León and singer Javier Macias) and German comedian Henning Wehn - a man not afraid to tackle those stereotypes…
Following on from this, Rich Ambler jived his way to the stage to thank everyone for their part in making Cactus what it is today, and share a few anecdotes from the last 10 years - the ones suitable for mass audience anyway!
We were then treated to an excellent video montage of Cactus and its success, incorporating interviews with both employees and clients too.
Next to take centre stage was the slightly surreal Baby Warhol - that miniature fountain of knowledge, who was ready and willing to answer the big questions in life - Is there life on Mars? How do you get old gracefully? Who was supporting the best cleavage last night?!
The evening ended with some banging tunes courtesy of DJ David Pannell, and a chance for everyone to shake their stuff on the dance floor. If I say so myself, we are a serious bunch of movers…
Judging by what most of the guests have said, it seems a fantastic night was had by all:
“Brilliant! Amazing! It was just a wicked night. Thanks so much for letting us be a part of it.”
“I just wanted to tip my hat to the wonderful party which you guys so wonderfully planned. I am sure I don’t stand alone in saying, it was a FABULOUS time. The costumes were great and the entertainment was top notch.”
“Mamma Mia! You really know how to put on a good spread! What a party!!!”
Here’s to another successful 10 years, to the continued support of all our clients and associates, and to the next Cactus anniversary party...roll on 2019!
See the photos here.
Tags: brighton, language, languages, cactus, italian, german, french, spanish, english
Posted by Laura Lippert 2009-05 under Cactus Language Worldwide, Cactus Events,
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