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Simchapalooza 2012 – November 4th at Signature of Solon

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Make sure Sunday, November 4 is on your calendar for Cleveland’s premier party planning expo, Simchapalooza, presented by Rock The House. Over 70 exhibitors providing services and products for any occasion! Free and open to the community.

Plan your wedding, rehearsal dinner, shower, Bar or Bat Mitzvah, milestone celebrations, fundraiser or corporate event at this party planning expo.

The event also includes fabulous one-day discounts from many of the vendors, all day entertainment and demonstrations as well as a silent auction featuring popular items and services you can bid on and save. The expo and showcase is produced by Sherri Foxman’s Party411 Events sponsored by, Rock The House Entertainment, Lasting Impressions Event Rentals, PNC, Signature of Solon and the Cleveland Jewish News.

A portion of the proceeds from this event will benefit the Greater Cleveland Chapter of Hadassah. Hadassah, the Women’s Zionist Organization of America, promotes health, education, social action and advocacy in the U.S. and medical care and research, education and youth institutions in Israel. It is the largest women’s, largest Zionist and largest Jewish membership organization in the United States.

Check out some photos from last year:

Sunday, November 4th
11 AM – 3 PM
Signature of Solon
39000 Signature Drive
Solon, OH 44139

For more information contact Zach marcus at The Cleveland Jewish News 216.454.8300 Ext. 253 or email [email protected].

 

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October Team Member of the Month: Dezare’ Foster

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Versatile. Professional. Energetic.

entertainment rock the house entertainment

Dez is one of the most versatile assets Rock The House has. Our best employees are cross-trained in a variety of positions. Having a team member who understand their other teammate’s roles is pretty powerful. These team members relate to and have a much better understanding of the importance of each position at any given event. Dez has been trained and has show experience as a Dancer, Photo Magic and Photo Booth Technician, DJ, Lighting Designer, and an MC. She is a really great example of how versatile team members are our best.

First and foremast, Dez is a dancer. She recently helped us run our first Rock The House Dance Jam. She proved herself a leader before she was given a formal leadership title. This is important because it was this mentality that helped pave the way for her role as a show lead. Since she had the mentality of a true leader among peers, it was natural for us to train her in the role of a formal show lead.

Dez’s work ethic is another pillar of what makes her special. Late nights, high energy dancing, equipment load-ins and load-outs, and back to back events are not for everyone. The real sign of a true entertainer is being able to put in the hard work and still have fun during the show. Dez is a true entertainer.

entertainment lighting team

Dez’s advice to new team members is this:

“I would tell them its not easy, because it takes a lot of work to load in, set up and put on a great show. But in the moments when we’re dancing or singing with abandon, that’s what makes it all worth while. My favorite part about being on a Rock The House team is the all the knowledge and experience that each person brings, which allows me to learn from them.”

Creative & Talent Director, Ryan Konikoff, explains why Dez was chosen this month:

“Every month is a great one for Dez, but this month we have really seen her shine. From being a team lead to getting tons of requests, and getting mentioned by name by clients in evaluations, her month has been spectacular!”

Thanks for all your hard work, Dez. You’ve made a big impact on our client’s lives and the lives of our team. You are VERY appreciated!
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September Team Member of the Month: Maria Elena Massucci

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Elena – Team Member of the Month

production customer service events

Our clients might not have met our Event Consultant, Elena, but, rest assure, she has impacted their event. Elena’s position exists to ensure that none of the important details of our client’s events are missed. All the notes from meetings between our clients and event specialists are organized and streamlined for our entertainers and event production team by Elena. This ensures that nothing in the heads of our event specialist stay only there!

As Rock The House expands it’s offerings, Elena’s position becomes more and more important. She makes sure that our DJs, MCs, dancers, lighting designers, production managers, videographers, and technicians are all on the same page. Her job is to make sure our staff has everything they need to succeed. Her work is the bridge between planning and doing. This extra step in planning gives Rock The House a big advantage.

In addition, Elena also sources our client’s special music choices while organizing our extensive song library. She makes sure that our entertainers have the music they need in order to create the special moments they have dreamed. These songs range from ethnic songs to the really unusual and she makes it happen.

Creative & Talent Director, Ryan Konikoff explains why Elena was chosen for the Team Member of the Month this September:

“We are wrapping up the summer wedding season here at Rock The House and weddings tend to be the most detail oriented events. These events often involve many team members, an detailed agenda, music choices, and floor plans. Elena has made this the smoothest wedding season yet for our entertainers and technicians. During the May through September season, Elena’s work load nearly doubles. In spite of this, she didn’t miss a beat. She calls clients, makes recommendations and talks to our staff to make sure that expectations are met then exceeded.”

Elena describes her role best:

“I really enjoy being a part of someone’s special day, even if it is behind the scenes and they may not know me. If I can make someone’s day as special as I would want mine to be, I’ve succeeded and we’ve succeeded!”

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Atlantic City DJ Expo 2012

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Continuing Education in Pursuit of Excellence

Rock The House Entertainment attends a variety of conferences and events all over the country each year. One of the most important trips is to the DJ Expo put on by DJ Times. This year the event was in Atlantic City and Matt, Shawn, and Travis had the opportunity to attend this conference and trade show with some of the best in the entertainment industry in attendance.

Being able to learn from the best in the country means our client’s events will benefit from a larger pool of experience. Upon their return to the office Matt, Shawn, and Travis debriefed the team on what they learned and how we can improve for our clients. This was Travis and Shawn’s first appearance at this conference and their experiences differed because of their unique backgrounds.

As a DJ and MC for over 9 years, Shawn was inspired by watching and listening to the top Masters of Ceremony in the country. Attending the DJ Times 2012 DJ of the Year Competition inspired him to plan on competing in future competitions. Travis recently started with the company as both a Client Cordinator and DJ. A big takeaway for Travis was just how different each client is and ways to get to know them better in order to create a more personalized event.

With over 400 companies and 2,000 in attendance, it was also impressive that Rock The House was able to give back to this community with our combined experience. Shawn even won the freestyle dance competition! One powerful quote from the event really impacted our team: “You have one chance to get the picture right, to capture the emotion, to create the signature moment”. This is why we are committed to always growing and learning…our clients’ events are THAT important.

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The Knot Wedding Network – Cleveland Summer Spectacular

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The Wedding Networking Event of Season

Every bride knows about The Knot. This wedding publication is everywhere and has been the national source for brides for wedding trends and ideas. Once a year, they put on an event in Cleveland as a Wedding Industry networking event and we were honored to be asked to help. This event was presented by Kirkbrides Wedding Planning & Design and featured many elegant details just like their weddings.

This year’s event was held at the Double Tree Tutor Arms Hotel which made the perfect early evening venue for networking, eating, and even some dancing. The hotel provided Cleveland dishes, desserts, and signature drinks from St-Germain. This was a really impressive looking event for a crowd who are not easily impressed. We provided a variety of lighting concepts including gobo designs on the floor and walls, uplighting, and a lighting designer who worked with the entertainment. In addition to event lighting we also offered our Photo Magic Green Screen as a favor to all the guests. Being able to network with the areas best wedding professionals at an event that we helped create made for a truly special evening.

Thanks to all the sponsors who helped make this event so successful:

 

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Cleveland DJs Celebrate Their Own Bat Mitzvah

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Northeast Ohio Event Entertainment Company Turns 13

Have 13 years gone by already? Rock The House Entertainment Group has grown from a handful of dedicated DJs in Cleveland to one of the biggest Event Entertainment & Production companies in Northeast Ohio in 13 years.

This year’s holiday party for our staff was a true coming of age event. In a year with many new full-time positions created, almost 1,000 events served, and many new part-time team members coming on board, we have a lot to be thankful for. Our holiday party really reflects the culture of the company. Awards were given and the year was reviewed but at the heart of this night…there was a family who make FUN a priority.
Our team includes experts in DJ / MC Entertainment, Lighting & Sound Production, Photo Booths, & Videography for Weddings and Bar / Bat Mitzvahs as well as Corporate & Fundraisers. If you are interested in YOUR next party being as fun as ours was for ourselves…contact us at www.RTHgroup.com

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Rock The House Holiday Party 2012

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Party For A Living / Live To Party

Once a year we get together to celebrate another year of successes in the only way we know how…with a blow out party. On paper, this event probably sounds like your holiday party. We had drinks, food, dancing, and awards. Sounds normal enough, right?

Well let’s break down the differences between our party and yours:

  • Drinks – Full open bar. Choices put together based on requests by our team. Jello shots.
  • Food – HUGE buffet by the Mandarin Seafood Buffet.
  • Dancing – Professional dancers competing to see who has the best moves.
  • Awards – Award winners celebrated with high-fives and Jello shots.

Our company culture is the cornerstone of our success. This annual event is a great example of what makes our culture so special. Attendees included DJs, MCs, Lighting Designers, Sound Technicians, Dancers, Mangers, Event Specialists, Full-Time Office staff, and (importantly) their significant others. Everyone, regardless of position, came together for our most looked forward to evening of the year. We love what we do so much and it definitely shows on nights like this. Our DJs were picking songs and our dancers never left the dance floor. This isn’t a job…it’s in our blood!

If you are looking for that kind of passion for your next event, see what we can do for you – Rock The House Entertainment Group

 

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A Rock The House Success Story: Shawn Smutak

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Entertainer to Client Coordinator

Nothing makes us more proud than seeing a team member grow with the company; and Shawn Smutak is a great example of that transition. Shawn has been with Rock The House since 2003, and has been a part of some really big transitions that the company made over the last decade. Some of these transitions include two different office expansions, expanding services (event production to include lighting and staging), exponential growth in employees, as well as the addition of a corporate entertainment and production division. These are just some of the ways Rock The House has grown, in-part because of Shawn.

Shawn started with the company as a dancer and DJ, and as Rock The House expanded it’s horizons, Shawn became one of the company’s most requested MCs over time. His ability to take control of an event, work with other vendors, and his commitment to customer service made him a natural leader on events. Beyond his growth in his role as an entertainer, Shawn has achieved an Associate Degree in Interpersonal Communication at the University of Akron with a Minor in Sales Management. It’s this training, coupled with his years of show experience, that made him the right choice for his next role at Rock The House.

Entertainer Rock The House

Shawn has been hired as a part of the full-time staff as a Client Coordinator. Because he has been the leader on hundreds of events with Rock The House, he is uniquely qualified to help guide our clients with their event’s needs. Being in the field as long as Shawn means that he understands what can be achieved and what is best for the integrity of the event. His recommendations come from the point of a true expert.

When asked what the most exciting part of this new position will be for him, Shawn did not hesitate. “The fact that I can now take part in the internal process of all of our events is exciting,” said Shawn. “Communicating with clients more frequently and building strong relationships is going to be really exciting.” We’re excited to be able to be at a point in our evolution that we can offer a real opportunity to our staff to be able to grow with us. Hiring from within is something that makes the management team at Rock The House really proud because it’s a great payoff for those who have sacrificed the most towards the success of our company.

rock the house entertainment

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July Team Member of the Month

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Evan Guffin: Technician

Employee of The Month Evan Guffin

Evan has been with Rock The House just short of one full year and he has already made his mark. A hard worker with a real drive to learn, Evan has what makes the best of us shine. There is a difference between a “willingness to learn” and real drive and Evan’s got it. Beyond his job performance, he has quickly become part of what makes the Rock The House culture something special. He goes above and beyond and has an awareness of everything going on each day and not just the show he has been assigned to.

Our technicians are our lifeblood now in 2012. Rock The House may have started out as a DJ entertainment company but it’s grown beyond that designation due to the acquisition of talented technicians such as Evan. The success of our ability to grow can be attributed to their hard work. It’s not as glorious of work as entertainers (because they are rarely in the spotlight) but our tech team is just as important.

Production manager, Ben Allison, is impressed with both his adaptability to learn on the job as well as Evan’s attitude. “He is never negative and is always looking for a better way to accomplish his tasks”, says Ben. He also states that Evan’s easy going nature is refreshing during critical points in events where big egos would have got in the way.

Evan told us his favorite part of being on the Rock The House team is how we transform a venue for an event. “I love walking into a venue and knowing it’s going to be a completely different room by the time you’re event starts…then at the end, it’s like we were never there”, says Evan. What is all the more impressive is that Evan is also going to Full Sail University for event production. This means we are only seeing the beginning of what is sure to be an impressive career in creating event experiences.

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Cleveland Event Entertainment Softball Challenge

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1st Annual Rock The House / Jerry Bruno Softball Game

It’s summertime. That means shorts, hot dogs, and sports on a diamond. We decided this year to get our team together to play our friends at Jerry Bruno in a game of softball. Surprise, surprise…we have found out we have some real ballplayers. Between our all-staff meeting, holiday party, and now this event…we get to hang out with our ENTIRE team more often. This event was a huge success and we were able to raise money and can goods for the Cleveland Foodbank.

Check out this video to see the action: