Looming on a blue Maltese horizon, the immense ship Vista quietly slipped into Valleta Harbour for a gala Christening event. What a day! This gorgeous boat, latest off the Norwegian line and first of two Allura-class, arrived for her party.
Special event firm Viva Creative produced the Christening celebration. From a clear Neptunus tent hall (Casapinta of Malta), lucky VIPs enjoyed the spectacle under a Tentnology Saddle Span with its superb acoustic and sight lines under a starry night sky.
The challenges for staging this event started months before as Viva requisitioned most equipment from abroad. They trucked and ferried containers of light and sound equipment from Norway along with 40 burly crew. Viva brought another from Vancouver carrying the Tentnology SaddleSpan with vertical walled Portico green room.
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And so it began. Malta Customs experienced a few challenges, delaying delivery, and making for even tighter timelines! Crews worked on top of each other late into the night. So much for that clear, unencumbered site.
And of course, Maltese port authority could not allow attachment to the dock. So, complying with code, Tentnology anchored SaddleSpan to concrete ballast at precisely surveyed locations. A SaddleSpan gins up with a car or forklift, sort of like the ancient Egyptians would an obelisk with a hundred crew. Then onsite last minute changes meant Tentnology had to move all ballast that night to a new survey, 0ne meter south. Final assembly completed, site demands meant Tentnology had to again relocate that Saddle Span! By this time, other trades had moved in to build stage, lighting and sound equipment to keep on schedule. The “unencumbered” site turned into one teaming with crew, bristling with equipment. Sunrise, ship arrived, event produced, and voila! Success. Then in 3 hours flat Tentnology locked and loaded that beautiful SaddleSpan back into its container bound for Vancouver!
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May 11, 2023, Vista, and the Tentnology Saddle Span shone bright against Malta’s historic ancient stone back drop. That’s showbiz! In the end Viva Creative created a spectacle with stunning results for Norwegian Cruise Lines and its VIP passengers… have a look!
Thanks to our client Viva Creative and Norwegian Cruise Lines for their vision.
Tentnology – Amazing Space – anywhere, anytime.