Entertainment Performance Review: Boston Harborfest 2015

The event visited was Boston Harborfest, the Boston Pops Concert, and the July 4th holiday fireworks taking place at the Hatch Shell and over the Charles River, Boston. The concert started at 8:30 P.M. and ended at 9:30 P.M. on Saturday. It was followed by the fireworks show starting at 10:30 P.M. and ending at 11 P.M. The entrance was free.

On Independence Day, there are usually the most spectacular events. This year’s most important ones were the concert in the Charles River Esplanade of Boston and fireworks over the Charles River. The concert started with the performance of the National Anthem. The special guests were Susan Tedeschi (Grammy-winner) (Norwell, MA) and Ayla Brown (Wrentham, MA). Other performers at the concert included the conductor, Keith Lockhart, the Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra, and the Boston Crusaders Drum and Bugle Corps. The repertoire consisted of the favorite pop songs and patriotic pieces.

The end of the show was spectacular: Tchaikovsky’s famous 1812 Overture followed by the cannon fire and church bells.

The terminology connected with the celebration includes the following keywords:

• 1812 Overture;
• Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra;
• Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular;
• Boston Pops;
• Hatch Shell;
• National anthem;
• The Esplanade;
• The Independence Day;
• The Oval;
• Cannon fire.

There were a lot of places, where one could buy memorabilia with the symbols of the USA, such as small flags and different souvenirs not only at the venue but also all over the city. As for me, the marketing campaign was very successful: I saw hundreds of people purchasing flags. Apart from that, at many spots, the visitors and tourists could buy something they would want to bring home from their trip.

I decided to visit the event because it was one of the biggest celebrations of the year with its unique atmosphere. When you visit any performances dedicated to the Independence Day celebration, you feel proud of being an American and, at the same time, thankful to those heroes that fought so that the United States could become a sovereign and prosperous state. Moreover, it is an amazing feeling of being one of the millions of people throughout the entire country, who are celebrating the same event along with you.

As for the funding of the event, the firework show was sponsored by Liberty Mutual Insurance Group, an insurance company.

Venue Assessment

The concert took place at the Hatch Shell, an outdoor stage in the Charles River Esplanade. The best place to see the concert was the grassy area right in front of the stage, the so-called Oval. However, it was hard to get there since, in order to get a seat in this zone, one had to stand in a long line from the very beginning. Another drawback of staying in this area was that it was surrounded by trees; thus, some people could not see the whole beauty of fireworks at the end of the show.

Overall, however, the place chosen for the celebration was a very good one for several reasons. First of all, it has already been used for the Independence Day celebrations before, so everybody knew where to go to have fun. In addition, it is always much more pleasant to stay outdoors in the summer. Another good reason for choosing such a venue was that numerous spectators could visit the concert while any buildings would accommodate only a limited number of people. The only thing that might have turned out to be unpleasant about the place was that people would have had no place to hide if it had rained.

The fireworks were displayed over the Charles River. In my opinion, this place was perfect for a firework show since, on the one hand, it was located far enough from the audience and, on the other hand, the fireworks reflected in the water along with the city lights. Consequently, it looked very beautiful and fascinating.

In conclusion, I think that the venue was appropriate for the event. A huge number of people is usually involved in the celebration of Independence Day, and the Charles River Esplanade could accommodate as many people as required, so everyone could move freely and entertain.

Entertainment Event Assessment

The event was organized at the highest level. The place was neat, and the music was pleasant; people were happy, and the patriotic atmosphere was everywhere. The fireworks were impressive, as always. The concert finished at 10:30 P.M.; it was followed by an amazing firework show, which ended at 11 P.M. As for me, the duration was just enough, although watching fireworks for half an hour was a little too exhaustive.

I think that as for the event involving so many people, all possible safety measures were taken. There were numerous checkpoints at the Oval, so it was impossible to bring in any alcoholic beverages, sharp or glass objects, or even blankets larger than ten by ten feet. Some individuals did not like their bags being checked, but it was done for their safety. However, the security staff could not check the bags of so many people, and only the belongings of those, who entered the Oval, were monitored. Therefore, cameras were used, as well. To my mind, the measures taken were effective since video surveillance would allow the security to detect strange behavior if there had been any while checking the visitors’ belongings helped find any dangerous objects.

As for the strong sides of the performance, I would like to mention the following ones:

• the music was good;
• the sound was of high quality, and the music was loud enough;
• the hosts entertained the visitors;
• the fireworks were spectacular, as always;
• everything was well-organized.

There were not many weak sides of the event, among them:

• people had to spend time in lines to get the best seats instead of enjoying the performance;
• the place was crowded;
• half-an-hour was too much for the fireworks, as for me.

However, nothing is perfect, and most of the drawbacks could not have been avoided.

Nearly half a million people visited the event, and everyone I managed to see was satisfied. The patriotic atmosphere was created at the very beginning of the show when the National Anthem was performed and had lasted for the whole evening. Many people were singing along with those performing on the stage when they heard familiar songs.

The event definitely fulfilled my expectations. For me, the most important aspect of the Independence Day celebration is a big number of happy people; it makes you feel a part of something huge and that the whole American nation is united. The thing I remembered the best from this year’s celebration was the feeling of being proud of who and where I was. I would strongly recommend visiting the event to everyone, especially the tourists from abroad since such a celebration is one of the things, which would help them feel the true spirit of the USA.