THROW TUNES NOT TOYS

Rave on

Saoirse Holland, events director at Raver Tots, talks of expansion plans, inclusivity, and creating opportunities for event graduates

Maidstone’s Mote Park hosted Raver Tots in June; it was the first time that the family-friendly rave brand had visited Kent. Raver Tots Maidstone had been in the planning since 2021, but it was not the only new addition to the Raver Tots 2022 calendar. Raver Tots Newcastle took place on August 29; again, for the first time. The brand wished to push north and has ambitions to expand even further in 2023 so that kids and adults can hit the dancefloor and rave in a family-friendly environment.

Saoirse Holland is event director at Raver Tots and has been instrumental in growing the family-friendly series to consist of more than 10 festivals and UK tours in the past year.

“I work with Deaf children and understand children very well,” Holland explains. “I look at Raver Tots from a children’s perspective. I worked on the event for about four or five years, then COVID hit, and I started to muscle in. It was all hands-on deck because we had to rearrange shows and tours and I found myself getting more and more involved. Since deciding to join the Raver Tot’s team full-time after lockdown, I now run the events and want to keep growing and doing more.”

WEIRD AND WACKY

Holland is ambitious. She wishes to grow the brand that had more than 100,000 people in attendance in 2022. “Our events range from 500 people to 8,000,” Holland continues. “Some events take place in small venues, or we organise our own outdoor shows, or partner with other festivals and piggyback their infrastructure.”

StandOut chats to Holland as she preps for a series of Halloween-themed events, including a big “spooktacular” in partnership with Ministry of Sound. The music is central to the events, but production and entertainment are important too. That’s because a child’s attention span is much different to an adult’s. Therefore, anything weird, wacky, and entertaining is key. In fact, Holland is all for “the stranger the better” and a sense of humour is required, especially when there’s a need to walk two men wearing triceratops and T-Rex costumes around a perimeter fence so that you do not spoil any entertainment surprises for half your audience!

BIG OPPORTUNITIES

Holland says that Raver Tots provides an outlet for kids and grownups to work off some energy in a fun-filled and safe environment. Raver Tots’ new festivals in Kent and Newcastle this year bring an exciting new level of expansion for the company. However, it’s not the only

way in which Holland wishes to expand. She is keen to offer event graduates opportunities to work on the festival and would like to encourage more female production specialists to work on the event. She believes in the importance of a diversified workforce and would like the event to be more inclusive. “I have reached out to Deaf Rave and would love to collaborate with them,” Holland adds. “I am keen to organise a Raver Tots event for the Deaf community and would love to introduce Deaf people to our events. Hearing children love learning British Sign Language (BSL) and I would like to integrate BSL too.”

Inclusivity is a big consideration for 2023. Holland wishes to look at a new queuing system for children with carers or children who may have additional needs. This is important as the show is sensory and some children can find long queues and waiting times more challenging.

Yet, it’s not Holland’s only consideration. She is conscious that infrastructure prices are increasing but does not wish to increase ticket prices. Currently, customers pay one price, and that price includes access to all activities and fairground rides. There is no desire to make customers pay for circus schools, DJ workshops, bouncy castles, and entertainment. Therefore, this winter, Holland will sit down with the Raver Tots team and assess the next moves that need to be made.

“We had lots of challenges with suppliers,” Holland explains. “We nearly didn’t have any toilets or cleaners. There were issues over pricing. I completely understand that prices must go up, but I am conscious of passing those costs on.”

She concludes: “In Southend, we partnered and site shared with Soultasia, in Newcastle with site shared with SummerTime Live, and Summer Love festival joined us in Reading. I would be open to talking to other organisers about site sharing in 2023 and I would be happy to welcome graduates to our site. I would love to offer them work at our events so that they can see if events are for them.”

SAOIRSE HOLLAND