Checking In With: Doug Johnson from E Plus Productions

 We consider ourselves lucky to have a number of great friends and partners in the event industry with whom we have worked on many projects for many years. So we thought: let's check in with our friends and see what they are up to while much of the nation is relaxing over the summer.

First up: Douglas Johnson, owner of EPlus Productions, creative director, choreographer and entertainment producer. It turns out that it's a busy summer!

Doug: "We just closed our live show of "Maleficent" at the El Capitan a few days ago. Creating this for Disney was a wonderful opportunity to produce a spectacular show for children. I had the chance to choreograph, direct and costume the show and to retain ownership of the production."

"But closing doesn't mean that we spend the rest of the summer at the beach. Besides working on events for the rest of the year, we are already preparing for New Year's Eve. We will be back in Las Vegas, of course, but we have a total of nine shows around the world that night. That means hiring a cast and crew of 400 people. We are designing and fabricating everything. Our seamstresses are already at work. I am choreographing and working with composers. Production is already in full swing."

What really made Doug's summer, though, is the purchase of a treasure trove of costumes.

"The Palm Springs Follies closed recently and they had to get rid of their costumes in a hurry. I feel so lucky to have gotten the most spectacular, glamorous, giant costumes one can imagine! They are so much larger-than-life that we had to pack them into four trucks to take them to our warehouse in Las Vegas. I can't wait to put them back on stage!"