Gala production services
Everything a fundraising gala needs, from one team
Fat Fish Media produces nonprofit galas, fundraising dinners and award nights across Utah from our Salt Lake City warehouse: scenic and stage design, lighting, LED video, audio, auction AV and a show caller who keeps the program on time so the ask lands.
Stage and scenic design
Custom stage sets, entrance moments, branded backdrops, draping and printed graphics designed and fabricated in our shop and installed by our crew.
Lighting design
Room washes, pin spots on every table, gobos with your logo, moving lights for awards and reveals, and a stage look that photographs well.
LED video and screens
LED walls or projection for the program, sponsor loops, impact videos and the live giving total, with a technician on the switcher all night.
Audio for speeches, auctions and bands
Line-array or point-source PA tuned for speech, wireless handhelds and lavaliers, a band or DJ mix, and coverage that reaches the back tables.
Photo moments and step and repeat
Step and repeats, photo installations and immersive entrances that give guests something to share before dinner starts.
Show calling and run of show
A stage manager who builds the run of show with your committee, cues speakers, video and music, and keeps the paddle raise on schedule.
Nonprofit galas we produce
Fundraising galas, award dinners and donor events
Equality Utah Allies Gala
Called the Met Gala of Salt Lake City, the Allies Gala is Utah's largest fundraising event, and Fat Fish has produced it for several years running while also sponsoring it. We handle the full show: scenic and stage design, LED video, theatrical lighting, concert-grade audio for performers and speakers, and show calling for a program that moves from cocktails and performers in the atrium to the main-stage presentation and live giving. Each year gets a new look built around the theme.
A vintage carnival gala on a private estate
For a mental health foundation's annual gala we turned the grounds of a private estate into a vintage carnival: scenic entrance arches and a red carpet, a tented dinner with red and white ceiling draping, printed carnival games and sponsor signage, and a stage under the tent with PA, lighting and screens for the program and the paddle raise. Outdoor galas add power distribution, weather planning and sightlines to the usual list, and we own all of it.
Museum and arts fundraisers
Arts organizations want a gala that looks like their programming, not a hotel ballroom. For a contemporary art museum's desert-themed gala we built an LED stage inside the gallery, washed the space in magenta and amber, dressed it with sculptural cactus scenic and a branded step and repeat, and ran a tight program of speakers, performers and live giving. Working inside a museum means protecting the art, hiding cable runs and keeping load-in quiet, which our crew plans for in advance.
Corporate galas, holiday parties and after parties
The same team produces company celebrations. For Nelson Labs we turned a corporate space into a winter festival with a custom ski-lift photo experience, and for FLSmidth we produced a rooftop after party following the SME mining conference with custom scenic, lighting design and sound. If your gala has an award segment, a band or a brand reveal, those are the moments we build the room around.
At a glance
What a gala production includes
Stage and scenic
Decks and risers at any height, stairs and ADA ramps, custom scenic, backdrops, pipe and drape, printed sponsor signage
Lighting
Uplighting, pin spots, gobos, moving lights, truss and a lighting designer on the console
Video
LED walls in 2.9 and 1.5mm pitches, projection, confidence monitors, sponsor and impact video playback, live giving totals on screen
Audio
L-Acoustics PA, wireless handhelds and lavaliers, band and DJ inputs, auctioneer microphone with a backup
Program support
Show caller, run of show, rehearsals, emcee and auctioneer cues, mobile bidding platform integration
Streaming
Multi-camera livestream for remote donors and a full recording for the post-event campaign
Venues
Hotel ballrooms, convention centers, museums, private estates, tents and historic buildings across Utah
Crew
Production manager, audio, lighting and video technicians, stagehands and a show caller on every gala
How we produce a gala
Step 1
Creative and budget
We meet your committee, learn the theme, the program and the fundraising goal, and design to the budget you have.
Step 2
Design and venue walk
Renderings of the stage and room, a line-item quote, and a site walk for power, rigging, load-in and sightlines.
Step 3
Rehearsal and show
We build the day before or the morning of, rehearse with your emcee and auctioneer, and call the show from a script your team approved.
Step 4
Strike and recap
We strike on the venue's schedule and send photos, the recording and notes for next year within the week.
Recent galas
Galas we have produced across Utah
Equality Utah Allies Gala. Full production and scenic for Utah's largest fundraiser, produced and sponsored by Fat Fish year after year.
Vintage carnival estate gala. Tented dinner, scenic entrances, carnival games and a paddle-raise stage with PA, lighting and screens on a private estate.
Torchbearer Ball. A ballroom gala with a full lighting wash, LED stage and a multi-camera program of panels, performers and live giving.
Explore
Services that pair with gala production
Corporate Event Production
Conferences, sales kickoffs, award nights and company celebrations produced end to end.
Corporate eventsBrand Experiences
Immersive environments, product reveals and activations where the production is the story.
Brand experiencesA/V Equipment Rentals
Lighting, audio, LED and staging from our Salt Lake City warehouse, with delivery and technicians.
See all rentalsThe brands we work with
FAQ
Gala production questions
How much does gala production cost in Utah?
It depends on guest count, venue and how much is custom. A ballroom gala for a couple hundred guests with a stage, a lighting wash and pin spots, a PA, wireless microphones, screens for the program and a small crew sits at the approachable end. A large gala with custom scenic, an LED wall, a full lighting rig, multi-camera video, a band mix and a show caller is a much larger production. Venue, load-in hours, union labor, rigging and the amount of fabrication drive the number more than anything else. We quote every line so the committee can see the trade-offs and decide where the budget does the most good.
Do you offer nonprofit pricing or sponsor events?
We sponsor a small number of causes each year, including the Equality Utah Allies Gala, and we work within nonprofit budgets by scaling the design rather than the quality: a strong lighting look and clean audio go a long way before scenic and LED are added. Tell us the budget early and we will design to it.
What AV does a live auction or paddle raise need?
A wireless handheld for the auctioneer with a backup, a PA that reaches the back tables clearly, screens showing the lots and the running total, a spotlight or bright wash so bidders can be seen, and a confidence monitor for the emcee. We coordinate with your mobile bidding platform so the goal thermometer and pledges show on screen in real time, and we keep an operator on the screens through the whole ask.
Can you work in a hotel ballroom that has an in-house AV company?
Yes. We produce galas at the Grand America, the Salt Palace, downtown hotels, museums, private estates and tents, and we have working relationships with the in-house teams. We handle rigging requests, power orders and the venue's AV paperwork, and where a venue requires in-house rigging or power we coordinate it for you.
Can you design a themed environment, not just the AV?
Yes. Scenic design and fabrication is part of what we do: entrance moments, stage sets, photo installations, draping, printed graphics and sponsor signage, built in our shop and installed by our crew. The vintage carnival gala and the Allies Gala stage sets on this page were designed and built by Fat Fish.
How far ahead should we book a gala production company?
Gala season in Utah runs spring and fall, and those weekends book four to six months out. Eight to twelve weeks is the minimum for a full production with custom scenic; a lighting, audio and screens package can come together faster. Booking early also gets you a site walk and a rehearsal on the calendar.
Can donors who cannot attend watch or give remotely?
Yes. We stream the program with multiple cameras and a clean audio mix to your platform or a private link, show the live total on screen for both audiences, and record the event for your post-gala campaign. Hybrid galas were a large part of our work in 2020 and 2021 and the toolkit has only improved since.
Where do you produce galas and fundraisers?
Salt Lake City, Park City, Provo, Ogden and the rest of the Wasatch Front from our warehouse, plus Denver, Las Vegas and Boise on a regular basis. For national nonprofits we travel with the same crew and equipment.
