Anyone who has worked in the entertainment and attractions industry for more than a decade will tell you how much things have changed over the years. But they will also tell you one thing hasn’t changed, that audiences always want to be thrilled and excited.
From the first movie audience at Berlin’s Wintergarten in 1895 to whoever will be first to experience Disney’s much anticipated Millennium Falcon ride at Star Wars Land, the objective remains the same: to make the audience say wow!
What has changed massively, however, is the lengths attraction managers need to go to to get this reaction. Pushed by technology and consumer expectation, entertainment providers are continually on the look out for the next big thing.
“Consumers around the world are clearly telling us that multi-platform experiences are key,” says Ben O’Hara, creative director and co-founder at leading entertainment agency, The Business Creative. “The convergence of the digital and non-digital worlds is now a standard expectation as audiences want to replicate and extend entertainment across a variety of platforms. At the same time, we are seeing this coupled with a resurgence in interest in live experiences, such as visits to theme parks and music or film events.”
“Our clients want to achieve all this and, at the same time, blow people’s minds.”
The UK creative industry is at the forefront of the kinds of innovations that help attractions and entertainment providers around the world achieve just this. The UK government’s trade and investment department regularly runs pitch trips to key locations around the world, enabling creative agencies such as The Business Creative to show off their capabilities and win contracts.
“We went on several trips last year, including to Hong Kong,” says O’Hara. “An estimated £19 billion [$27m, €25m] is being invested the West Kowloon Cultural District and in nearby Macau to develop destinations such as arts spaces, casinos and retail areas.”
How to be different “This is just one of the hotspots for the experience economy around the world,” O’Hara says. “But it doesn’t matter whether you’re talking about a casino in China or a waterpark in Abu Dhabi, clients all want the same thing – to be different.
“For The Business Creative the answer to this lies in acknowledging one fundamental point: there can be no such thing as a template approach. Every brief needs a completely different response.
“When we pitch to clients we do two things. We come up with a unique concept. And we make sure it is grounded in our knowledge and experience of what we know works and what doesn’t,” O’Hara says. “The process is about freeing your mind to think completely outside what has been done before and then refining this in the context of logistical and financial considerations.
“By doing it this way we’ve won diverse contracts around the world, which have seen us do everything from dancing with JCBs to celebrating Chinese New Year at Ferrari World in Abu Dhabi.”
In essence, there’s no way we can predict what the next big thing in the experience economy will be. The only thing we can be sure of is that it will be extraordinary, surprising and different from anything that has come before.
For more information please contact Jane Maguire at [email protected]
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
Interview: Tony Butler
Tony Butler, executive director of Derby
Museums Trust, on how museums can
be a force for good in their communities
Attractions: Perfect Brew
At 15 years old, the Guinness Storehouse
has been voted Europe’s best-loved
attraction. Manager Paul Carty reveals
the secrets of the Dublin brandland
Profile: John McReynolds
IAAPA’s new chairman reveals his aims
for the year ahead, his vision for a
global association and how his role at
Universal Orlando informs his goals
Analysis: The Attractions Business
Business planning consultant
David Camp starts an exclusive eight-part
series, delving into the fine art of attractions
operation from a business perspective
Science Centres: How to Future-Proof a Science Centre
Peter Slavenburg of design agency
NorthernLight describes how invisible
technology, serious play, co-creation
and the digital experience will inform
the science centre of tomorrow
Promotional feature: Simworx Ventures
Simworx Ventures is bringing its expertise in cutting-edge media-based attractions
to a new audience of museums, heritage sites, zoos and aquariums
Technology: Beacons on the Horizon
Beacons have countless applications in
the world of attractions. A case study
from the Cleveland Museum of Art
illustrates the technology’s potential
Museums & Galleries: Art Attack
Some of the most exciting attractions
design is happening in new and
upcoming galleries around the world,
from firms like Kengo Kuma and BIG
Promotional feature: IDEA
2016 is shaping up to be an interesting year for the attractions industry.
IDEA looks at what it takes to win audiences and command attention
Mystery Shopper: Spring in Your Step
We disappear down the rabbit hole as we
pay a mystery shopper visit to Bounce
Below, a unique underground trampolining
attraction in Snowdonia, north Wales
Rides: The Ride Makers
Our ride makers series continues with
water rides, a firm favourite with park
guests. Three leading companies reveal
the latest trends in flumes and chutes
Technology: Tech Check
The industry technology unveiled at
IAAPA 2015: from VR to interactives, and
digital puppets to 20-storey LED giants
Case Study 1 - Fusing Man and Machine Dancing JCBs are everywhere, from industry expos to local farming shows, and they are able to perform some logic-defying moves However amazing a dancing JCB show might be, JCB still needed to push the boundaries to move things up a gear.
That’s when the company turned to The Business Creative with a brief to bring the show up to date and incorporate modern dance disciplines whilst simultaneously showcasing the technology.
“The brief explicitly stated that the company wanted to create a world first,” says Ben O’Hara, creative director at The Business Creative.
“JCB had already wowed audiences with the original concept of getting seemingly cumbersome and heavy machinery to perform deft and graceful movements in the context of a dance performance. But once audiences were used to seeing this, we had to move things on.”
The creative team working with O’Hara and Jane Maguire, the founders of The Business Creative, has no set system for devising new concepts. According to O’Hara, it’s more often a combination of years of entertainment industry know-how, solid research and investigation and a “wow” provided by some “crazy, out-of-the-box thinking.”
“The quality of JCB machinery is the result of expert and innovative engineering. We brought the same ingredients into our concept for updating the dancing diggers show.
“We knew from the off that we wanted to include parkour in the show. In the same way the machines are strong yet capable of fine manoeuvres, parkour runners are strong athletes capable of making precision movements.
“Nature is a highly skilled, talented engineer so we wanted to demonstrate these similarities with JCB equipment,” says O’Hara.
The show was built around construction and industrial themes, so core street dance sequences allowed us to showcase further acrobatics.
“Of course, it’s the details that accompany a show that make a big difference,” O’Hara says. “For JCB we built in graffiti and a sound track, for example, that enabled us to weave a story arc through the dance sequence. And it worked in conjunction with the machinery movement to accentuate and emphasise what the vehicles were capable of doing.”
The show has run for three years at Intermat, Paris and the Bauma, Munich show and also in Las Vegas. Specifically it has helped increase sales and generated record audience attendance figures as well as going viral online.
The World Famous JCB Dancing Diggers with an Urban Twist
Fusing Man and Machine
Case Study 2 - Mission Ferrari The Business Creative developed the Mission Ferrari Show in Abu Dhabi, which recently won IAAPA’s Brass Ring Award in the category of sports show performance Ferrari is one of the world’s most powerful brands and its DNA is centred on elegance, speed, power, precision, agility and balance. All of these elements are expressed in Mission Ferrari through the mediums of aerial performance, dance, 4D projection mapping, mechanical engineering and a bespoke composition to accompany the show” says Ferrari World general manager, Jesse Vargas.
“Ferrari World Abu Dhabi wanted us to create a temporary concept that promoted a forthcoming attraction, whilst at the same time using the show itself to take attention away from the construction zone,” says Jane Maguire, co-founder of The Business Creative.
This led the team to devise a visually dramatic show that actually utilised the huge vertical space provided by the hoarding, which was screening the construction, as a stage.
The team then took the unprecedented decision to use the stage to showcase a rotating replica Ferrari F430 and then threw in a team of world-class acrobats performing gravity-defying stunts for good measure.
“We decided to embrace rather than hide the construction,” says Maguire. “Ferrari World Abu Dhabi insists on the very highest production standards in everything it does, and the show had to meet those standards.
“We decided to use cutting-edge projection technology to create mapping with aerial artists, a dramatic sound track and jaw-dropping special effects.
“We knew we needed to collaborate with specialists in concept development, projection mapping, aerial choreography, set design and Ferrari World’s own operational teams, if we were going to pull it off,” Maguire says.
“It all came together and worked brilliantly and the show won an industry award. What more could we ask for?”
Jaw Dropping skills demonstrated by the Mission Ferrari Performers
Jaw Dropping skills demonstrated by the Mission Ferrari Performers
Cutting Edge projection mapping fused with live performance
ABOUT iDEA The Business Creative’s newest addition to their portfolio of innovative, technology-based concepts is iDEA (Interactive Digital Entertainment Activities). The seed of the idea for a low cost, on-trend daytime activity solution was borne from a wealth of experience gained within the holiday and leisure attraction industry. Firmly aimed at the family market, iDEA activities are all about getting people active physically, mentally and socially, whilst having fun. Having only launched in September 2015, iDEA is already providing to be an extremely popular addition to holiday parks, hotels and leisure attractions worldwide.
Anyone who has worked in the entertainment and attractions industry for more than a decade will tell you how much things have changed over the years. But they will also tell you one thing hasn’t changed, that audiences always want to be thrilled and excited.
From the first movie audience at Berlin’s Wintergarten in 1895 to whoever will be first to experience Disney’s much anticipated Millennium Falcon ride at Star Wars Land, the objective remains the same: to make the audience say wow!
What has changed massively, however, is the lengths attraction managers need to go to to get this reaction. Pushed by technology and consumer expectation, entertainment providers are continually on the look out for the next big thing.
“Consumers around the world are clearly telling us that multi-platform experiences are key,” says Ben O’Hara, creative director and co-founder at leading entertainment agency, The Business Creative. “The convergence of the digital and non-digital worlds is now a standard expectation as audiences want to replicate and extend entertainment across a variety of platforms. At the same time, we are seeing this coupled with a resurgence in interest in live experiences, such as visits to theme parks and music or film events.”
“Our clients want to achieve all this and, at the same time, blow people’s minds.”
The UK creative industry is at the forefront of the kinds of innovations that help attractions and entertainment providers around the world achieve just this. The UK government’s trade and investment department regularly runs pitch trips to key locations around the world, enabling creative agencies such as The Business Creative to show off their capabilities and win contracts.
“We went on several trips last year, including to Hong Kong,” says O’Hara. “An estimated £19 billion [$27m, €25m] is being invested the West Kowloon Cultural District and in nearby Macau to develop destinations such as arts spaces, casinos and retail areas.”
How to be different “This is just one of the hotspots for the experience economy around the world,” O’Hara says. “But it doesn’t matter whether you’re talking about a casino in China or a waterpark in Abu Dhabi, clients all want the same thing – to be different.
“For The Business Creative the answer to this lies in acknowledging one fundamental point: there can be no such thing as a template approach. Every brief needs a completely different response.
“When we pitch to clients we do two things. We come up with a unique concept. And we make sure it is grounded in our knowledge and experience of what we know works and what doesn’t,” O’Hara says. “The process is about freeing your mind to think completely outside what has been done before and then refining this in the context of logistical and financial considerations.
“By doing it this way we’ve won diverse contracts around the world, which have seen us do everything from dancing with JCBs to celebrating Chinese New Year at Ferrari World in Abu Dhabi.”
In essence, there’s no way we can predict what the next big thing in the experience economy will be. The only thing we can be sure of is that it will be extraordinary, surprising and different from anything that has come before.
For more information please contact Jane Maguire at [email protected]
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
Interview: Tony Butler
Tony Butler, executive director of Derby
Museums Trust, on how museums can
be a force for good in their communities
Attractions: Perfect Brew
At 15 years old, the Guinness Storehouse
has been voted Europe’s best-loved
attraction. Manager Paul Carty reveals
the secrets of the Dublin brandland
Profile: John McReynolds
IAAPA’s new chairman reveals his aims
for the year ahead, his vision for a
global association and how his role at
Universal Orlando informs his goals
Analysis: The Attractions Business
Business planning consultant
David Camp starts an exclusive eight-part
series, delving into the fine art of attractions
operation from a business perspective
Science Centres: How to Future-Proof a Science Centre
Peter Slavenburg of design agency
NorthernLight describes how invisible
technology, serious play, co-creation
and the digital experience will inform
the science centre of tomorrow
Promotional feature: Simworx Ventures
Simworx Ventures is bringing its expertise in cutting-edge media-based attractions
to a new audience of museums, heritage sites, zoos and aquariums
Technology: Beacons on the Horizon
Beacons have countless applications in
the world of attractions. A case study
from the Cleveland Museum of Art
illustrates the technology’s potential
Museums & Galleries: Art Attack
Some of the most exciting attractions
design is happening in new and
upcoming galleries around the world,
from firms like Kengo Kuma and BIG
Promotional feature: IDEA
2016 is shaping up to be an interesting year for the attractions industry.
IDEA looks at what it takes to win audiences and command attention
Mystery Shopper: Spring in Your Step
We disappear down the rabbit hole as we
pay a mystery shopper visit to Bounce
Below, a unique underground trampolining
attraction in Snowdonia, north Wales
Rides: The Ride Makers
Our ride makers series continues with
water rides, a firm favourite with park
guests. Three leading companies reveal
the latest trends in flumes and chutes
Technology: Tech Check
The industry technology unveiled at
IAAPA 2015: from VR to interactives, and
digital puppets to 20-storey LED giants
Case Study 1 - Fusing Man and Machine Dancing JCBs are everywhere, from industry expos to local farming shows, and they are able to perform some logic-defying moves However amazing a dancing JCB show might be, JCB still needed to push the boundaries to move things up a gear.
That’s when the company turned to The Business Creative with a brief to bring the show up to date and incorporate modern dance disciplines whilst simultaneously showcasing the technology.
“The brief explicitly stated that the company wanted to create a world first,” says Ben O’Hara, creative director at The Business Creative.
“JCB had already wowed audiences with the original concept of getting seemingly cumbersome and heavy machinery to perform deft and graceful movements in the context of a dance performance. But once audiences were used to seeing this, we had to move things on.”
The creative team working with O’Hara and Jane Maguire, the founders of The Business Creative, has no set system for devising new concepts. According to O’Hara, it’s more often a combination of years of entertainment industry know-how, solid research and investigation and a “wow” provided by some “crazy, out-of-the-box thinking.”
“The quality of JCB machinery is the result of expert and innovative engineering. We brought the same ingredients into our concept for updating the dancing diggers show.
“We knew from the off that we wanted to include parkour in the show. In the same way the machines are strong yet capable of fine manoeuvres, parkour runners are strong athletes capable of making precision movements.
“Nature is a highly skilled, talented engineer so we wanted to demonstrate these similarities with JCB equipment,” says O’Hara.
The show was built around construction and industrial themes, so core street dance sequences allowed us to showcase further acrobatics.
“Of course, it’s the details that accompany a show that make a big difference,” O’Hara says. “For JCB we built in graffiti and a sound track, for example, that enabled us to weave a story arc through the dance sequence. And it worked in conjunction with the machinery movement to accentuate and emphasise what the vehicles were capable of doing.”
The show has run for three years at Intermat, Paris and the Bauma, Munich show and also in Las Vegas. Specifically it has helped increase sales and generated record audience attendance figures as well as going viral online.
The World Famous JCB Dancing Diggers with an Urban Twist
Fusing Man and Machine
Case Study 2 - Mission Ferrari The Business Creative developed the Mission Ferrari Show in Abu Dhabi, which recently won IAAPA’s Brass Ring Award in the category of sports show performance Ferrari is one of the world’s most powerful brands and its DNA is centred on elegance, speed, power, precision, agility and balance. All of these elements are expressed in Mission Ferrari through the mediums of aerial performance, dance, 4D projection mapping, mechanical engineering and a bespoke composition to accompany the show” says Ferrari World general manager, Jesse Vargas.
“Ferrari World Abu Dhabi wanted us to create a temporary concept that promoted a forthcoming attraction, whilst at the same time using the show itself to take attention away from the construction zone,” says Jane Maguire, co-founder of The Business Creative.
This led the team to devise a visually dramatic show that actually utilised the huge vertical space provided by the hoarding, which was screening the construction, as a stage.
The team then took the unprecedented decision to use the stage to showcase a rotating replica Ferrari F430 and then threw in a team of world-class acrobats performing gravity-defying stunts for good measure.
“We decided to embrace rather than hide the construction,” says Maguire. “Ferrari World Abu Dhabi insists on the very highest production standards in everything it does, and the show had to meet those standards.
“We decided to use cutting-edge projection technology to create mapping with aerial artists, a dramatic sound track and jaw-dropping special effects.
“We knew we needed to collaborate with specialists in concept development, projection mapping, aerial choreography, set design and Ferrari World’s own operational teams, if we were going to pull it off,” Maguire says.
“It all came together and worked brilliantly and the show won an industry award. What more could we ask for?”
Jaw Dropping skills demonstrated by the Mission Ferrari Performers
Jaw Dropping skills demonstrated by the Mission Ferrari Performers
Cutting Edge projection mapping fused with live performance
ABOUT iDEA The Business Creative’s newest addition to their portfolio of innovative, technology-based concepts is iDEA (Interactive Digital Entertainment Activities). The seed of the idea for a low cost, on-trend daytime activity solution was borne from a wealth of experience gained within the holiday and leisure attraction industry. Firmly aimed at the family market, iDEA activities are all about getting people active physically, mentally and socially, whilst having fun. Having only launched in September 2015, iDEA is already providing to be an extremely popular addition to holiday parks, hotels and leisure attractions worldwide.
People taking GLP-1 weight loss medications such as Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro and Zepbound
may be losing weight, but they’re also becoming less physically active, according to new
research presented at the ENDO 2026 annual meeting of the Endocrine Society
Abu Dhabi-based investment firm Mubadala Capital has made a binding, fully financed
€1 billion
offer to acquire Pierre and Vacances SA, the European holiday resort operator behind the
continental European Center Parcs business.
Global retreat trade show, Synergy The Retreat Show, has launched a resource called The
Source, which hosts an open-access online Transformation Series programme.
The Standards Authority for Touch in Cancer Care (SATCC) charity has announced its first five-
day Living with Cancer and Beyond retreat, which will be held at Carden Park Hotel and Spa in
Cheshire, UK, between 1 and 5 September.
Patmos Aktis, a Luxury Collection Resort and Spa, has opened in Greece, with a renovated and
rebranded wellness offering called Ansana Wellness and Spa.
The Mauna Kea Beach Hotel, an Autograph Collection property in Hawaii, US, has opened its
22,000 sq ft indoor-outdoor Spa at Mauna Kea as the final step in the property’s overall
renovation, which has cost more than US$180 million (€166 million, £140 mill
The UK spa review and discovery platform for consumers, the Good Spa Guide, has announced
it will host the Good Spa Guide Awards 2026 during an event on 16 November at Sopwell House
Hotel in St Albans, UK.
Eighty-four per cent of consumers now say wellness is a top priority in their lives, with this
percentage increasing year on year, according to a preview presentation of McKinsey’s Future of
Wellness 2026 research report.
Mass protests have been taking place since Monday 1 June in Albania over the development of
a luxury resort by Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner.
Global Wellness Day (GWD) marked its 15th anniversary on Saturday 13 June 2026, with the
theme: #JoyMagenta – a celebration of the healing qualities of simple gestures and activities
that spark joy.
