Dance Music Northwest was fortunate enough to spend some quality time with the Savory Events team recently. We’ve talked to them before but this time, we really got to know them through an extensive interview, attending Bacon Ball X – Deep Space Swine, and volunteering on the cleanup crew the day after. Through this we learned why they are one of the hardest working, most passionate crews in Portland.
The Team
Peter Giese, Business Manager
A Portland, Oregon native, Peter Giese is a lifelong musician, dancer and founder of Savory Events. As Savory’s Business Manager, he helps curate talent for shows and fosters relationships in the Portland nightlife community. The vision for Savory’s first event, The Bacon Ball, began from a trip to a San Francisco event called Breakfast Of Champions. Shortly after, he threw a house-party titled “Beats and Breakfast”, DJed by soon-to-be Savory co-founders (Ethan and Jake). The energy that night was something new, refreshing, and impossible to ignore.
Ethan Moses, Production Manager
Ethan fell in love with electronic music at an Infected Mushroom set at his first massive in L.A. His love for music has been a part of his entire life, and his recent experience creating and sharing music and art through Savory Events has been a joyous addition to his life as a teacher. At the very first Bacon Ball he rented a few lights, read the manual, and has been teaching himself lighting design ever since. Each Bacon Ball light show is a new experience that he designs and operates with the invaluable help of the Savory team and volunteers. Ethan’s favorite part of the Savory experience is seeing the happy look on his new friends’ faces as their mind melts from bacon/light/music overload.
Jake Clark, Operations Manager
Jake is a PNW native who grew into the local dance music community five years ago. Discovering his passion for the unique culture the music inspires, Jake dug into the world of DJing nearly four years ago, and his progression from there has led into event production. Jake’s focus within Savory Events is not only musical curation for each Bacon Ball, but also in the behind-the-scenes operational tasks. From venue and vendor relations, to safety and administrative systems, Jake is the grease in the wheels that helps drive the Bacon Ball as well as Savory’s other endeavors.
Laurel Bentley Moses (Laurel Emm), Operations Manager
Laurel is a Portland native who grew up calling the punk rock music scene home. After moving to San Francisco in the early 2000s, she fell in love with the community and philosophy of the Bay Area underground dance music scene where she was profoundly inspired by the fusion of art, dance, visual aesthetic, and diverse music style that constitute these events. Returning to Portland and joining Savory, Laurel brings a vision of self expression, energy, and style to her both her business management role and her performance roles as a dancer and aerialist. She is constantly energized and invigorated by the community that make Savory’s shows possible and loves seeing folks connect and come together to celebrate life at dance events.
Treya Bushell, Performance Production Manager
Treya is Savory’s lead aerial performance artists and is responsible for managing and curating Savory’s performance talent. Treya has been training and performing for a little over four years and is so grateful to have a positive performance outlet like Bacon Ball. In addition to the thrills of performing, she also enjoys bringing on others to express their artistic selves to a truly loving and appreciative crowd. Attendees and volunteers alike have attested to life changing experiences at Bacon Ball.
Kaspian Clark, Creative Design Production Manager
Kaspian strongly believes in the power of the arts to facilitate personal development at any age. His motto is “Permission Granted!” From his earliest childhood memories he was getting his siblings dressed in costumes and dancing around the living room to his parents’ only disco record: Boney M –Nightflight To Venus. He has been drawn to the inclusive and collaborative nature of the electronic music and arts scene since his teenage years in the 90’s. He is responsible for building the stunning scenes present at every Bacon Ball.
Photos: Garry Bastian Photography & Stumptown Blue
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