"Being a sommelier is as much about the customer experience and an eye for detail as it is about being knowledgeable about wine, and that’s what I bring to the table to help make events successful," says Clark, events manager for Meow Wolf Grapevine, an event venue in the Dallas-Fort Worth area described as "a family-friendly cosmic adventure inside a world of explorable immersive art."
They identify charcuterie/food boards as one big food trend impacting the meeting and event industry these days.
"We had an event earlier this year that utilized charcuterie cups," Clark says. "It was a great spin on a classic food option and looked amazing to boot!"
We spoke with Clark about how they got their start in the meeting and event industry, the unique challenges related to bringing weddings to Meow Wolf and their theater background.
How did you get started in the meeting and event industry, and then MPI?
SC: Pre-COVID I was living in New York and working as a freelance stage manager in the theater industry. Between theater contracts I’d work for various events companies as a coordinator or runner or whatever was needed to help make ends meet.
At the end of 2020, I decided to move back to Texas to be closer to my family and made the choice to lean more into the meeting and event industry. As for MPI, they held an event at Meow Wolf and through that I got connected to our local chapter.
What has been the highlight or most memorable part of your career?
SC: It’s hard to choose. I’ve gotten to work on so many cool projects both in the theater industry and the meeting and event industry. As a stage manager a huge highlight was getting my union card. In the event industry, I’m really proud of the work I’m doing right now at Meow Wolf. When I started, I was a one-person events team, and now we are slowly expanding our team and expanding the types of events we can do. It’s really exciting to see the growth.
What would you still like to accomplish?
SC: We have a lot of public programming events we are working on at Meow Wolf at the moment and I’m excited to see all of our plans come to fruition. It’s been a huge growth moment for me in my career as well as a fun challenge.
This can be a very challenging industry. What has been the biggest challenge in your career?
SC: We recently hosted our first wedding at Meow Wolf and while it was a beautiful and fun event, it did pose some unique challenges. Meow Wolf is first and foremost an interactive art exhibit; it’s also a super cool event venue, albeit an untraditional one. We were not necessarily built with weddings in mind, and we had to get creative with how to host this event and all that a wedding normally entails. We converted our learning center to a bridal suite and my team worked closely with our exhibitions team to create a couple of truly special and unique moments for the first dances, but it took a lot of work to get to that point.
What do you love most about your career?
SC: I’m able to use so many different skills doing this job, which keeps it fun and interesting.
Let’s discuss someone inside or outside of events who has made an impact on you.
SC: Sean Sullivan was my advisor and costume professor at university, and he gave me two pieces of advice that live rent free in my head and have become guiding principles in my life and work. The first is to make sure you are living a life and not just living to work. And the second boils down to "don’t be afraid to make mistakes."
Are there any social issues that we as an industry should get more involved with?
SC: I’m a huge advocate for diversity and inclusion and holding space for everyone to show up as their authentic selves.
Anything you are passionate about outside of your career?
SC: I am still hugely passionate about theater. I was a theater kid growing up and was lucky enough to make it my career for a little bit, so it will always hold a special place in my heart. And I’m a big believer of making the arts more accessible to everybody. I wouldn’t be in the meeting and event industry if it weren’t for the arts.
