Anyone who is into the club scene is probably familiar with the concept of a “white party.” Hitting venues from Miami to New York City, the idea behind this sort of party is simple: Find a club, fill it with ultra-violet lights, make sure everyone wears white, and go nuts. But while this particular brand of rave has become a staple of the summer months, soon, the University of Massachusetts will be playing host to the biggest, most bleached-white event of the New Year, and its happening in the dead of winter.
Presented by NV Concepts, The Winter White Party is taking over the Mullins Center tonight and transforming it into the Valley’s biggest dance club. While it is well after Labor Day, the white party concept makes perfect sense at this time of year. As far as the eye can see, the state is blanketed in snow, and instead of bundling up to face the whiteness, partygoers can break down and celebrate it.
Genuine dance club atmosphere is the name of the game, and in that spirit, the Mullins floor will be completely transformed. Custom UV lighting, confetti cannons, and “snow machines,” will be brought in, turning a plain white event into a phosphorescent dance party. The event will feature DJs and artists across a variety of styles, including hip hop, top-40, electro and mash-up. With admission open to the public of all ages, the idea is to provide something for everyone to enjoy.
“We’ve definitely got some surprises,” said Richard Hutchinson, director of marketing at NV Concepts.
NVC, the sponsoring company, was founded by Hutchinson and Tim Bonito, two UMass graduates working out of Springfield, Mass. They began their business several years ago, adapting restaurants and bars into after-hours dance scenes. The company moved on to larger-scale event planning in clubs and dance halls, and has now gotten to bigger venues such as the Mullins Center.
“Our involvement [with the University] just began recently,” said Hutchinson, referring to their recent production with Wiz Khalifa which attracted over 5,000 attendees.
Headlining the Winter White Party is DJ Khaled, a disk jockey and record producer who has worked with nearly every big name in the hip hop industry. Khaled is coming off of last year’s release of his fourth studio album “Victory,” which featured the talents of Ludacris, Snoop Dog and Nas and spawned his hit single “All I Do Is Win.” The Miami-based performer is hitting the Mullins Center as part of an East Coast tour that will span the first part of 2011.
Joining him on stage will be Boston-based performers Adam Ramirez and DJ Bent, as well as the Pioneer Valley’s own DJ Construc. This Easthampton spinster plays a diverse club set, running the gamut from R&B to reggae, and in addition features some of his own signature mixes.
The Winter White Party will run from 9 p.m. until midnight tonight. Tickets are $20, and are still available for purchase from Ticketmaster. For fans of club dancing and black-light highlighters, this should prove to be a unique opportunity to get a taste of the big-city club scene without leaving Amherst.
Andrew Sheridan can be reached at [email protected]
