How Extraordinary Entertainment Converted Sushi Lounge into a Creepy Carnival for Rymax
Rymax Marketing Services Inc.
Rymax Marketing Services, Inc. is a woman-owned, WBE-certified leader in loyalty marketing, delivering customized incentive solutions and brand-name rewards to corporate America. As a company that understands the power of motivation and recognition, Rymax holds its own team celebrations to the same high standard it sets for its clients.
Sushi Lounge is an upscale Asian fusion restaurant and lounge located in Totowa, New Jersey, known for its bold flavors, curated cocktails, and high-energy nightlife atmosphere. With both a vibrant indoor dining space and an expansive outdoor patio with tented areas, the venue offers a dynamic and flexible setting that can be transformed for large-scale private and corporate events.
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Executive Summary
For their annual Halloween company party, Rymax wanted to treat their team to an unforgettable, immersive experience. They chose the Sushi Lounge in Totowa, New Jersey, as the venue, but they needed a complete thematic overhaul to match their vision of a “Creepy Carnival.”
We stepped in to provide full event production, handling everything from spatial design and themed decor to talent booking and custom concessions. Through our deployment of elaborate red fabric swags, life-sized props, atmospheric lighting, and a curated lineup of specialty performers, we completely transformed the restaurant and its outdoor patio. The result was a seamlessly executed, highly engaging corporate celebration that left guests thoroughly entertained and completely immersed in the Halloween spirit.
Project Overview
Rymax is a premier corporate gifting and incentive marketing company. Because they specialize in rewarding employees and driving engagement for their clients, their internal team events are held to high standards. That bar is set by the major corporate brands they serve, including Fortune 500 clients. They understand the value of a memorable experience.
For their Halloween celebration, Rymax selected Sushi Lounge in Totowa, NJ. While the venue offers an upscale, modern dining atmosphere, it needed significant production support to become a full-scale Halloween attraction. The goal here was to reward the Rymax team with a high-energy, interactive party that felt entirely separate from a traditional corporate gathering.
Based in the DC/Maryland area, Extraordinary Entertainment regularly serves corporate clients across New Jersey and the New York metro area.
The Challenge
Converting an active, contemporary restaurant into a spooky, carnival-themed environment presents several distinct challenges. Namely, we needed to fundamentally alter the look and feel of the space without disrupting the venue’s core infrastructure.
The primary challenges for this event included:
- Thematic Transformation: We had to mask the Sushi Lounge’s modern aesthetic and build a cohesive “Creepy Carnival” atmosphere across both indoor dining areas and outdoor patio tents.
- Space Utilization: The design had to accommodate large-scale props, arcade games, and roaming talent while still allowing enough room for guests to mingle comfortably and access food stations.
- Talent and Entertainment Coordination: Booking and managing a diverse lineup of specialty performers required precise timing and dedicated performance zones within a crowded footprint.
- Corporate Appropriateness: The theme needed to be genuinely spooky and immersive, but still appropriate and enjoyable for a corporate team-building environment.
The Solution
To deliver on Rymax’s vision, our team took a comprehensive approach to full event production. We managed every technical and creative element, going the extra mile to make sure that the “Creepy Carnival” theme was apparent the moment guests arrived.
Our full-scale deployment included:
- Themed Decor and Spatial Design: We completely redressed the venue’s interior and exterior tents. We installed sweeping red fabric swags across the ceilings to mimic a circus tent and placed high-quality, life-sized props throughout the space to create distinct visual focal points.
- Atmospheric Lighting: We deployed a custom lighting package across the patio and tents. By using moody, dynamic uplighting and textured projections, we instantly changed the ambiance from a bright restaurant to a shadowy, mysterious carnival ground.
- Curated Talent Booking: To bring the carnival to life, we booked and managed a diverse roster of specialty entertainers. Guests interacted with professional jugglers, had their fortunes told by tarot readers, and watched mesmerizing contortionists perform throughout the evening.
- Interactive Games and Concessions: We set up a series of interactive arcade games to keep the energy high and encourage friendly competition among coworkers. To tie the food into the theme, we designed custom concessions, including a visually striking, branded donut wall that served as both a treat and a popular photo backdrop.
Results
The “Creepy Carnival” activation successfully met Rymax’s high standards for employee engagement and event design. The production yielded several fantastic outcomes:
- Complete Venue Transformation: The combination of fabric swags, professional lighting, and life-sized props completely disguised the everyday look of the venue. Guests felt like they had stepped into a different world entirely.
- High Employee Engagement: The interactive elements, from the arcade games to the roaming tarot readers, guaranteed that attendees were actively participating in the event, rather than just milling around.
- Seamless Event Flow: Because we took the time to expertly map out performance zones and concession areas, such as the donut wall, we managed crowd flow effectively. Guests could easily move between the indoor spaces and the outdoor tents.
- Stress-Free Execution for the Client: Because we handled the full scope of production, decor, and talent booking, the Rymax planning committee was able to actually enjoy the party alongside their colleagues.
Takeaways
The Rymax Halloween party demonstrates the powerful impact of full-scale event production. When you combine thoughtful atmospheric design with interactive entertainment, you can convert any standard venue into an unforgettable destination.
In closely managing the lighting, decor, talent, and physical layout, we brought the “Creepy Carnival” to life safely and effectively. This event proves that with the right production strategy and a full-service production partner like Extraordinary Entertainment, corporate parties can break out of the standard mold to become truly immersive, morale-boosting experiences.
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