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Heimlich meeting machines: Deus ex machina and friends
Around 400 B.C. Hellenic dramatists came up with a really cool concept: If a hero got in trouble, a creaking crane would lower a god down onto the stage to bail him out. Hence: deus ex machina, or "god out of the machine.".
Meeting producers have been using similar Dionysian devices for 50 years to rescue speakers, provide humor, cushion tech failures, and beef-up weak presentations. Here are some contraptions you may find useful. And you won't need a cable connection, a Mac, or even a mouse..
1. The electro-mechanical robot: Larger than life mobile robots are controlled by off-stage operators who also provide real-time robot voices. Skilled at improvisation these ingenious operators have saved more than one meeting that got in trouble (including some of mine).
Click here for a sample robot script
 LAS VEGAS--Every 15 minutes, two QRIO (pronounced "Curio") humanoid robots wowed hundreds of CES attendees in a packed Sony auditorium adjacent to the expansive Sony product demonstration room with a synchronized dance and short talk about their parent company. And for those five minutes or so, the two humanoid robots made people dream of a future where home helper robots could cook, clean and even entertain. Ahh, but that future may still be a ways off.
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,4149,1430421,00.asp
2. The puppet: On-screen, or on-stage, puppets can work with your speakers; often dealing diplomatically with subjects you would rather avoid.
3. The audience "plant": Developed in the 1890's, during vaudeville comedy routines, an actor – sittting in the audience – pops up on cue to question and/or heckle speakers. A useful way to expand content and/or introduce controversial material.
4. The organizer: Introduced as "A world renowned meeting coordinator..." this bewildered actor wanders on-stage, lugging a travel-stickered suitcase, while trying to figure out what meeting he's at. He often makes outrageous mistakes, e.g. the wrong products and speakers are introduced, graphics are upside down, etc. And, of course, each mistake requires immediate clarification.
5. The spirit ball: A large, translucent, plastic globe is placed on a pedestal; or lowered up and down by a thin wire. The intensity of colored bulbs, inside the globe, are modulated by the voice of an offstage announcer or sound track. This device is often introduced as "The Spirit of [company or product name]."Mounted on a stage-trolley, it can even follow speakers around.
6. The shadow silhouette: Project a head and shoulders silhouette on the screen as someone off stage (even one of your own people) provides the voice.
7. Mad Max the Meeting Machine: This rude Rube Goldberg contraption spits out blobs of paper and abusive audio advisories outlining absurd ideas whenever activated by a speaker. (And, sometimes, without being activated.) Could be done via PowerPoint.
8. Giant props: Big bottle? Mammoth pencil? Immense product? Huge inflatable? These can be fun, and great presentation background pieces. Take them to the cocktail party later for audience photo ops.
9. Masks: In Greek theater actors wore masks. This frozen physiognomy is made all the more fascinating by changes in voice and phrasing the mask cannot possibly reflect. (Not a bad idea for some meeting participants whose careers might benefit substantially from anonymity.)
10. Showdown: Derived from reality TV (Survivor, Big Brother, The Apprentice, et al) meeting planners are found around a table planning the meeting. As they discuss presentations, products, and policies the audience uses electronic keypads to vote "losers" out. Last one left gets to leave and play golf.
Coming up next: Creating Meeting Themes Many meetings seem to have names, not themes. This memo covers some possible solutions.
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