Pete Dunklee Retiring as VP of Entertainment
- Thread starter Zachary
- Start date
Happy for him, sad for the park - whoever they hire to replace him might replace Celtic Fyre with Battle in the Boglands, a new show where Ireland gets attacked by giant mutant crabs
The park basically relies on Celtic Fyre as their main park entertainment option. Plus, with the following Celtic Fyre has, them removing that show would probably make the last ever performance of it in the RPT.
That was just my sarcastic way of saying that I'm worried that SWPE may use his retirement as an opportunity to slash entertainment budget/quality the same way they have everything else.
Yeah I agree I wonder if the current state of things has made Pete decide to retire.It wouldn't help given the chain's unwilliness to invest a dime in ENT.
Sounds cool. Never went to that old dance show but I would go to that. It’s a little narcissistic to be sad about someone retiring. Everything isn’t about you
My first reaction reading this news yesterday was that his retirement was his own choice given the current state of affairs. If that's true in this case, he wouldn't be the only Sr. Leader at the park who recently retired in frustration. Since Covid as some of you may know there have been numerous leaders who have left either on their own or forced out resulting in a ton of institutional knowledge of the park and it's inner workings going by the wayside. I am talking Culinary, Park Operations, Landscaping/Grounds, and now Entertainment. The net impact I think of the culinary example in particular has been quite profound.
I will say this, he did a much better job than Scott whats-his-name ever did. Best of luck to him and whatever he does in the future.
Scott did some really decent stuff for the park Scrooge No More for example but he seemed to have a much more flashy and flamboyant vision then what fit BGW I would really be curious to see how he worked at a place that was more in sync with his style.
Scott was very hit or miss. He aimed so high that it was easy for things to fall flat given the setting, but when it worked, it worked extremely well. Scrooge No More is a great example, that production is honestly incredible.
My understanding is that the issues with Scott had as much to do with his management decisions as with his taste level. Reportedly, he was abusive to the talent and burned through his and everyone else’s budgets with little to no return on investment.
Additionally, my observation was that he didn’t appreciate the haunt aspects of HOS, and sought to convert it into a hyper-sexual, alcohol-soaked party. I’m not advocating for or against that change, but it absolutely took the event in a very different direction.
Additionally, my observation was that he didn’t appreciate the haunt aspects of HOS, and sought to convert it into a hyper-sexual, alcohol-soaked party. I’m not advocating for or against that change, but it absolutely took the event in a very different direction.
This is what I've always heard from people. Scott just spent money like he had no budget.