Attractions Expert Q&A: Roberta Perry, one of the first members of the Themed Entertainment Association, is recognized as a TEA Master

As one of the first members of the Themed Entertainment Association (TEA), Roberta Perry served as an early president and was one of the founders of the prestigious THEA awards, she’s now recognized as a TEA Master.

What theme park souvenir might we be surprised to find on your shelf? What’s the story behind it?

I have a little toy shark on my desk that I got at the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach.

I worked there when I was with Edwards Technologies. We also did a 4D theater for them, as well as a smaller 3D theater. I absolutely love that aquarium. It’s just the best, and I take friends and clients there. A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, there was a book called Swim with the Sharks without Being Eaten Alive by Harvey McKay. It was a New York Times bestseller and was recommended to me by my mentor.

When I started many years ago, I really wanted to learn how to do business better, so I read that book, and one of the things the book said was to know your clients. Know everything about them because the more you know, the more you can be helpful. There were 64 questions that you should ask. And I loved that.

So, I keep my little shark on my desk to remind me when I’m building relationships that it’s not just about the business side; it’s also about the personal side. So, my shark reminds me to dive deeper with people to build those relationships. I look at it every morning when I get set up in my office.

What theme park have you always wanted to visit but have never been to? 

The ones in Europe. Every time I had a trip planned to Europe, I would arrive in London, and then I wouldn’t go any further. I want to visit all of them—Europa Park, Tivoli Gardens, Efteling, Futuroscope—you name it. I always wanted to do a theme park tour in Europe, so that’s on my bucket list. One of my friends did that with his children and had a great time, just traveling from theme park to theme park.

I’ve sat on the THEA committee, and I would see all these amazing European attractions, and the people I met at the THEA gala were just the nicest people. I always said it was on my bucket list, and it’s been there for many years—to take a week and just do theme park hopping. One of these days, I’m just going to forget everything and go.

Was there a theme park or attraction that made you want to be in this industry, and how did it inspire you?

 No, I fell into this industry.

I was born and raised in a small town south of Seattle, Washington. It wasn’t even a town then—it was called Federal Way. And my parents thought they should take the kids on a little vacation, so we drove down to California to visit my cousins who lived at the beach.

I was 16 and excited because of the Beach Boys and all that. Then my parents decided it would be good for us to go to Disneyland. My brother, who is two years younger than me, was in love with Disneyland. He could not stop running around and going on all the rides. But I sat on one of the big fountains, thinking, what am I doing here? There are no cute boys—there’s nothing to do! Many years later, I met Buzz Price and Marty Sklar, and I fell in love with the industry. I’d come out of the nightclub and hospitality business, and when I met those gentlemen, I thought, wow, I want to work in their industry!

Brian Edwards and I founded Edwards Technologies, and we did extensive work in the hospitality industry. One day, I decided to go to Universal Studios, never thinking we’d have the chance to work with them. But I talked my way in, and we ended up working with them on their first Orlando project. During that time, Monty Lunde decided to start the TEA, and I went to the forming meeting at the Burbank Airport Hilton. He had 30 companies in the room. I came on behalf of Edwards Technologies and sat there thinking, wow, I love this industry. These people are creative. They’re awesome, and they’re nice.

So, it wasn’t a theme park that convinced me; it was the people. When I met that group of people, I wanted to be in this industry. Then, from that meeting, I was invited to a Ryman Arts event, and that’s when I got to meet Buzz.

I helped start the THEA committee, and that’s when I really got to know Marty and Buzz. My favorite memory is from when I was president of the Themed Entertainment Association; it was my honor to present Marty Sklar with his Lifetime Achievement Award. We were at the Beverly Hills Hotel, and I remember standing on that stage, bringing Marty out, and then all of the Disney characters came on stage to surround him. I was like a little kid in a candy store because it became real to me at that moment.

And then, over the years, I would buy Marty’s books. I bought a lot of his books, like stacks of his books. And then I’d call him and say, “I just bought another stack of your books, and I would love to have them signed.” Marty lives about 10 minutes from me up on Mulholland. And he would say, “Roberta, come up for coffee.” So I would jump in my car with my bag of books, go to Marty’s house, and sit down with him over a cup of coffee, and he’d sign the books. That was priceless. And Buzz was the same way. I feel so honored to have known those gentlemen and to have learned from them.

What was your favorite ride or attraction as a child, and why?

I grew up in a small town, so there were no rides or attractions at all. On our birthdays, we could choose where we wanted to go for dinner, and I happened to love the Black Angus restaurant up in Tacoma, Washington, so my parents would take us there. When I had the opportunity to work for Stuart Anderson’s Black Angus restaurant as a secretary to the entertainment director, I jumped at it because this was my favorite restaurant, and hospitality led me to themed entertainment.

When I went to Disneyland, what I did love was Main Street. Growing up, I had never seen that kind of place at all. To walk down Main Street and see the ice cream shop and the Coca-Cola Store (Refreshment Corner) and all the people and then the parade—I loved Main Street.

One of the things I enjoyed about the TEA was when we would go to Disneyland and take tours to see all the windows on Main Street dedicated to the Imagineers. And every once in a while, I would be invited when somebody was getting their window on Main Street.

Was there a ride, attraction, or character that frightened you as a child?

There actually was because we had the Puyallup Fair in Puyallup, Washington. It was a big fair, with all these rides, and there was one ride I went on that I’ll never forget. I was probably 15 or 16, and I visited the fair with my girlfriends. We went on this ride where we got in, and it started spinning around so fast that you wanted to throw up. I knew I couldn’t throw up, but I thought I was still going to look awful when I got off that thing.

I hated it because I came out feeling dizzy, and I figured I looked terrible. My friends and I just looked at each other, and the only thing we could do was laugh and say, “Well, that’s a ride we’re not doing again.”

What was the oddest or coolest job you’ve had in your career?

I’ve always loved every job I’ve taken on, from hospitality and themed entertainment to starting my own company.

The most fun, and maybe oddest, was when I was at Fox Studios. I got a call from the CEO of Australia Fox, who said, “Roberta, Baz Luhrmann’s team needs to go visit Halloween horror events. Can you take them around the United States and introduce them to Halloween shows? We don’t do that down here.” And I said, “Absolutely.”  So the president brought CM, Baz’s award-winning wife Catherine Martin, and a team over, and we literally went around touring all the Halloween events around the United States in one week.

I called Cedar Fair because they do some amazing stuff. And, of course, Universal has Halloween Horror Nights. And then Knott’s Berry Farm—so those were the three main ones. And then there were a couple of little Halloween horror fairs, so we would stop at those. But the main ones were Knott’s Berry Farm, Universal, and then over to Cedar Fair. We had a great time.

What ride or attraction do you think everyone needs to experience, and why?

My favorite still to this day is The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man. When I went on Spider-Man the first time, I was blown away, and I had to go back again. I had to get back in line, whatever it took to go on that ride again.

When people ask me about it, I still love that attraction. Not that I was a Spider-Man fan (although I appreciated the character and the story), but experiencing that kind of immersion, which I had never experienced before, will live with me forever. And I still think it’s one of the best attractions out there.

If you were tasked with creating a new theme park food – what would it be?

One of the things I really dislike about theme park food is that it’s greasy, and I’m dirty afterward. So I always thought, why can’t I have something in a bottle for my little walk around that is tasty and fun? I would have s’mores in a bottle that I could take with me—maybe a s’mores milkshake—I like that idea.

You’re a walk-around character for a day; who do you choose?

I would be Sonic the Hedgehog. I have absolutely fallen in love with that character, and I’ve watched what happens in our lounge at IAAPA.

SEGA has a lounge there, and we brought in Sonic for two days. He attracted both little kids and big kids—the bottom line was that you just needed to be a 10-year-old. There’s just something about that blue furry Sonic that is so loving. So, if I could be a walk-around character, I’d be Sonic because then I could attract everyone from 6 years old to 100. My friends in this industry and I are all 10 years old at heart.

What types of attractions would you like to see more of and why?

I’d like to see more immersive theater. I’m seeing a lot of it coming out of London, and that is exciting, like Secret Cinema. And Layered Reality—I know they’re going to do an Elvis event that opens next month.

The more I see immersive theater, the more I like it. When I first moved to LA in 1984, there was an immersive theater in Hollywood, and I had never experienced that before. You would walk in and pick an actor, and then you followed that actor through many rooms. The next time you go, you could choose a different actor and a different story line to follow through the rooms with that actor.

I’ve always said we really need to reinvent that. And now I’m seeing all this immersive theater emerging from Europe, especially the UK, and I’m thinking, ‘”Wow, this is great.” I was recently in Las Vegas to experience the John Wick experience produced by Lionsgate and Egan Productions. It’s an experience where you walk through the rooms—it’s excellent, and I really enjoyed it.

I’ve been on so many roller coasters. I’ve done every kind of attraction because that’s what we do when we’re in this industry. But now it’s an opportunity with immersive theater to really dive deep into a story line. War of the Worlds is in the UK, created by Layered Reality, and they have a couple of others.

Immersive theaters give me the opportunity to bring my friends so we can experience the various chapters or rooms together. It helps to bond that friendship because then we can go back to the bar afterward and all have a drink and share our experiences. It’s one of the problems I see out there with VR, which is an individualistic opportunity. When you come out of it, there’s no way to really share your experience because you weren’t part of their experience; they weren’t part of yours.

That’s why immersive theater really helps everyone bond. My preference is to see more family-immersive theater so families can go in as a unit, including extended family, and become more bonded as they progress from chapter to chapter and room to room.

In immersive theaters, there are live actors. And, of course, because they’re live actors, it changes. The script might stay the same, but one day, that live actor might just shift an emphasis a little bit that you didn’t expect.

I went through John Wick three times while I was in Vegas. And every time was slightly different because I noticed something changed. I paid attention, and my friends had a different experience that I could interact with. We just had a great time.

Was there any challenge or surprise in your career?

In the hospitality industry, we had one surprise after another, especially in the nightclub business. And for all the right reasons. We had drug challenges because when Ecstasy hit, it was a devastating time for nightclubs. And when Mothers Against Drunk Driving hit, we celebrated that. We celebrated that they came together and helped the industry figure out ways to offer more food products, implement safety measures, and prevent people from over-imbibing. So there were those challenges then.

In the themed entertainment world, we have our own challenges—right now, we’re facing the challenge of pricing. Even for me, taking two or three of my rent-a-kids to a theme park is very expensive. That’s why I love what Universal Studios is doing. I don’t live too far from Universal, and they just did the Fan Fest, which allowed me to take a friend with me at a very reasonable price to experience the park in a whole different way. And now they’re offering another one, with different price points, to provide the same Universal experience without taking out a loan—that’s the big challenge right now.

And you have to buy something. There’s no way you can get through a day at the park without buying something. You’ve got food, and then you’ve got to get the T-shirt or the souvenir. I mean, that’s just a given.

Friends I’ve talked to who are not in the industry say that they have to find other things to do because they just can’t afford to go to parks anymore. It’s all very expensive. That’s why we find ways to stay at home and buy a big-screen television. I believe it’s a challenge for the middle class right now.

Even going to immersive theaters. I looked at the costs in Las Vegas, and I saw they’ve got a base price and then VIP prices that go up from there. And if you’ve got a party of four or a family, it becomes a question of how do I spend my entertainment dollars?

Can you talk about what you are working on these days?

I am working for Videlio-HMS, and we’ve got some projects there, but those are under an NDA. They just opened the two lands at Epic Universe that I couldn’t talk about before it opened. Now I can at least talk about those two—Super Nintendo World and How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk. And AOA has some exciting projects again under an NDA.

I’m also working with SEGA on some great projects. This is the first time they’ve been in the location-based entertainment marketplace in the United States—a lot of Sonic the Hedgehog. We’re developing projects here, as well as in Europe, Japan, and South America. I’ve only been as far south as Columbia, and I’ll get to go further into South America, so I’m looking forward to that

You are going to your favorite theme park; which industry people (dead or alive) are you taking with you?

Oh, that’s a given. I would love to take Marty Sklar and say, “Marty, may I spend a day with you at Disneyland?” Just to have Marty’s viewpoint and walk around a theme park with him, whether it was Disneyland or on that European trip. So when we take a European trip, I’ll take Marty with me. We would have to have a session with Marty telling us stories while we sat around the campfire in Frontierland.

This industry is amazing because of the people. The people are so awesome and so creative. They operate based on what is good and what is right for the customer, the guest. How do we treat the guest? Well, we give the guests what the guests expect and maybe don’t quite always expect.