PowerPoint Karaoke
Is this one of those situations where I let slip how humiliatingly out of touch I am by trying to introduce you to something that has already emerged, crested, appeared on Oprah and been mercilessly spoofed on Saturday Night Live?
SNL is still on the air, right?
Anyway, my Nottingham social group is hosting a PowerPoint Karaoke event next week, and I have to admit I had never heard of this executive/entertainment fusion before. But having been introduced to it, I would like to claim the word “executainment” as my own.
Basically, contestants have to stand up and improvise on a series of random PowerPoint slides, with points given for: 1) content provision, 2) presentation style and 3) chutzpah.
Apparently, this competitive sport was invented by the Germans (insert tired joke about conformity and humourlessness here) in 2006.
The first annual BattleDecks PowerPoint Karaoke challenge, sponsored by Imation, was held in 2007. The irony of an iconic corporate tool being subverted and then immediate co-opted by a corporate sponsor is sending my mind on a Klein bottle-shaped roller coaster ride but I guess that’s the new millennium for you. You can watch excerpts from the 2008 Challenge on Youtube.
Next up, Xtreme Excel Sport and MS Word Freestylin’.
