Watch the threshold moment.

technique — attributed to David Landgraf

Always watch the entrance. If the entry lands, the night has a spine. If it doesn't, the rest of the evening becomes recovery. Landgraf positions himself near the door at the start of every event he produces — not to greet, but to read whether the opening has done its work.

A discipline from inside Blackstone, Goldman Sachs, and Barclays gatherings, applied recently at the Junglekeepers gala at Jazz at Lincoln Center.

arrival, threshold, first-impression, staging, room-reading