SiŵoŶs, I. ;ϮϬϭϰͿ Hoǁ to SlaLJ a DragoŶ SloǁlLJ: ApplLJiŶg Sloǁ PriŶĐiples to EǀeŶt DesigŶ, iŶ ‘iĐhards, G., Marques, L. and Mein, K. (eds.) Event Design, Social perspectives and practices. Routledge, pp. 78- 91. Preview: http://books.google.nl/books?hl=en&lr=&id=g_fDBAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PT110&ots=4HH0mmlyt9& sig=1rxr3op8zjoSLIFMZrOLrFIFRdU#v=onepage&q&f=false Book: http://www.routledge.com/books/details/9780415704649/ ________________________________________________________ Pre-print version How to Slay a Dragon Slowly: Applying Slow Principles to Event Design Ilja Simons Academy for Leisure, NHTV, Breda, the Netherlands Key words: slow philosophy, Draaksteken Beesel, community event, event design Once upon a time there was a small village on the shores of the river Maas in the Netherlands. The village was called Beesel and it was definitely not an average village. In the water of the Maas, just below the surface, a dragon resided. Most of the time the beast was asleep and life in the village was almost normal. Although, when paying close attention, one could feel the presence of the dragon at all times. But once every 7 years, the dragon wakes up and enters the village, spitting fire and making the blood of the villagers boil. A fever comes over the village, and only the slaying of the dragon can stop this. (Verdonck 2012, adapted by author) Welcome to Beesel, the dragon village… Introduction Getz (2012) describes an event as a planned experience. This suggests that the organiser can design and create experiences to suit the needs of all stakeholders. However, events occur in different types and sorts as well as and in different contexts (Bowdin et al, 2010; Shone and Parry 2004). Berridge (2012: 8) introduces the possibility that these differently classified events, may elicit different edžperieŶĐes. This paper focuses on a specific type of event: the traditional community event. It is argued that the specific features of such an event, like community involvement, the need to balance tradition and change, and the link to place identity, have implications for event design.