Making Magical Memories with A Touch of Magic ...

Making Magical Memories with A Touch of Magic Entertainment -- Helpful hints for parents!!

Congratulations on inviting the Twin Cities' favorite children's entertainers to your party! Here are some ways to make your party GREAT! (I know that no one likes to read the instruction manual, but you have paid good money to have us at your party, and if you follow these directions, we promise you'll get your money's worth! And since we offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee, this is important to us!)

1. Please give us clear directions to the location, and save a parking spot for us near the door, so that we have a quick and easy unload (and so that we're not dragging our case through mud or grass into your home).

2. Ideally, we would like for the children not to watch us get out of our car. (Spoils the magic...)

3. Make sure we have a current cell/home phone number. It will be used in the case of emergency or unforeseen delay.

4. Have all your camera gear ready. Have all phones, cameras, SD cards, and batteries charged so you won't miss any of those photo moments. We often bring a camera and like to get at least one photo with the birthday child/and or the whole group.

5. Get everyone together, before your entertainment enters. Timing is everything. If family members and friends are scattered around the house, you not only lose valuable time, but you miss out on the magic of a grand entrance! Unless you get a call that there's been a delay, 5 minutes prior to the arrival time is the best time to gather the kids together.

6. Where possible, give a trusted friend your camera, and tell them to take a LOT of pictures, even from the very entrance. Don't wait for the perfect moment, or they'll miss it while getting the camera ready. Giving someone else a camera frees you up to be the host. When it's time to sing Happy Birthday and blow out candles, stand behind your birthday child and be in the photos! (I promise you'll thank me in 10 years!)

7. A good itinerary for most 2 hour parties (without a meal) using one of our packages with a show is as follows (I'm using 2pm-4pm as an example, but this works during any 2 hour block). All times are approximate...

2:00pm 2:15pm 2:50pm

3:00pm

3:20pm

Guests arrive, put the presents aside Entertainment arrives & takes over We say "Okay Mom/Dad... It's THAT time!" (which is your cue to make sure the cake & candles are ready, but not lit yet.) We lead the children in Pied-Piper format to the table for cake, help sing Happy Birthday, make sure all the right photos are taken while the candles get blown out. While the children are eating cake, we either magically say goodbye, OR If you're having balloons or face painting, we serve each child one at a time. (But by having the cake to distract them, you don't have kids just waiting in line.) As the children are finishing cake (and taking turns with balloons/face painting), now is a great time to play a game, OR if you have a large party (15 or more kids), it's a good time to open presents.

If you're having a 3 hour party, or a party with a meal, we recommend that you feed the children the meal first, and then have your entertainment, and then proceed to cake after the entertainment, as noted above. (Giving children cake right after a meal is too much... Let us entertain them and work up an appetite through laughter!)

No matter what, however, don't open presents until the very end! Once the gifts are open, the party is over. (Plus, do you really want your birthday child to have to "share" all the brand new presents that s/he hasn't even had a chance to play with yet?)

8. Timing... Our parties are scheduled back to back. We have allotted enough time for your party based on the information you gave us when you booked the party, and assuming that you have adhered to the items in our contract. If the size of your group changes and more time is needed, OR if you or your guests are running late, and more time is needed, or if you change the timing of the event in any way, please pay your entertainer directly for the extra time, as noted on the contract. (And we'll do our best to accommodate everyone, without being late to our next event.)

9. Utilizing your friends... When it's time for balloons and face painting, here's a chance to let your friends help you. Having an adult volunteer to make sure that all faces are clean before they get face painted, will ensure that no extra time is needed for the entertainment. Likewise, we always request to have 1 child "on deck", ready to get a balloon or face painted. We don't want kids standing in line at the party, but if we don't have a child in queue, then we might run out of time.

10. If you're having one of our shows, create an environment so that everyone can see & hear:

? Place a table (no smaller than a card-table) at one end of the room. We'll call that the "stage" ? Plan to have the children seated on the floor, three feet in front of the table. (If you have enough furniture, they

can sit on furniture. If you don't have enough, then plan for all kids to sit on the floor... They do it at school daily!) ? All of our shows are performed indoors (even if you're having an outdoor party), so you don't have to worry about

wind, sun, or your next door neighbor mowing his lawn in the middle of the show. ? If adults will be staying at your party, please ask them not to talk during the show, unless they are on a completely

different level of the house. Of course, we would love it if your adult guests would stay and enjoy the show as well.

11. If you're having one of our background packages without a show, please make sure that the children have something else to do, so that you don't have children waiting in line at your party. Play games, open presents, eat, do crafts, etc.

12. Video... Our work is proprietary and copyrighted, so you may not record our performance in its entirety. However, there are moments and memories we want you to capture... Please come right next to us (on "stage") and record your children laughing, calling out and having a good time. In 10 years, this is the video you'll cherish. I promise. When your child is invited to do magic, please record and photograph as much as you like!

13. A word about Little nippers and fear...It is not uncommon for some young children to be hesitant around animated strangers like us. We are very sensitive to these youngsters. For this reason, we request that you advocate for any child who does NOT want to come close, but keep her/him in the room. Please don't use the S-word. (That's "scared" or "scary"). But do let us work our magic from a distance. We will likely address the child by name and let her/him know that it's okay to stay far away. (Once you give a child permission to be scared, it gives her/him the freedom not to be.). And, our experience is that once we've put the child back in control, more than 90% of the time, the child will come around. Most of the time in this same visit. Other times, it won't show up until the next animated character.

14. Tips... Yes, we accept and appreciate gratuities. If you would like to tip your entertainer, please be discreet. It spoils the magic to see someone offering a children's entertainer cash!

15. Food... Some of the best food we've ever eaten has come from the amazing parties we attend. Because our schedule is tight, please don't be offended if we don't stay to eat with your family and friends. If, however, you're willing to let us take food for the road, we would graciously accept!

16. Babies & Toddlers... We have worked with you to recommend the perfect package for your group. It is possible that there are kids outside of the target age range for your party (such as siblings of guests or younger cousins). If you're having balloons or face painting at your party, please remind the parents of the toddlers that we strictly observe the "no choking hazards for babies & toddlers" rule and will not be offering a balloon to those youngsters (or their parents). Likewise, if you're having Face Painting, we will only paint on willing children, ages 2 & up.

17. Spread the word! We love what we do, and over 70% of our bookings come from repeat customers and referrals. We would appreciate it if you would make sure that all the kids at the party go home with one of our cards. Also, we love being tagged on social media (along with a positive review, of course).

?Copyright, 2016, A Touch of Magic, Inc. May not be reprinted without permission. . 651-748-9442

 ................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download