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To
How To Get The Most
From Your Children’s Party Performer
Sassi The Clown from Sassi Party
Performers (646-295-3777) says:
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Pick a children’s entertainer who
loves kids. You can often tell by the website pictures or voice
on the phone. I’m a mom and the personalized attention I
give when I’m clowning comes through. I know kids and love
kids and it shows. Don’t book an entertainer who is
“over it” and just doing it for the money.
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Book as far in advance as you can.
If you want a certain performer, book them early. They will
usually find you a comparable substitute if they are not available, but
if you have your heart set on someone particular; book sooner rather
than later, at least a month in advance.
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Have the entertainment come midway
through the party so that most of the kids are there. When face
painting is included in my clown show, (a standard package being face
painting, comedy magic show, and party games finishing off with a
balloon sculpture finale where I make a balloon sculpture for each kid)
I will face paint first as the kids arrive. This is a one on one
activity and by the time I’ve painted everybody, most of the
guests have arrived and I start my show and group activities.
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Announce on the invitation and to guests
you talk to that there will be special party entertainment. Get
everyone excited about it so it is a focus of the party (in addition to
the most important focus, the birthday child). Tell parents that
you would appreciate their participation in the entertainment.
Especially for toddler shows, there is a mommy and me element and the
show won’t work if the entertainer is expected to
“baby-sit” 20 toddlers running wild, while the adults
converse. Advise the adults to pay attention to the show if
it’s a magic show or storyteller or sing-a-long. Most
professional artists will bring a microphone and sound system, still
the biggest deterrent to a successful children’s show is loud
adult background chatter. The average children’s party
performer goes for between $150 and $600 dollars and you want to get
your money’s worth. Get support from your adult
friends and relatives who are attending your party.
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Feed the kids: A lot of times I
let the kids eat the pizza while I do my magic show. If they are
spacey and cranky from needing lunch, they won’t enjoy the
show. On the other hand, it’s best if the cake is cut after
the performer finishes the show because the sugar makes the kids too
hyper to focus. I sometimes walk around and do my balloon animals
simultaneously to the cake serving because both the balloons and the
sugar make the kids hyper. Most good performers will be flexible
and work with you to help your party run smoothly, although they are
entitled to charge extra if you keep them longer than fifteen minutes
past the time length agreed upon.
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Ask the booking agent to speak to the
entertainer before the party if you need reassurance on any
items. A lot of agents will be leery of this because they
don’t trust their performers not to steal the client. Any
good agent will have trustworthy performers and hook you up with your
performer after they receive your deposit. The agent should take
care of the bulk of the details, but the performer and client should be
able to speak a few days before the event to clarify any final details
like directions, specific expectations and technical issues if
needed.
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Be flexible. Performers are often
coming from another gig and should be expected to arrive within a
window of time. A professional performer will give you the full 2
hours even if he/she is 10 minutes late due to traffic.
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Different acts for different ages:
The prime age for a clown in my opinion is age four, although I
entertain from 0 to 100 all the time. Kids are sometimes afraid
of full white face clowns, so ask the agent if “soft
clowns” are available like the one on TV’s “Comfy
Couch”. For 1st birthday parties, though the
birthday child will not remember the entertainment, they often enjoy
costumed characters like Elmo especially if they watch “Sesame
Street.” I do a lot of first birthdays with my combination
clown Elmo show. (The combination clown/Dora show is a hit with
the three and four year olds.) The first hour is my standard
clown show which is mostly for ages 2 and up and then Elmo comes out
for the last half hour to dance and pose for Polaroid pictures with the
kids. I bring picture frames and the kids take them home as a
favor. Toddlers enjoy puppet shows and sing-a-longs. Ages 8
and up enjoy my comedy improvisation games party where we create
fairytales and movies together.
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For a different idea I offer yoga
parties through my company: Birthday magic with yoga movements,
games, storytelling, music and an art project for guests to take home
as a favor! Choose from these themes: A Day at the Circus,
Let’s Go to the Zoo, Pirate Adventure, I believe in Me, Hawaiian
Luau, Yoga Dance Party or I Am Unique! This super creative party option
covers ages four to twelve, ask for specifics for the best fit for your
party!
Sassi Party Performers
646-295-3777
Sassi Party Performers
Come to:
For tickets and info click the logo above.
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