Dance club party

THE PARTY SCRIPT

Act 1, Scene 1

We like to think of your party as a production.  If your party is successful, your guests will be transported into your theme (and you may even get some applause at the end if parents stick around). So, if the party is a production, this is the script.

Scene 1: Upon arrival guests are escorted to the meet and greet area where they can mingle with other guests. A family room is a suitable venue. There is no access to the dance club room at this point. Guests are offered various activities which will keep them busy while they wait for all guests to arrive, and will give everyone a chance to get acclimated. For guests either done with activities or not interested in them, I recommend a TV showing pictures of the group, or perhaps age-appropriate music videos (this will ensure no one goes running off to the dance area).

Suggested activities:

Face painting: no need to hire a professional. Buy a decent kit and limit the options to simple designs

Tattoo stickers: always a crowd pleaser for the younger crowd

Jewelry making: foam with widgets are an easy party project

Nail painting: but only if you have time for the nails to dry

Colored hair spray: best done in a bathroom

Scene 2: When everyone has arrived and had a chance to do an activity, it is time for the warm up.  At this point everyone is lead to the dance room and told they are going to a place to warm up for the “Dance Club”, and that there will be some warm up dances, games, and chances to win prizes. This will grab their attention.

You arrive in the warm up room which is your dance club, only it is fully lit and not all of the decorations are up. The atmosphere is fun, but with the lights on, not awe inspiring (remember this is intentional).

You now lead the kids in some fun warm up dances.  The chicken dance, hokey pokey, and freeze dance are all good choices.  We recommend that during the freeze dance, you tell them what to pose as various things (eg. super hero, High School Musical character, animal, etc.) and hand out prizes for the best poses. By the end of the dance, everyone should have a prize. Disco ball necklaces are a great option.

Finally, the announcement comes that everyone did well, and it is time to go to the dance club.  They are excited because, although the warm up was fun, in this age of Miley Cyrus, High School Musical, and American Idol, they will be wondering if this is ever going to turn into a real dance party.

Scene 3: This is the critical moment of the party that we call the transition. If you pull this off, you will have created the wow factor. Two things happen: 1) the kids are lead well away from the dance room where they are told that the club requires a ticket and a stamp for entry.  After parading around the house a bit, they eventually come to a ticket agent who gives each child a ticket and a stamp or pen mark on the hand which can be read with a blacklight.

At the same time, in the dance room is being transformed into the Dance Club. A sign is put up at the entrance, an extra metallic curtain is placed in the doorway to the club, the lights are turned down, blacklights are turned on, a spinning disco light is revealed, fog starts to fill the room, and music begins to play: All of this happens in the course of 2-3 minutes and the room is transformed.

Scene 4: The children are led to the dance club where their stamps are checked and they are admitted one by one (enjoy the reactions as they enter – its priceless). You can now kick back a bit, and let the children dance to their hearts delight and enjoy the club.  When the timing seems right, turn the music down and funnel the children up for some food and cake. After the meal, the guests can be allowed back to the dance club where they can dance until it is time to leave.

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