Magical Party Requirements – 2-hour party in a hall
Recipe for a great family show: food/drinks/snacks away until the break, balloons tied up; not on floor, and toys away, (no soft play toys or bouncy castles please!) make space for my show, the floor for children to sit, and chairs for the adults behind them.
In a small hall, I will set up at the opposite end to the kitchen. In a large hall, I will set up in a corner so as not to have children on either side of me when entertaining.
For a two-hour party, please serve food to children and adults halfway at e.g. 3-5pm party: food at 4:00 pm. Please don’t put bowls of snacks; crisps/biscuits out even if “it’s for the adults” as children will go back and forth getting them and eating and will lose interest in the entertainment.
At the end of the first half, around 55 minutes in, when you see me start the dancing part, you will know that there is five minutes until the food break.
Bring out the birthday cake to sing happy birthday in the food break at 20 minutes into it eg 3-5 pm party; at 4.20 pm. I have a lovely happy birthday song/music. Let me know one minute before you bring it out. I have a CAKE TIME song I play so that you know that it is time 🙂
Place the cake away from the performance area. The cake is best not served to eat in the food break as this will cut short the show. Best to cut it to serve at the end of the party or to take it home in the party bags. Sit the birthday child near to the area you are bringing the cake from so you don’t have many steps to walk with it. Make a space on the table in front of the birthday child to put the cake out i.e. move away plates, etc. Somebody stay with him/her so they don’t run off while you get the cake! Be careful not to leave the knife out on the children’s table. Or buy a non-sharp cake knife like this one.
I do not entertain the children while they eat as it is an impossible feat.
Ritchie Rosson’s Birthday Party Check List
- Ketchup – MOST FORGOTTEN ITEM!
- Birthday cake
- Birthday cake candles
- Matches and lighter (check it works). Best bring both just in case.
- Party Bags
- Scissors
- Bluetack (some venues do not allow tape on the walls)
- Sellotape
- Table cloths/paper (if needed).
- Child safe knife for cake
- Happy birthday banner/s
- Kettle (sometimes the venue’s water heater is hard to work). Keep it well out of reach of being grabbed or knocked over. Don’t put it on a table in the party area.
- Coffee/tea bags
- Milk
- Soya milk
- Sugar/sweetener
- Wine glasses
- Tea cups
- Helium canister if required
- Plates/cups/cutlery if required
- Bottle opener
- The birthday child 😉
I bring some of the smaller items such as a lighter in case you forget too, so ask me on the day if you forgot something.
Super Detailed Pro Children’s Party Tips
SEN Children
I love working with neurodiverse people. I have ADHD myself 🙂 If any children attending the party have special educational needs that mean they are likely to be very disruptive, their parents will need to be present with them at the party.
Some SEN children may find the noise of the party too loud and overwhelming. They may benefit from bringing ear protectors. I bring two sets of those myself to all parties.
Balloons Away Please
The secret to entertaining children is to have their full attention. One balloon flying around will take their attention. Please make sure all balloons are tied up on the walls. None on the floor or given to children, please. If a child does have one, please take it away 10 minutes before my start time. I cannot begin by being the one to take a child’s balloon away from them as their liking me is important to have a great party. If any get loose during the party please tie them up or put them out of the room. If they are under a table/in sight the kids will find them and get them. Best to tie them with string to fixtures. If you put individual balloons with sellotape they will all fall down during the party.
If the venue entrance is not so easy to find, put a few balloons up on the door to direct guests where to enter.
In a house party, put a “toilet” sign on the toilet door so people know which one it is and don’t open up all your bedrooms and cupboard doors trying to find it 😉
Blow balloons up to a round shape. If they look like a lightbulb you have blown them too much and they will pop very easily (sometimes randomly during the party or sometimes in a poor child’s face!). BANG! 
Invite Times
Two hours is perfect. Please invite the children for the times I am performing such as 3-5. If you invite them at 2.30 for a 3-5pm party, there will be chaos with them running around before I start. If you add on time after I finish, eg I finish at 5pm and the end time is 5.30, the party will also end in them running around and chaos. No worries if a few are late. Usually, a few are early and a few are late.
Set Up Time
In a hall, I recommend if possible, getting there an hour early to set out the chairs and tables, etc. If you only have half an hour, I recommend bringing a few family members and friends to help set up as you might be in a mega rush, and it will be stressful for you.
If you only have half an hour to set up, make your decorations such as balloons, very simple. Don’t bother with helium balloons or balloon letters, etc.
“Let’s bring toys/soft play for the toddlers to play with!”
Please don’t hire soft play, thinking the toddlers need something hiring for them. The older boys will throw it all over the place. I had a nightmare party once with soft play hired. 6-year-olds throwing bits of it all over the place and utter chaos!
Candles
If you buy something like a sparkling candle for the birthday cake, I recommend that you buy two as sometimes they do not light properly. Traditional candles are better as they are good fun for the birthday child to blow out and it always gets a big cheer.
Food
Pizza is the easiest food to serve and deal with. You can serve it to the children and the parents. Check for allergies/diets with parents. Avoid popcorn and rice. They get all over the floor and on everyone’s shoes. Very hard to clean up.
Deliveroo/Uber
Try not to use these delivery services as they are unreliable and sometimes cancel or are late when having to prepare such a big order for a party.
Drinks
If you want cold drinks for your guests such as beers and wine, be aware that some venues do not have fridges and in summer you might want to bring a bucket of ice. Put children’s names on water/juice bottles with name stickers.
Heating and Lights
Ask the venue how to turn off the heating as they often open up, crank up the heating then leave us all to boil! It will get way warmer when everyone arrives and kids run around. Lights make a lot of difference to the show. Make sure you find out where the lights are and how they work. I did a show once in semi-darkness to find only at the end of the party; switches that beautifully lit up the room.
Bunting BABY!
Bunting is an awesome way of decorating the room quickly. And you can use it year after year and share it with family and friends for their parties. Use it instead of putting up balloons or as well as.
Party Invitations: Vistaprint are great. Cheaper the earlier you order them.
Honeycomb Decorations like these look really stylish and are an easy alternative to balloons on the walls and can be used at parties again and again.
Balloon letters i.e. “Happy Birthday” with individual balloons for each letter. DON’T DO IT! They take at least an hour to blow up and often one of the letters pops or goes flat quickly after all that work putting them up. Better is a re-useable paper banner from a party shop with cardboard letters spelling Happy Birthday such as this one.
Balloon arches: I recommend hiring a professional for such a job or they can look messy and take ages to make. If you do attempt something like a balloon arch, give yourself plenty of time to get to the venue. I would recommend at least 90 minutes to do that. If you do get a company, make sure they are in early to do it. I’ve been to parties where guests are arriving and they still have a mess of balloons all over the floor.
If you have big helium balloons on a string with a weight, don’t let the children play with them, as quickly they will break it off the weight and the balloon will be on the ceiling. Happens every time.
Some people put helium balloons tied to all the chairs. If you do this and a child unties one, stop them as every other child will follow and suddenly balloons will be flying everywhere. Happens every time. Have a full bottle of helium. You might need two bottles. I’ve often seen stressed-out dads having to drive off to find a party shop selling helium ten minutes before the party kick-off time.
Popping balloons
If you have balloons on the walls or elsewhere, it’s best to give them to children to take home at the end so you won’t have a car full of them driving home. If you do want to pop them, bring a pin and burst them outside at the knot end so it’s not so loud. Please do not stamp on the balloons in an echoey hall as it will give me and everyone else there a headache. The volume of popping a balloon is louder than a shotgun! If you are going to stamp them, please tell me so I can leave the room.
If you have not booked a venue yet; small/ medium halls or venues that do not have high ceilings are best for children’s parties. Avoid echoey halls. Find a venue/tips on venues here:
Large halls can be echoey and are hard to decorate with bunting, honeycomb decorations, balloons, etc.
Sitting
No cushions or chairs are required for children (and will block the space for games/dancing). If not, no worries as children are very happy to sit on the floor. Cushions and bean bags WILL be thrown around by children. Rugs will tend me slipped on when children go from sitting to standing to sometimes running away in exciting moments of the show. Small children climb on chairs, fall off them, and knock them over; much better sitting on the floor.
Toys/colouring books/ball pits/swords/noisemakers/fidget spinners/tablets and other distractions need to be put away. Other music/TVs need to be turned off.
I don’t recommend giving noisemaking toys in the party bags as they will drive the parents crackers at the end of the party and on the way home.
Surprise! Bad idea. Some people make Ritchie’s Magic Show a surprise for the birthday child. But the opposite is better. If you show the birthday child and siblings my photos and videos they will be familiar with me and happier to see me and less shy. The other children will also be less shy when they know me so feel free to share my video in parent’s Whatsapp groups and on social media. Read more here
Costumes with masks and capes, hats, etc. if given out to children to wear at the party, will end up on the floor five minutes later.
Piñata
Best not to bring. Young children hitting something with a big wooden stick? What could possibly go wrong?! Dangerous and chaotic. My blog on piñata. If you do want to bring Pinata, I am afraid that I cannot organise this and I ask please that you do it away from my stuff at the end of the party.
Face Painter
They are lovely at events but in a children’s birthday party with a party entertainer, less is more and it’s best to not get a face painter as it creates a big distraction away from the show with children queuing.
Tables
Some tables in venues can be grubby and are best to be covered. Consider bringing tablecloths or cover paper such as this one:
Professional Decoration
If you are having a team to come in to decorate, make sure that they know about the layout of the show to allow adequate space.
Did you read all the way to here!???!!!?! NO WAY! OMG.
We are going to have lots of fun!
Children’s Magician & Party Entertainer – Ritchie Rosson | Surrey, Kent & London 