Emazdad has been entertaining children for over 15 years, and now performs at over 300 children’s parties each year. He’s put all his experience into producing these simple tips to help you avoid turning the joyous occasion of your Childs birthday into the nightmare from hell.

INDEX

Emazdad or The Venue which comes first?   What's the best time to hold a children's Party

The Entertainer    The Venue    The Guests   The Presents 

 Adults at the Party   Pick up time  Toddlers & Babies   Who’s Who?

   Toys, Balloons and Noise makers    Food And Drink    Birthday Cakes

Make sure you enjoy the party as well

Your child is only this age once, and you want to enjoy watching them enjoy their party. By following these tips and eliminating all the hassles and extra work, it will ensure that you'll be able to sit and watch the show, and enjoy watching the children playing the games in as stress free a frame of mind as possible, if you're really keen you can even join in the party dances.

Emazdad or the Venue which comes first?

It's a problem that hits a lot of people, they book the hall only to find that Emazdad's booked, They book Emazdad and can't get the hall. So which should you book first? The answers simple,

There's more than one venue, but there is only one Emazdad

If you definitely want Emazdad then it's important you phone him first, and don't leave it too late, He gets booked very early. The earlier you phone him the more chance you have of getting the actual date/time you want. But be prepared to be flexible with the date/time if he's already booked for the slot you want.

You can never be too early to book Emazdad, but it's so easy to be too late

If you've planned far enough ahead you'll also have more chance of getting the venue you want, however if you can't get the venue you want at least Emazdad can advise you on another venue near you.

My VENUE INDEX lists suitable venues in and around Plymouth, Devon and Cornwall. It's split into Towns and Areas to make it as easy as possible to find a venue, there's even a section for Wedding Venues.

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What's the best time to hold a children's party?

A lot of people try to arrange their party from 2pm to 4pm, it seems like a nice time for a party, however you'll struggle to get a good entertainer for that time slot. Good entertainers like Emazdad do more than one party a day on weekends and a 2pm to 4pm  party blocks the day up and makes it difficult to fit a party either side..

Emazdad usually offers 2 time slots, 11am to 1pm and any time after 3pm, The early slot is best for younger parties for 4 & 5 year olds, for older children either slot is OK.

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Adults at the Party

If you want the children to have more fun get the Mums to dump and run!

The other parents are welcome to watch the show, (and join in the Party Dances) they will enjoy it,  however you want your Childs party to be the best ever, and in my experience to achieve this it’s best not to encourage the parents to stay at the party, a drop off and go policy is always best.

If the parents stay it leads to a whole host of additional problems, and extra work for you:-

1/ Some Adults that stay won't want to watch and enjoy the show, they'd rather chat.

Parental Chatter is the number one problem entertainers encounter, so to stop these talkers spoiling the party have a separate room available for them to use,  they can chat away to their hearts content and not ruin the show for everyone around them.

2/ Children whose parents stay often wont join in the party.

The next time you go to a party watch how many kids don't join in, they'll all have something in common, a parent has stayed with them.

Even if they're not usually shy they'll stand by Mum or Dad and it can take the entertainer quite a while to entice them away from their parents side. Some kids will never join in the fun and spend the whole party next to their parent.

If the parents go within 5 minutes these kids will normally join in with their friends and have lots of fun.

3/ Parents will take up space in the party room, and you'll have the additional work of being hostess and supplying them with tea and coffee.

You'll then miss out on a lot of the fun, and may even miss your child's moment of stardom when they perform with Emazdad.

4/ They may bring extra uninvited guests in the form of siblings of an invited child,

They have to come because Mum's staying, this is a bit cheeky as they haven't been invited and you'll feel obligated to feed them and give them a party bag.

Remember these kids may also be far too young for the party room, and if not kept on Mum's lap may spoil the party.

Pick up time

Mums arriving to pick up their children can cause a big distraction and a lot of noise if they start to chat. To avoid this it's a great idea to ask the mums returning  not to enter the party room until after the party has finished. That way they can chat to their friends as much as they like, and the children get to enjoy the whole party undisturbed.

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Toddlers and Babies

Emazdads parties are not suitable for children under 3 years old

Babies and Children under 3 are far young for the party, they don’t understand what’s happening, they're extremely disruptive, and are often frightened by the noise and excitement of the party.

Toddlers and babies  can also get hurt by the older excited kids at the party, therefore in the interest of health and Safety Emazdad will ask you to keep any toddlers on their parents lap for the duration of the Party. Also no prizes will be given to under 3's.

If they are allowed to wander around and play in the party room they can cause a big distraction, and their curiosity often causes them to get in the entertainers way which then spoils the show for everyone else. The entertainer may even have to stop the show while the toddler is retrieved.

Loose Toddlers and Babies in the party room are an entertainers nightmare, so the best advice I can give is that you limit the minimum age in the party room to 3 years old.

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The Entertainer

Not everyone can book Emazdad, so if you have to book another entertainer, it's very important that they have PUBLIC LIABILITY INSURANCE.

The Venue

You need to chose your venue carefully, your choice of venue can make the difference between a great party, and the party from Hell.

You want one that's not too big, a smaller hall is much better as it eliminates any extra un-needed run around space..

You want a hall that doesn't have a big echo, bad acoustics will spoil the  children's enjoyment of the show, and make it hard for the entertainer to control the volume of his PA.

Good parking is a must, you need to ensure the hall has at least parking spaces available for both you and the entertainer. The are a few very nice halls in Plymouth that Emazdad will not work in purely because there is no parking.

A Carpeted hall is better than a hard floor, 1, the carpet eliminates some of the echo that you get in a mainly empty hall, 2, boys can't launch themselves down a carpeted floor & 3, It's more comfortable for the children when they sit on the floor to watch the show.

For those of you who live in and around Plymouth, with the help of his friend Billy Wiz, Emazdad has put together an extensive list of suitable venues in his venue index, it's worthwhile checking it out before you book your venue as some venues are not suitable for parties.

Balloons prominently placed outside the venue and if necessary at the end of the road, will help both Emazdad and all the guests find the party. 

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The Guests

Try not to invite any more children than you can comfortably handle,  25-30 is the maximum Emazdad advises for a child's Birthday Party. 15-20 is the maximum recommended for 4-5 year olds as they can sometimes get a bit scared in larger crowds.

Try to avoid mixed age ranges

An 8 year old and a 4 year old have different needs and it's not fair on either age group as the older kids will try and dominate the party and spoil it for the youngsters, and the older kids may find anything you do for the youngsters too babyish. 

Don't feel pressured to invite know trouble makers

If you've been to a party with your child and seen a certain child run amok and spoil the event, or your child talks about a child in their class who's always causing trouble don't invite them to your party.

It's not worth it, you are paying good money to ensure your child has the best party ever and if you invite this child they will spoil the party for your child and their other friends.

Often if they're approached by the troublemakers Mum the Birthday Mum is too embarrassed to tell the her why her child isn't invited, so they invite them to keep the peace. If this is your problem just say "Oh I would have invited him / her but Emazdad said I could only have so many kids, and we're full."

I don't mind taking the blame, I want your child to have the best party ever, so I'd rather the troublemaker wasn't there.

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The Presents

If you let the birthday child open their presents before the party, they may decide that a certain present is much more interesting than the party. 

This is especially bad with boys, to avoid this and to help keep track of who gives what, and to avoid bits getting lost have a big bag or box handy to put the all the presents in. They can then be opened safely at home after the party.

Who’s Who?

It’s a good idea to put name stickers on the children so that both you and Emazdad know who they are.

It also makes the kids feel really special when Emazdad uses their name, especially if they have seen him before. "MUM! MUM! The magic man remembered my name!" is something I often hear after greeting my old friends at parties.

Emazdad will supply you with the name stickers

Please ensure they are written in big, bold capital letters using a black or blue marker pen so Emazdad can read them easily on a moving child from across the room.

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Toys, Balloons and Noise makers

Please do not distribute, toys, squeakers, whistles, Party Poppers or Balloons etc, before or during the party, It only takes one or two noisy restless characters to spoil the enjoyment of the majority, Save them for the party bags.

WARNING PARTY POPPERS ARE DANGEROUS!

I've seen a few children get hurt when a popper is set off in their face at the table. I'd recommend you don't have them at the party unless the children are supervised at all times when setting them off.

Please clear any toys away before the party and avoid covering the floor in loose balloons, The children will lose total interest in any organised entertainment if there are balloons laying around.

If any toddlers stay at the party, ask their parents not to give them balloons from the wall to play with, not only are balloons dangerous for toddlers and babies, ( They bite them, they burst and they can choke on the bits of balloon) But the resultant BANG will distract the other children from the show.

Food And Drink

If the children are allowed to have access to food and drink during the entertainment, it causes a big distraction, if one child gets up to get a drink they’ll all jump up to get one, and the show may have to stop until they come back.

You also run the risk of spillage and the children will not be able to shout or participate while clutching and eating cake, ice-cream or cola.

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The Party Food

Keep the food simple, If you want to do the old proper party table just try not to go overboard and weigh it down with a ton of party food, Children often don't eat much at parties, and I can guarantee you'll be taking 80% of it home at the end and Mum and Dad will be eating it for lunch for days.

The best way to avoid all the stress at Tea time is to make up individual box meals or plates. With a couple of Sandwiches, Crisps,  Sausage on sticks, Biscuits, Buns etc, basically Simple party food that all kids love and will eat.

The bonus with this method is not only is there very little waste, but instead of going to all the hassle of setting out tables and chairs, the kids can sit on the floor picnic style and eat. This is the real stress free method.

Another good tip is to put all the sandwiches and savoury stuff out first, then bring out the sweet sticky stuff after about 10 minutes. that way at least some of your sandwiches will get eaten.

Emazdad is trying to lose weight, after all he didn't get his manly figure eating carrots. His problem is not a matter of lack of 'WILL' power, it's more a lack of 'WONT' power. So Please don't offer Emazdad any party food. Thank you

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Drinks

Spillage is a 100% certainty at a party, no matter what you do at least one child will send their drink flying.

To avoid the mess use cartons with straws, or better yet the pop-up drinks bottles like Fruit Shoots. 1, The children love them 2, if they knock them over it's just a drip not a flood.

If your going to give them fizzy pop, buy the sugar free diet drinks. Normal fizzy pop can turn even the nicest child into a HYPER MONSTER, and we will still need to be able to control the children for the after tea games.

The Birthday Cake

DON'T FORGET TO BRING A LIGHTER OR MATCHES FOR THE CANDLES

You would be amazed how many people forget, and the number of times Emazdad has had to get the birthday child to blow out the invisible magic candles.

At Emazdad's parties he will give you the nod when it's time to do the birthday cake, lead the children in singing the Happy Birthday song, and get the birthday child to make their wish and blow out the candles.

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Photography / Video

To avoid the major disappointment of missing the chance to record your Childs special moments at the party remember to bring:

The Camera

Spare Film

Mains Leads

Batteries

Camera Stands

Emazdad encourages you to record as much as the show as you wish, and there are numerous photo opportunities, after all, the stars of the show are the children, especially the birthday child.

Emazdad only asks that while you're taking your snaps you don't distract the children, and he will advise you on where it's best you to stand while taking photo's or recording the fun.

Matches or Lighter

Remember to bring something to light the candles with. I apologize if this sounds like I’m teaching you to suck eggs, but you’d be surprised how many parties Emazdad goes to where the host has forgotten to bring something to light the candles. 

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