Category Archives: Hire

A tribute to remember

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Tribute bands are very popular nowadays and can be the perfect thing for your ‘themed night’ or maybe you want a few of these tribute acts to get your party started. From Elvis, to ABBA, we are sure you will find your perfect act here at Red Masque. You may want a 70’s evening where your entertainer can sing and perform a melody of by-gone year tunes.

You could be organising a corporate party, private party, wedding or talent show, the choice is yours.  Red Masque has the best Tribute acts available today, so if you’re looking for a top performer to get the party started then you’ve come to the right place. To hire a tribute act is easy – you are able to book them yourself by filling out an online booking form provided on their profile. All your details and requirements are sent straight to your chosen entertainer and they will be in contact with you shortly.

Red Masque is the UK’s leading entertainment directory. Every event is different and finding the right event entertainment can sometimes be challenging and time consuming. Here at Red Masque we are constantly sourcing entertainers of the highest calibre from all manner of genres of entertainment. We pride ourselves on choosing top class acts from different areas of entertainment, such as comedy, dance and variety. We offer our clients the ultimate in party, wedding and event entertainment, with only the best, highly talented and unique acts around.

Bring some Reggae to your event

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How about having a bit of Reggae for your event? You could be organising a theme party with a caribbean theme where a Reggae band would fit right in, especially if the suns shining. The laid back tones of summer Reggae music will certainly get everybody swaying to the beat, from lovers rock to Ska, reggae sounds are suitable for all ages and have been around for decades, so there will always be Reggae that will appeal to young and old alike.

You could be having a Wedding, corporate event, launch party or private party, but whatever your organising you can be sure you will be hiring the best. Here at Red Masque we have a fantastic selection of reggae bands for hire and we offer only the best, highly talented and unique acts around. We guarantee amazing and memorable experiences every time and we understand that no matter how big or how small an event, to enable it to run efficiently and successfully, it’s always essential to provide the best if you want an honest, reliable, effective and professional service at all times.

Red Masque prides itself on advertising only top Reggae artists available in the UK. If you’ve found your perfect artist then simply fill out an online booking form. We promote the best wedding, party and corporate events entertainment with the very best acts and entertainers on offer, enabling us to help you create the most memorable and successful occasions every time.

Hosting a private party

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One of the simplest and easiest types of party to organise is a venue or marquee with a live band. Nothing gets guests excited like a live music performance as it’s far more interesting & engaging than a DJ or background music. You’ll need to choose a band to suit to the occasion, your guests and the type of atmosphere you’re looking for.

Popular types of party band include tribute bands, rock and pop function bands, or for an older audience try Swing and Jive or Rock n’ Roll.

Any private hire venue with a cool bar and space to dance would be suitable, but bear in mind parking and accommodation for those guests traveling beyond a taxi ride. For something a bit different try the Hard Day’s Night Hotel in Liverpool, complete with a live Beatles Tribute band.

Parties based around a live band, especially a lively band, are likely to be quite loud so consider how many elderly guests you might have. Venues with sound limiters can be a real pain so before you hand over any money, make sure the venue you choose doesn’t have a limiter fitted (or if it does, that the threshold is set higher than 95dB). Also, make sure there is a dance floor and if at all possible, try to avoid venues where the bar is in a different room to the dancing as this can split guests and leave you with a less party atmosphere.

Hire function bands that will provide all of the equipment you’ll need, so all you need to do is ensure they have enough space and some light refreshments. Expect to pay upwards of £1000/£1400 for a really good 4-5-piece band.

For most private parties a really early arrival is not necessary so if you ask the band to arrive around 6pm they should be set up, sound checked & ready for guests to arrive by 7.30pm – 8pm. Most function bands will play 2 x 60 minute performances, and we suggest the first to start no earlier than 9pm so guests have time to get a drink and have a chat before the music starts.

Hire a Harpists

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The harp is known as the ‘instrument of the gods’ and dates back to ancient times. The magical ‘fairy tale’ sound of the harp will enchant any audience and it is capable of transforming a ‘run of the mill’ event, into an elegant, emotional experience.

Book a harpist for your party or event for that added bit of music magic. From harp players for weddings to hiring a harp player for a corporate event, most harpists have a wide repertoire, ranging from the classical greats, traditional folk, jazz and show tunes through to popular artists and modern day music.

Here at Red Masque we have a fantastic selection of harpists for hire and we offer only the best, highly talented and unique acts around. We guarantee amazing and memorable experiences every time and we understand that no matter how big or how small an event, to enable it to run efficiently and successfully, it’s always essential to provide an honest, reliable, effective and professional service at all times.

Red Masque supply weddings, parties and corporate events with the very best acts the entertainment business has to offer, enabling us to help create the most memorable and successful occasions every time. We’re here to help with any enquiries you might have so please don’t hesitate to contact us. Booking a harpist couldn’t be easier.

Click here to view all Harpists for hire

Ideas for a 1920’s evening

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If you’re looking for that knockout concept for your next corporate event, why not take advantage of the popularity of the movie version of The Great Gatsby and people’s love of all things vintage?
Whether it’s a private party, product launch or corporate event, check out these ten event ideas inspired by the 1920s.

1.Cabaret Evening

The roaring twenties was an era full of decadence and entertainment, so a cabaret evening would suit the 1920s theme perfectly, and will be a whole lot of fun for guests! You have a whole range of fantastic entertainment ideas open to you, like lounge singers, aerial acrobats or even risqué burlesque performers.

2.Murder Mystery Night

If your client’s looking for something unusual for a smaller group (ten to twenty guests is ideal), a 1920s themed murder mystery night will definitely fit the bill. This works well for both private and corporate events, but will rely heavily on participation, so your client needs to be sure that their guests will be happy to join in!

3.1920s Canapé Party

If your event needs to be dazzling but on the informal side, work with your caterers to produce a 1920s canapé menu. Canapés really came into their own during the 1920s, as they were perfect for soaking up all that bootleg liquor!

4.Jazz Night

A live jazz band will really let guests get into the swing of things; the 1920s were, after all, known as the Jazz Age. Out of all the event ideas inspired by the 1920s, this is just the thing for music lovers.

5.Dance Event

A 1920s dance with live music is perfect for capitalizing on 1920s fever, and when you’re thinking about the perfect venue for this, don’t just consider the obvious. Maybe there’s a slightly run-down hotel in the area that you wouldn’t usually consider as a venue, but that could be hiding a fantastic art deco ballroom?

6.Cocktail Party

For a glamorous cocktail evening, think decadence and style. 1920s cocktails like Mint Juleps are sure to go down well, and a champagne tower will make attendees feel like they’re in the home of Jay Gatsby himself.

Christmas party ideas

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If it’s your turn to plan the annual Christmas party. It’s a lot of pressure, —but don’t fear! Whether you’re planning a fun office party, a classy dinner, or a traditional yuletide soirée, we’ve got some great Christmas party themes to get you thinking..

1. Winter Wonderland
A winter wonderland theme works for almost any Christmas party and event. But, with such a majestic aesthetic, it works especially well for dinner parties!

Frosted and/or clear crystal, white Christmas trees, polished silver, candles, snowflake confetti, metallic decorations, tinsel, fake snow, ice sculptures, and white string lights.

Use a String Quartet, Jazz Band, Harpist, Acoustic Act, or Classical Ensemble.

2. Christmas Themes Around the World
Christmas is celebrated in a number of different ways around the world. Throwing a Christmas Around the World party is a great way to learn about other cultures! With so many various traditions, you’ll have plenty of options — mince pies and Guinness of Ireland, the Christmas Eve feast of KFC in Japan, the ‘mass’ rollerskating in Venezuela, French nativity scenes made of radishes, and the large straw goat of Gåvle, Sweden that gets burned to the ground almost annually.

International Christmas foods and beverages, flags and informational cards, and decorations made from world maps.

Use, World Music Act, Father Christmas, Carolers, or any of our wonderful International-Inspired Acts.

3. Entertainment
Ballet Dancers, String Quartet, Classical Ensemble, or hire a Choreographer to teach a simple routine! Don’t forget a DJ, not out of the ordinary but classic entertainment!

4. The worst Christmas Jumper
The worst Christmas jumper party has been a popular theme for several years and there’s no doubt why — it’s fun! everybody buys their costume at a pound shop and the more pompoms, the better. The worst Christmas jumper parties can be a hit in any crowd, but we think they’re especially fun for office parties (and it’d make for a great office photo).

Want to focus on judging the ugly sweater contest? Leave the rest of the work to a Bar staff, Caterer, Photo Booth, or Photographer!

Retirement Party Ideas

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For almost everyone, music is the key to many wonderful past memories. And it’s one of the easiest ways to host some retirement home musical entertainment! Take your residents on a walk down memory lane with a musical group.

1.Barbershop Quartet
With perfect pitch and harmony, a barbershop quartet can dazzle any crowd! They generally have a large repertoire of tunes from years past and love singing for older crowds. If your guests have a request, most groups are happy to oblige. And get ready to see the ladies swoon!

2. Boogie Woogie Tribute
The Boogie Woogie is best known for those who lived through World War II. With lively patriotic songs, they entertained troops and kept their spirits up during a tough time in our history! Show your veteran retiree how much their service has meant with a Wartime tribute act. Songs like “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” and “Pistol Packin’ Mama” will keep the crowd swaying to the beat!

3. Gospel Group
Depending on the religious diversity of your guest, a Gospel group may be a meaningful performance for them. As people are nearing the end of their lives, faith begins to play a bigger part. Booking a Gospel group guarantees a great show!

4. Crooner
Crooners were king in the ’40s and ’50s, with their smooth voices and sultry songs. Some of the best artists in history came out of this era, including Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, and Bing Crosby. Your residents are sure to feel some nostalgia with a performer like this! Whether you want an actual Rat Pack show or just a Frank Sinatra tribute, these performers love an older crowd that appreciates their act.

5.Beach Boys Tribute
Gaining popularity in the 1960’s, the Beach Boys launched a new type of musical sound with their “surf songs.” Their killer harmonies and clever lyrics helped them rise to the top of the music charts. Booking a Beach Boys tribute band is definitely one of our more energetic ideas for retirement home entertainment! If you want to see your residents groove to the music, you can’t go wrong with the Beach Boys.

Plan wisely

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When you’re first deciding how to plan an event there are many things you need to do.
There’s an overwhelming amount of information and action to take – especially if you’re looking online.

Event planning is the process of budgeting, scheduling, choosing a venue for your event, coordinating permits and licenses, arranging entertainment including bands and speakers, and meeting with caterers to choose a menu. The term event planning is used when planning party and event venues.

Event Management is the process of overseeing and managing the entire event from start to finish, including the event team and/or volunteers. Typically, event managers have more experience than a planner and manage the entire project. The term event management is usually used when referring to large-scale events like festivals, conferences, or concerts.

Regardless of which title you choose to give yourself, there are 3 key qualities that an event planner must have to succeed.

Time Management – you must be able to coordinate multiple schedules at once, in order to be a successful event planner.

Resourcefulness – thinking quickly on your feet is critical to planning events – no matter what size – because even the best laid plans don’t always go as planned and you’ll need to know how to seamlessly fix issues without your client or the event guests knowing.

Budgeting – one of the most important skills to have as an event planner, yet often ignored because many of us like the creative side of event planning more than dealing with the bottom line. However, in order to be a successful event planner and make a profit, you must know your numbers. If budgeting scares you, sign up for a class at a local college to learn the basics.

Knowing how to schedule and organise correctly can make for a wiser selection, and have better organisation at your event.

Ensuring the right entertainment

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So, you have been planning your private party for ages and now the moment has come… the big day is now in sight! Of course, you already have an idea about your venue type, colour scheme, decoration and considered the entertainment. Ensuring you have the right entertainment can be the difference between a ‘good’ party and an unforgettable one! It’s important to keep your guests entertained throughout and it’s important you get it right, including picking the right venue to suit your plans.

Whichever entertainment you decide on, you need to make sure your venue can accommodate. Whether you have ideas on a party band, or dance troupe you need to ensure the venue suits the entertainment.

Stage
Some venues will have a stage or something similar, such as a raised part of the room. These are quite useful particularly if you want musicians or entertainment acts to be seen clearly by your guests.

The size of the stage is also important. If you planned on having a dance troop come and perform, you need to make sure the stage will be large enough to accommodate their routine and numbers.

Space
Function bands are always a great form of entertainment as they can work as a brilliant ice breaker and really help to get your guests on their feet and dancing. If you have a function band in mind, you need to ensure not only that there is enough space for the band to perform,but plenty of space for your guests to get up and dance.

Other forms of entertainment such as closeup magicians or caricaturists only need space to move freely around tables, whereas more exotic forms of entertainment such as a fire dancer will need a large area for safety reasons.

Accessibility
Checking that your venue is accessible can sometimes be the make or break for your choice. It’s important your venue can be accessed by all. If you’re having a twelve-piece band but your venue is on the top floor of a building with no lift, it’s certainly not ideal for a band to carry all their instruments up. You need to make sure that any equipment or props your entertainment may need can be easily transported to your venue.

Stags and Hens

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Nowadays it would be pretty unheard of to get married and not have a hen party or stag do in order to celebrate the final free moments before you tie the knot. Consequently we’ve heard of some pretty unusual hen party events along the way from perfume creation to go kart racing! But why is it called a hen party and why is it called a stag party? And where did these parties originate from?

A common misconception is that the terms ‘hen’ and ‘stag’ both originate from simple social stereotypes. In fact, it’s more likely that the word hen hasn’t always meant female chicken, in middle English, hen could mean the female of any bird and so a hen party was a party exclusively for ladies. Similarly, but going back even further, is the stag party, and you’ve guessed it, originally stag could mean the male of any animals, not just a male deer and so a stag party is one exclusively for gents.

So it turns out hen parties aren’t a creation of modern society and they actually go pretty far back. So where did the terms actually originate from? The tradition of the stag party, goes back even further certainly as far as tudor times. Just imagine how busy Henry VIII must have been with invites!

Numerous sources suggest that the very first stag party was actually held in the 5th century in Sparta, where a pre-marriage feast was held in order to toast the groom-to-be. On the other hand, hen celebrations have their roots more grounded in North African, Middle Eastern and Asian lifestyle. This is because the authentic phrase from which hens get together is believed to be henna, which is a wedding custom in all these cultures. Henna has significant importance in the East and is considered to have tendencies to be capable of purifying the bride and hold her risk-free from evil.

Here in the UK, we are somewhat on our own with our abstract names of hen and stag parties to see off the final moments of freedom. Australia is similar, but slight cultural differences mean that they call it hen party and buck party. Alternatively, America appears to be very vanilla in the naming of their pre-marital parties calling them a bachelorette party and a stag party respectively.

Whatever your background, there is no escaping the fact that marriage is possibly the most important decision of your life. So what better way to say goodbye to single life than to celebrate in style!