Category Archives: Themed

Fit for a Princess

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Make your daughter’s dreams come true by throwing her an amazing princess party! You bring the enthusiasm, Red Masque will provide the tips, and together we can plan the party your princess has always imagined!

Before you can dive into planning this fantastic party, you’ll want to pick a theme. Although a princess party may seem pretty self-explanatory, there are still decisions to be made! Will this be a fancy dress party? Or maybe centred around your daughter’s favourite princess? There are lots of options to choose from! Talk to your princess to find out which theme will work the best for her.

Your next step will be to set a date. Check your calendar and try to find a date that works for the birthday girl’s friends and family. If nothing conflicts with her actual birthday, you’ve got yourself a date! If not, try to pick a day as close to your daughter’s birthday as possible and make it an extended celebration.

Finding the Castle​

​Now that you’ve got a theme and date, it’s time to find a perfect venue for your party. A budget friendly option for location is to transform your home into the princess castle. If you’re looking for a change of scenery, start the search for a local venue that is large enough to accommodate all of your guests and free of commitments on your party date. Keep in mind your potential party decorations when choosing your location to make sure set up will be as easy as possible.

The Royal Announcement

With the major details in place, you’re ready to announce the royal event by sending out invitations. These will get your guests excited about your theme even before the party begins! If crafting isn’t your thing, order custom invitations. Whatever your method, be sure to include the basic event info, including the date, time, and location. If you’ve decided on a fancy dress and would like the guests to arrive in their princess gowns, add this information to the invitation. Give it the royal touch by using language such as, “Princess Sofia invites you to attend her 6th birthday party” or “Join us in celebrating a royal affair…the birthday of Princess Sarah.” Send the invitations well in advance (around 3-4 weeks) to give your fellow parents time to RSVP between helping with homework and driving to soccer practice.

Decorating the Castle​

Now for the real fun, decorating your princess castle! Make a list of supplies you’ll need and start shopping early to make sure you’re able to find everything you need. From balloons and streamers to piñatas and tiaras, the party design and decorations ​make the party. Talk to the birthday girl or take her shopping with you to find the perfect decor for your ideal princess atmosphere!

Entertaining Royalty​

​Treat your guests like royalty with princess-themed activities! To really wow your guests, have your daughter’s favourite Princess attend the party. Set up a craft table or the princesses to make their very own tiaras. If your guests didn’t arrive in their own princess attire, having a dress up area with gowns and accessories is a great addition to the party! For the full princess transformation, have a royal makeover station complete with faux jewellery, makeup and, of course, glitter! To take the makeover to the next level, book a Makeup Artist or Face Painter to run the station. A favourite babysitter is another great option and budget friendly!

​If your location allows, bring in the big guns with a castle bouncy house, princess carriage rides, or pony rides. You could also look for a local farm that hosts pony parties with carriages, as this will generally be a cheaper alternative. Whatever the activities, priceless memories will no doubt be made. Be sure to capture them with lots of pictures! If you’d rather not be on photo duty, book a photographer so that you can kick back and enjoy the fantastic party you’ve put together!

Party Bags

​Send your guests home with princess-themed treat bags to remind them of your amazing party! Fill them with everything a princess could need, from tiaras and wands to a makeup or jewellery sets. Bring the birthday girl in on the party bag fun and have her pick out all the treats she’d love to receive at a party.

Let there be cake!

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The cake is quite often the thing most people look forward to at a wedding or birthday celebration. After all, it’s not a reception without a cake cutting ceremony! These days though there are so many options for cakes. You can have red velvet, lemon meringue, chocolate, marble, carrot, or maybe traditional vanilla. Others may choose to divert from the traditional cake, choosing cupcakes, truffles, chocolate confections, cookies, or a dessert buffet (for those who just can’t decide!). With all these options how does one even begin?

1. Search for the Right Bakery

Choosing a bakery is tough. It can be even tougher if you have a special need – glucose-free, lactose-free, vegan, Kosher, organic, etc. Luckily more bakeries are becoming aware of allergies or special needs and offer delicious alternatives. Do a quick search for a cake designer in your area who makes a product to your specification.

2. Choose Your Style

Are you a cupcake fan? Or are you a chocolate lover at heart? Or does a traditional tiered cake tickle your fancy? Cupcake towers are becoming more and more popular at birthdays, weddings, baby showers, and more. This takes the hassle out of cutting the cake into equal-sized pieces! Cakes can come in all shapes and sizes these days. Bakeries and cake designers can sculpt a cake into a castle, sports arena, animal, musical instrument, and anything else you can come up with! You can go this route for a birthday cake to match the cake with the birthday person’s favourite hobby. A designer’s ability to do this also is beneficial for groom’s cakes. A dessert buffet is always a fun route to go, as well. You can have all your favourite goodies in one place from a chocolate fountain and truffles to fruit tart and pastries.

3. Find Your Filling

Whether you go with a cake or cupcakes, you then must decide the type, filling, and frosting. So many decisions! However, this is where the yummy part begins – cake tastings! On top of the type of cake, such as red velvet, chocolate, or carrot, you also have the option of having a filling. Fillings can be in the form of fruit, mousse, and cream cheese, just to name a few. Schedule a tasting with your baker to decide which one is just right for you.

Above all, have fun with your cake! A little indulgence never hurt anyone, especially on a day of celebration!

Themed event evening

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Event planners love organising a party around a specific theme. It makes sense since most guests turning should at least have some familiarity with the world they are about to experience. Perhaps the most popular party theme out of the many out there are parties based around Lewis Caroll’s Alice in Wonderland. Putting together Alice in Wonderland party ideas is something that simply requires imagination and a whole lot of fun. 

Alice in Wonderland

Well… No event is complete without an Alice, right? For many children’s parties, parents prefer Alice to simply be a walkabout costumed character allowing the kids to interact with Alice throughout the day. When it comes to Alice in Wonderland party ideas for adults though, there are a multitude of possible ideas, only limited to your imagination. You could hire a contortionist to play Alice, she could really squeeze into those small spaces then!!

With the UK seemingly more in love than ever with Alice in Wonderland (the theme has also been used for corporate events and Sweet 16 parties), the multitude of characters allows some truly inspired work.

Frozen themed parties…

One of the most popular films of the last few years, Frozen continues to take the world by storm, especially in the 2-7-year-old age bracket (if that’s an acceptable place to bracket off ages rather than the usual ‘3-5’) and you’ve no doubt been asked to host a Frozen party for your little one. But this is not just a theme for children, oh no! What with Christmas parties being upon us, this is the perfect time to ponder turning it into a Frozen theme but with a number of additions to ensure that any Scrooges at the party quickly turn into the embodiment of Christmas cheer!

Ice Sculpture

Any Frozen fan worth their salt will tell you that he is an iceman, responsible for cutting out blocks of ice for the people of Arendelle. Now since an actual iceman cutting out blocks of ice at a party probably isn’t that exciting to watch (and transporting the pre-cut ice is probably hugely expensive), what better way than to bring the magic of Kristoff’s profession to light with some Frozen ice sculptures! And by that we mean an ice sculptor creating a model of Olaf for your Christmas Party. 

Fake Snow

Because what could be more Christmassy than fake snow? You may be thinking that fake snow indoors just doesn’t work but cast your mind back to the very beginning of Frozen where Elsa first uses her powers, creating lovely little slopes of snow which she and her sister Anna play in. Naturally you can also make your own Olaf out of the snow and pose with it at a frozen photo booth too!

Costumed Characters

To be honest, this one is just a given. The very least that people would expect from a Frozen-themed Christmas party are some themed walkabout characters. Now you may be thinking, “But isn’t that more of a thing for children? Adults wouldn’t like that would they?” But you’d be very, very wrong for costumed characters are one of the most popular forms of entertainment. Guests can never get enough.

Naturally there are many, many more ideas that unfortunately couldn’t be included; from incredible Frozen-themed cocktails. To get some more inspiration look at our Christmas themed entertainment.

Acts to hire instead of a DJ

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It’s now well into Christmas and although we’ve been going on about booking Christmas entertainment early, there’s always a few private parties and companies who only get around to booking their Christmas entertainment in December. As such, many DJs are booked up on the key dates you’ll be wanting them for, but don’t let that get to you! Put down your mince pie, have a swig of mulled wine and take a look at these alternatives that just might be more perfect than a Christmas DJ.

Why not book your very own polar bear? Well it’s not actually a real one, (it’s themed walkabout artists in a polar bear costume) that can turn up at your Christmas party to liven up proceedings. This cuddly looking polar bear walks and poses with your guests.  What could be more Christmassy than that? Okay, so he won’t provide anything to dance to but who needs that when you can laugh and take selfies all evening? Exactly. We guarantee your Instagram will have more likes than ever after a cheeky pic with this wonderful Christmas bear. 

Why not go for a real animal? We all saw the Logo Reindeer last year and it was impressive, even featuring Santa and a sleigh. You could even order some elves if you’d like, but how about a couple of live reindeer to book for your Christmas event. They won’t arrive with presents and they’ll probably walk rather than fly, but there’s something fab about feeding a carrot to a reindeer.

What could be better than a Christmas Tree? You can sing Christmas carols around it, put presents beneath it and struggle to get rid of it once New Year rolls in. That last point wouldn’t be a problem with these incredible living Christmas trees however, the perfect accompaniment to any Christmas gathering. A festive treat nobody will be expecting, these trees stand by the entrance to your party venue and move as unsuspecting guests arrive. A lot of fun guaranteed to have your guests in stitches.

Christmas Party Band

Just because a DJ isn’t free, doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy some music! What party entertainment you go for depends entirely on you and what your guests might like. If you’re looking for a festive feeling, then Motown Supreme may be more your thing.  Or a trendy contemporary band; Kings Ov Leon. You don’t even have to book a band that melds perfectly with the Holiday season; various bands can play all the hits your DJ would have played and provide some originality and festive cheer on top. Perfect!

Illusionist

Or maybe without a DJ, you really are fixated on just using the iPod from Andy in Accounts. Since the rest of the office are scared of animals and possible living Christmas trees, in that case you are left with only one option, especially if everybody adores magic. Sure, you could go for an Illusionist – make your guests the centre of attention whilst the illusionist does his amazing magic before their very eyes, where everyone if trying to work out just how he does it!! 

Of course, none of this matters if you have your heart set on a DJ… So don’t delay, get in touch today!

Festive events

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PARTY BUTLERS

Now girls, you know you need the ultimate party butler or butlers for your Christmas party! Or even if you don’t even have an excuse for a party!!  A bit of eye candy never goes a miss, he’ll be able to serve up your favourite drinks all evening.

Whether he is topless or naked (of course an apron to cover his modesty) then these butlers will certainly liven up your event.  Serving up some treats for you girls or mixing a few of your favourite cocktails, these toned butlers will be just perfect.

ROBOTS

How about having a Robot or two at your festive event? These must-have robots are quite handy at serving too. They are all the rage at the moment from talking robots, to serving robots, they can even meet and greet your guests which of course will be a talking point for months to come.

You can ask your robot to customise your event so you get him to do the right thing at the right time, for example it maybe a group of robots performing a dance or just one or two mingling with you crowd – you have to agree this is very unique!!!

SNAKE PERFORMERS AND CHARMERS

Ok, so snakes may not be very Christmassy but you could add a little ‘Middle Eastern’ theme where Lebanese food could be on the menu, but how about going that extra mile and hiring a ‘snake performer’ to really get that ‘Middle Eastern’ feel to your party.

We have only the best Snake Performers on our website advertised which is guaranteed to be extremely professional and of course ‘snake friendly’. 

STILT WALKERS

Being a stilt walker is no mean feat, it takes many hours to perfect the art of walking for long periods of time, with their colourful costumes and amazing routines high up in the clouds at least you’ll never lose him!!

Dressed to impress your very own stilt walker would be just the thing to get your crowd talking, these Stilt walkers can be a feature at your Christmas event, mix and mingling, serving drink and just generally brightening up the atmosphere.

THEMED WALKABOUT

No Christmas party would be complete without a themed walkabout artist; this well be just the thing.  Father Christmas, elves, or snow queens or how about arranging a magical enchanting ice-queen themed party, where your themed walkabout artists are dressed from head to toe in white ice-like costumes.

From medieval artists, to around the world themed dress, your party will have that perfect atmosphere that you were hoping for when you book one or more of these themed walkabouts.

2016 corporate party ideas

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It’s never too early to plan ahead. Many corporate and private clients often enjoy theming their larger parties (and smaller ones, as long as you can convince your mates to dress up) around national events happening that particular year. With this in mind, we thought we’d look ahead to see what trends might be coming up, which you may like to capitalise on. Without further ado, here are our popular party themes 2016

Rio 2016

Yes, like them or loathe them, the summer Olympics return next year with Rio 2016. Incredibly, it will have been four years since London 2012, where we all trekked over to Stratford to watch a game of Handball between a couple of Baltic nations and now it’s time to do it all over again next year. Coming live from Brazil in 2016, sporting entertainment is sure to be a big draw next year so get planning now!

According to Wikipedia, 2016 is set to be space crazy. You name it, it’s being planned. From a space hotel being launched for wealthy clients to various missions involving Mercury, Mars and Jupiter, there are huge plans afoot for 2016 and space travel. The sequel to Independence Day will surely only add to the fever in June, so get your thinking caps on if it’s space-themed event entertainment you’re after. What better venue than the Gherkin? There have been lots of space themes organised here already, so now it’s time to organise yours.

Harry Potter

Brace yourself, Muggles who love the young wizard are going to be out in force in 2016 with not one but two (or even three) new Potter releases thrust upon the world. But they won’t be in book form, oh no. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them will be an adaptation of a JK Rowling spinoff starring Eddie Redmayne, whilst Harry Potter and the Cursed Child will open in the West End in two parts. Magic costume, crazy food—All will be great entertainment theme ideas for your Harry Potter event in 2016. You can even host your very own private party here where the Harry Potter films were made!

Get your Christmas party organised now!!!!!

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Incredibly, it’s November already. Where on earth have the past ten months gone? It seems like only yesterday that we were being wowed by the Christmas lights of Bond Street. But now we look ahead to the next few months and like it or not, Christmas is drawing near. Which means a Christmas party needs to be organised? And Christmas entertainment needs to be sorted. Here are some ‘different’ slices of entertainment for your Christmas party

Magicians are brilliant and tend to navigate the party room with a sense of mystique following behind. Often dressed in a suit, they charm and move on, often somewhat surprising the next group whom haven’t noticed them as they wander the room., a costume could be put together in a bespoke manner for each event i.e. Christmas. Sure to get the crowds talking, they’re also great for a photo opportunity.

Stilt Walkers

Stilt walkers are available and will add surprise proving to be a hit with passers-by and clients alike. Having said that, they are more likely to be booked at Christmas events, entertaining as a meet and greet acts or ripping up the dance floor. The costumes can be bespoke especially for your Christmas event.

Living objects

Even the grumpiest Scrooge in the building will struggle not to smile at a festive circus act in the room. Living Christmas presents that will brighten up your venue. What more could you want? Well, what if the presents sprouted legs, hand out small gifts and get into all sorts of trouble and skirmishes as their competitive nature comes to fruition? A festive treat that has to be seen to be believed, this splendidly visual act can enhance any event at a low cost. A fun and entertaining way to get the room talking!

Photo booths
Photo booths are always great fun and offer up the opportunity to attempt to convince your friends that you’ve been whisked to Lapland rather than Lambeth, but if you’re looking for something even more spectacular this Christmas, a photo booth experience in the centre of your Christmas party! A ski simulator inside an inflatable dome, four people can compete to see who reigns supreme on the virtual slopes.

Virtual Polar Bear

Why have soft toys or a character from Frozen when you can have your very own polar bear at your party? Yes, a virtual Polar Bear exists to put all other Christmas parties to shame. Coming complete with blinking eyes, a sniffing nose, moving mouth and realistic sounds, this Polar Bear is a fully animatronic puppet that even comes with his own inflatable iceberg environment. Grab a coke and pose for a unique Christmas party photo!

5 basic planning rules

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Hiring entertainment for your event can seem like a struggle but it doesn’t have to be. It’s natural to stress over all aspects of an event but if you follow these five basic event planning rules, you’ll be a brilliant event planner in no time! So whether it’s your first time booking entertainment for an event or you’re an old hand, here are a few tips that it’s always worth remembering.

Make a List of Entertainment Ideas

Always make a list of the entertainment ideas you have in mind for your party or event so that you don’t get side-tracked when looking at our gallery! There are a lot of superb entertainment acts out there but not all of them will be suitable for your special event. As such, it’s best for event planners make a list of the sort of thing you’re looking for even if you have quite a broad spectrum of what it is you’re after.

Know the Trends

One of the most important things about being an event planner is that you need to know what is available on the market. After making your list of entertainment ideas, it’s now time to look out for any other acts the people seem to be excited about and consider the date as well. October? Then Halloween themed entertainment may be nice. December? Of course that’s Christmas! Like any industry, events go through trends and it’s important to be on the ball to ensure that you’re getting what you pay for in terms of the latest exciting entertainment act.

Budget Wisely

Decide on a budget far in advance of when you sit down to allocate the funds to each part of your event or wedding. Entertainment can be pricey, as can each part of event planning, but shrewd event planners are the ones who do not waver from their initial costings and ensure that they are getting a good deal. Musicians in particular vary widely in price but rest assured we only work with the very best acts who have passed our auditions process.

Give Yourself Some Time

People like to plan early so don’t leave it until the last minute before booking the entertainment for your event. Some of the most popular acts like Motown Supreme are already being requested by event planners for weddings late in 2016, so don’t delay if there’s a piece of entertainment you just have to have! It’s better to book sooner rather than later as this also gives time to deal with any possible song requests or dealing with venue difficulties like sound limiters.

Think About Everything Else

Well, once you’ve booked a great act for your party it’s time to focus on other things. Event planning is all about juggling tasks and assigning time to each of them. Once your entertainment is booked, start thinking about how to improve your venue by picking a nice theme. Then onto the catering and flowers. It feels like it’s never ending but it doesn’t have to be. So book your event entertainment early and then allow yourself some time to think about everything else

Office Party Planning Tips

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People get nervous at office parties. Nervousness can equal erratic behaviour so reduce the stress by setting some ground rules. Make sure you answer the following questions:

Will there be alcohol at the party and if so is it open bar or cash bar?
Are spouses and dates invited? This is particularly important if the party is off your property.
How long will the festivities last? Not everyone can get there at 5:30 so it’s nice to know people will still be there later in the evening.
What’s the proper dress? Not usually a big problem and not necessary in a majority of cases, but if you are hosting the party at a private club or a place no one has been to before a heads up about what to wear can save some people serious embarrassment.

Whether you plan to host a big bash or a small gathering try these suggestions:

Be as generous as your budget allows. Your employees work hard and they are looking for a show of appreciation. They view your generosity as a barometer of their performance.
Try to go somewhere different. If there is a tavern or restaurant close by your employees are probably there all the time. Why not drive an extra 5 minutes and meet at someplace different?
If you have the party on premises, make sure to decorate. Telling them to meet in the cafeteria will excite no one. Asking them to join you on the beach (a decorated themed area) they’ll know it’s a special day.
Invest in a cocktail waiter. They’ll monitor and control drinking. They also can make attractive and fun “virgin” drinks. People like picking a non-alcoholic “cool” option. Letting employees pour their own can be a problem and asking an employee to tend bar may be putting them in a bad spot.
Have a theme for your party entertainment. We mentioned luau because it’s always a hit but casino and Mardi Gras are also real favourites that can be planned for 10 or a 100.

Think about providing some great party favours or even door prizes. It’s nice to walk away with a remembrance of a great time. Finally make sure you have fun. If you’re a manager, mingle with your employees they’ll appreciate it and you’ll enjoy it.

The Bo Diddlers

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So if you thought you knew all about Morris Dancing, think again…

This group of Morris Dancers calling themselves The Bo Diddlers are a new kind of Morris Dance act who are ‘experimenting’ using a blend of contemporary and folk dance. And do you know what? It really works well.

They put a humorous touch in their act (it gets quite physical) with live music the group creates something quite mesmerising and downright funny, so if you were expecting the traditional Morris Dance (which can be a bit bland) you will be more than pleased you booked these guys

They have created an hour long show called Stump and it has been put together especially for the theatre, it gives a traditional outdoor event an exciting twist whilst having a sense of being theatrical

The Bo Diddlers have performed at the Brighton Fringe Festival and danced at the Royal Court Theatre as well as other prestigious events.

So if you want an event to be a bit different in and unexpected then you should book The Bo Diddlers. At your corporate event which will break the ice and get people taking, this is a definite act to hire.

The unexpected is always good and a seemingly ‘ordinary’ event which is custom for you to go to year after year and where the entertainment is always quite ‘samey’, this act will certainly be a wonderful surprise.

So if you have been put in charge of organising this years’ corporate Christmas party and you wanted to be in your CEO’s good books, we believe you are looking at the main act of the year!!