Tag Archives: party

An intimate dinner party

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When thinking about the best Entertainment for an intimate dinner party, an obvious place to start is with the music.

Pianists

Pianists are fantastic for creating mood and providing a soundtrack to your evening, no matter the function. Providing a repertoire of modern and classic hits, they tend to provide a fun and informal atmosphere for a whole host of events including dinner, drinks receptions or a small networking function.

Classical Guitarist

What is there to say about classical guitarists that hasn’t already been said (or assumed)? Well, for starters it’s not only western styles of music that are often booked; flamenco is extremely popular whilst many prefer a slightly different sound to what they ordinarily listen to as it promotes a sense of occasion for the evening.

Cello

The cello is the perfect sound for a classy dinner private party amongst a few choice guests. It has a sound that many people absolutely adore, its low timbre fitting perfectly with a number of other instruments or in a solo setting.

Violin

The Violin is popular across all private parties and corporate events, no matter intimate or otherwise. Mixing a Cello and a Violin are extremely popular which fits for virtually any occasion. Another act combination that people enjoy for intimate dinner parties is violin and…

Harp

The harp is a gorgeous, gentle instrument that many adore but rather interestingly, rarely get to experience live. It could be because it’s a rather bulky instrument for a child to play, so many performers actually learn when they’re adults. Perfect as an accompaniment to dinner, the harp is also great in combination with strings or woodwind.

Magician

Now you may be thinking that a magician wouldn’t fit in at all at your intimate soiree but they can be extremely effective for engaging a room and have been proven to be great for informal networking events. For dinner parties, there are some brilliantly parlour magicians that can sit with you at the tables.

As ever with these things, it’s all about finding the right entertainment for your party.

Madame Tussauds

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Situated right in the heart of London, the venues offers five themed areas that can host events with up to 1,000 guests. Each event space can be adapted to suit your events exact requirements making it an ideal location for corporate events, private parties, presentations, gala events and press conferences.

Madame Tussauds Famous for its incredible wax works of celebrities and royalty from around the world, Madame Tussauds is also an award winning themed venue that has been hosting high-profile events for over fifty years.

The World Stage Ballroom was designed to impress with a grand stage, back projected screen, full lighting rig and plasma screens. LED lighting can be programmed to display specific colours to suit your corporate identity or theme. The largest space in Madame Tussauds, it is perfect for a whole host of corporate events and can even accommodate smaller events with adjustable and removable walls that can be used to create a more intimate space.

Not forgetting that this venue’s main attraction is its spectacular collection of wax works, guests can walk through over 200 years of history and with the museum-style ropes and poles gone they can also get up close and personal with historical icons, A-list celebrities and sporting legends. Not only is Madame Tussauds a great venue for corporate events but it also offers team building exercises and incentives: staff also have the chance to go behind the scenes and see how a waxwork is made at Madame Tussauds, ride through London’s history in a mini black cab and battle with Marvel Super Heroes in a 4D movie experience!

A popular choice for high-profile celebrity launches, Madame Tussauds is an impressive event space twice voted the UK’s number 1 favourite venue! No entertainment is more apt to accompany your event at this exclusive venue than one of our lookalike tribute bands. Alternatively why not invite 007 to entertain guests, as he poses for photos and suavely mingles with guests.

The year of the Pig

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This is how to throw a Chinese New Year party for one night only

Crispy Duck, spring rolls, lettuce wraps, sweet and sour pork, crispy orange beef and chicken chow Mein are just a few dishes you can serve at Chinese New Year. If you’re not up for cooking, hire a Caterer to make up delicious traditional Chinese dishes for you and your guests. Your desserts should be orange based or otherwise relate to your Chinese New Year theme. When it comes to alcohol, you should talk to your Bartender about serving drinks that involve oranges. Do not serve anything with cream or that is white in colour, as white represents death and mourning.

Buy Chinese take-out boxes and fill them with party favours for each of your guests. Some great favours to celebrate Chinese New Year are chocolate gold coins, fortune cookies, oriental fans, Chinese opera masks, character bead bracelets, mini paper lanterns or dragons, and other traditional Chinese sweets or gifts. If your budget allows, you may also consider booking a Photobooth for your corporate event and laying out themed props. You and your guests can pose with paper dragons, red boas, and other fun props.

It’s customary to ask your guests to remove their shoes at the door. All of this is said to lead to good luck and a smooth transition into the new year. Once your home is spotless, it’s time to decorate.
Red and gold – that’s your colour scheme. In many Asian cultures, red envelopes symbolize a monetary gift for a special occasion. So, you may consider sending your invitations in red envelopes to go along with your theme (you can include chocolate coins to replace the money). You’ll want to hang beautiful Chinese lanterns throughout your home (and outside, too, so that new guests can easily identify your home). Cover your table with a rich, red table cloth and use gold-trimmed plates or gold napkins, placemats, or other finishing touches. Many choose to adorn their tables with Chinese dragons as centrepieces. However, you can also decorate by placing bowls of mandarin oranges (which represent wealth, luck, and happiness) out for your guests to enjoy.

You can also hire party suppliers and have some music playing, which adds to the ambiance. Consider instrumental, western, pop, or ethnic music to add to your event.

Chinese New Year is all about new beginnings, luck, and happiness. So celebrate with your loved ones and have a happy new year!

Book a cartoonist for a conference

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When it comes to booking entertainment for a conference, there are a whole raft of options available to event organisers. Naturally the speakers and host for the day will have to be worked out far in advance but as far as everything else goes, there is quite a lot of leeway as far as the rest of the conference goes.

Many clients for conferences like to book party entertainment for when guests arrive or to break up the day. Sometimes they will book an interactive form of entertainment to enhance teamwork amongst the conference attendees or perhaps book a strolling act – a magician or caricaturist to keep things light and fun. Today though, we thought we would offer up a unique form of entertainment that has proven to be a hit at innumerable conferences and corporate days.

You can book Alex Hughes the cartoonist to bring a completely new form of entertainment to your event. Sitting in a corner for the day, Alex will pay close attention to the goings on at the conference and draw up to 25(!) cartoons that sum up the occasion. From topical moments where things might go wrong to key phrases that encompass a particular speaker, there is a lot to enjoy and the best bit is, you can put a camera on Alex throughout, ensuring that everybody sees his sketches as and when he comes up with them.

Once the conference is over and everybody has gone home, the conference organisers or company responsible for putting on the event get to keep the original drawings to frame in offices and Alex will digitally scan each and every one when he draws them, with his clients able to use their drawings for whatever reason they see fit from that moment on.

A truly excellent and different choice for conferences and corporate events, we highly recommend booking Alex Hughes for your next event.

Happy Halloween!!

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It has to be said that for a Halloween party, you have to get people in the mood. You can’t have someone walk up all smiles and simply sampling the canapés, oh no! What you need is a few scares here and there before they even reach their welcome drink. In order to do this, we highly recommend a freaky meet and greet act that can create a whole host of incredible characters that are guaranteed to give you the shivers.

Moving on from your meet and greet, it’s now time to get stuck into the party. Perhaps a few themed actors running through some classic scenes from your favourite horror movies could be a big hit, though make sure that they are very well known; you don’t want a guest fainting from the fright as a slasher villain rocks up and nobody knows who they are meant to be.

Interactive strolling entertainment is a classic way for Halloween parties to really make their mark. From stilt walkers to magicians, everyone can get dressed up and go a little macabre for the evening. Magicians love a bit of fire whilst a few mentalism scares are guaranteed to get the guests talking! Strolling bands are also not averse to a bit of costuming!

How best to remember the proceedings from the night before? With a photo booth of course! There are a number of options when it comes to booking a photo booth from ones that provide props, logos, theming and more. You can even book a photo booth that adds a three dimensional feel or gif to the final shot.

There are so many ways to put on the perfect Halloween party and we hope this blog has made you think when it comes to booking party entertainment for your scary event this October.

Throw a Private Detective party

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Are you a fan of Sherlock Holmes or do you love a good detective series? Whichever person you are; you’ll still love our fabulous ideas to create an unmissable Sherlock Holmes party theme.

Silhouette Artist
These amazing silhouette artists can even cut in various props should you desire them. So yes, every guest could be posing with a Sherlock themed prop if you so wanted! All that’s required is paper, scissors and a little time to stand still and your guests can go home with a wonderful original prop to remind them of the evening!

Eyecon Art
Eyecon Art is one of the coolest new acts on the entertainment events circuit. Sitting down with your guests, a photographer will take a photo of your eye, which you can then be sent at a later date. Now in terms of looking for clues, it’s all about seeing the bigger picture…and who hasn’t seen a famous drawing of Sherlock Holmes with a magnifying glass to his eye?

CSI
This game basic format allows for a variety of guests to ultimately solve a crime through a variety of team building activities. Do you have what it takes to be a resident of 221b Baker Street or are you resigned to simply writing about the case in a style of Rd. Watson?

Violinist
Aside from cracking crimes, Sherlock Holmes is also known for his love of music, in particular gazing out at London’s clientele whilst playing a good old-fashioned violin. a violinist will no doubt go down a storm at your Sherlock party.

Costumed Character
Now what about putting that violinist into a costume? We can see it now. Deerstalker hat? Pipe? Whether you’re thinking the old fashioned version of Sherlock Holmes or the new Benedict Cumberbatch infused creation, we’re more than confident that tweed will get a look in. But which other characters should be present? Rd. Watson? Mrs. Hudson? An appearance from Moriarty wouldn’t go amiss either.

If you’re holding a Sherlock Holmes party or have been inspired by some of the various acts, then do have a look at our party themes on our website to inspire you even more!

Make it a surprise

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Red Masque party and event entertainment directory have a whole lot of choice if you want to make your event unforgettable. Discover what surprise entertainment we offer and how they’ll positively impact your event!

Anything is possible when you want to plan a surprise party. You may have spent months trying not to let the cat out of the bag, but have you considered when they get to the party what other things you can do to surprise them??

When you’re planning an event, you want to keep your guests and the main guess entertained throughout, so the energy and enjoyment never dips. Giving them something new just when they are least expecting it is a great way to create a buzz, and to give guests something to talk about apart from the food or the football! And nothing fits the bill quite like a surprise act, be it singing waiters, firemen, or chefs.

One great idea would be a hire a comedy musician where he or she is all set up to play some classical music to entertain your guests. They start to play all the wrong notes and your guests start to laugh embarrassingly at the artist that has been hired, (a bit like Les Dawson) It’s a great way of breaking up a meal and giving your guests something hugely entertaining when they are least expecting it!

What your guests see, of course, is just the end product of a great deal of planning and preparation. Professional entertainment acts make sure that everyone behind the scenes is in the know and fully prepared, while the real guests haven’t a clue what’s going on! It’s also about preparing a scenario that is perfect for your event.

That’s Magic

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When it comes to magic, you might think you know what you are getting at an event. A few strolling tricks, a vanishing card and perhaps even a flame or two! But these magicians go a bit further than that and seek to differentiate their act in new ways!

Singing Magician
This is certainly a bit of fun. You could book a singer and a magician for your party but why bother when you can book a Singing Magician and get more bang for your buck! Able to sing the classic songs or any song of your choice and astound you with his magic tricks and cheeky banter! Destined to draw a large crowd!

Keelan and Charlotte
A bit of a unique idea this – both wonderfully entertaining magic and expertly executed. Changing outfits as quick as a flash which will amaze your audience and bring a smile on their faces. Great for Corporate events and Private parties. Keelan and Charlotte are an original act and will bring a bit of fun to your event.

David Willmott
Perfect for both stage and strolling magic, he is a huge hit at events during December and is just the right option for a themed festive party. David’s unique brand of close-up magic is so flexible and engaging that it works wonders in a huge variety of different social situations.

His warm and approachable character enables him to break the ice effortlessly, then he mesmerises people, spreading laughter, amazement and entertainment. He creates talking points that really gets the party going and leaves everyone with memories they’ll treasure for years to come.

Andi Gladwin
Close up Magician – Andi can provide a fantastic show that will astound you, but if you are looking to go one step further, then booking a close up magician might be just up your street. He literally performs amazing miracles with playing cards, coins and various borrowed objects. Each guests gets to experience amazing magic right in front of their noses!. We think he would be great to hire especially if it’s a Star Wars themed evening!

David Redfearn
David doesn’t just put on a stage show for guests but creates an entire comedy routine out of his magic tricks that are sure to raise a laugh and have entertained thousands both in the UK and abroad. It is an electric evening of entertainment and a CEO or special person in the room can even be brought on stage to accomplish some magic of their own. A winning act for all!

British Bake Off Party

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It’s back! Yes, it’s the Great British Bake Off. Hooray! So it’s time to dig out the Union Jack bunting, take another visit to the cake aisle in Sainsburys and relax in the comforting glow of Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith lightly critiquing soggy bottoms and questionable flavours. In our excitement, here are a few party acts to hire were you wanting to host a Bake Off inspired party for the big finale in a few months time. Three, two, one… BAKE!

Splitting Images
What on earth does a lookalike Kim Kardashian have to do with baking? Well, since you asked, she doesn’t really. But who better to have jumping out of an oversized Victoria Sponge for someone’s birthday? If your Birthday Boy or Girl is a fan of Kim then that’s perfect, if however they love David Beckham then Splitting Images have many lookalikes on their books guaranteed to make your guests swoon.

It’s always a fab photo opportunity and is sure to surprise the birthday boy or girl and the lookalike would be a delightful cherry on top to any private event.

Bolli Darling
If you need someone to serve canapés and want it to be as close to the Great British Bake Off as possible, you may not want someone in the cake, you may want them to be the cake. Thank goodness then for the existence of the Bolli Darling, an act who specialise in providing living tables to entertain guests. Be it a good old British bake or perhaps a Florentine from France (though many think they’re originally from Italy – nope), your guests will adore this Great British slice of
eccentricity.

If it’s authenticity you’re after, why not hire all four of the main team that make the Great British Bake Off such a draw? It may be a little more costly than simply having your Dad host proceedings but you will get to brag to all your friends that you and Sandi are totally besties.

Themed parties

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It you’re prepared to do a bit of decorative work (or have the budget to hire a party organiser) then you can theme your venue or marquee to look like a beach bar, a scene from the Arabian nights or even the Wild West! Fancy dress is optional though it does help bring the whole thing together.

Possible theme locations include The Wild West, Beach/Tropical/Hawaiian, New York, Las Vegas, African/Safari, Ancient Egypt, Atlantis, Ancient Rome, Mardi Gras/New Orleans, the list goes on

In terms of making your venue look the part, you can choose from a wide range of props and accessories. For example, for a Hawaiian themed party you can hire a bamboo beach bar, free standing & table top palm trees, hula hoops, flower garlands, surf boards, fishing nets and sand pits!

Remember to ensure you have plenty of ice breakers to keep guests chatting and mixing. Close up magicians, caricaturists, meet and greet all work well, as do Chocolate Fountains! For something a bit different, try singing waiters who will really bring the house down!
Live Music. For a Las Vegas or New York themed party, have a look at Frank Sinatra or Rat Pack singers or celebrity look alike singers. Use your imagination and your party themed evening will be a real treat!!