Kinetic Gal’s Guide to A Dance/ Music Themed Party!! May 26, 2008
Posted by Kinetic Gal in How-To Tips.Tags: Birthday, Children, Dance, dance theme party, High School Musical theme party, Kids, Kinetic Gal, music theme party, Singapore Birthday Party, theme party
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Are your kids totally enthralled by ‘High School Musical’? Do they love dance and music? Well, most kids usually do, and with the High School Musical (The Ice Tour) coming to Singapore, your kids will definitely love it if his/her upcoming birthday party is a music/dance theme party.
How then do we ensure a fun music/dance theme party? Here are some tips from Kinetic Gal, specially for you.
Invitations and Costumes
First and foremost, for the party, try to decide if it should be a generic music/dance party or if you want it to be specifically (for example) a ‘High School Musical’ Party. Having decided on that, you can then send out the invitations and invite the friends and relatives to come for the party dressed up accordingly. ‘High School Musical’ invitation cards are also easily found in most stores that sell party items so you can get that if you wish. If it is a ‘High School Musical’ Party, you can also have all the invited kids come in cheerleader or basketball player costumes. Alternatively, have them come in dance related costumes like ballerina costumes and such.
Door gifts and Party Bags
For a music/dance themed party, a great door gift could be pom-poms for the girls and dance batons for the guys. Alternatively, you can have microphone key chains and keychain ballerinas as doorgifts. For party bags, it would be extremely easy to get High School Musical related party bags. These stationeries are widely available in stores. If you want, you can buy different items separately and package them as party bags.
Entertainment
Pre-party entertainment for a music/dance party is actually extremely wide in selection. If you happen to have a karaoke system set, that would be great for the kids as well. You would however, need an adult to ensure that there’s someone who can control the songs for the kids. Some may squabble over who takes the mic, and if that happens, switch to a mass sing-along instead.
Another great idea if you happen to have the Playstation is to actually borrow the Dance Dance Revolution game from someone. Have it set up for play in the hall and give out ‘result sheets’ to the kids. They can take turn to play the game and the person with the highest score wins a prize at the end of the party!
Of course, this being the dance/music party, you could simply choose an easier way (less things to oversee!!) out by just playing the High School Musical DVD on your TV as a preshow and warm-up entertainment. Kids love repetition (if they like the item) so even if most of them have seen it before, they would still love to see it again.
Besides the party magician/juggler/ventriloquist that you can hire for the party, consider also having a music band for the party. You can source for the bands from junior colleges and universities. Most of these have a decent standard and are still pretty affordable.
Games
For games, you can have ask the entertainer whom you have hired (if you decide to)to have music/dance related games. If you prefer to do it yourself, you can have games such as guess the song, or musical chairs/statues. For musical chairs, children tend to rush and in the process often get injured. To avoid that, you can switch to having coloured pieces of paper on the ground. Instead of ‘fighting’ for the seats, have them stand on the piece of paper when the music stops. By virtue of ending being standing still on the paper, injuries can be cut to a minimal. Of course, do not forget to have a prize for the winners of each game and the best-dressed person.
As always, these can be organized by yourself or if you wish, you can also get a professional party entertainment company to work out the details for you. You could get a company that has lots of customization available, just like Mighty Magic Factory, so that your party will pertain to the liking of your child. It is afterall, your child’s birthday party and the most important thing is for everyone there (and the birthday kid) to have fun!!
~K Gal
Walkaround Juggling for the Birthday Party! May 18, 2008
Posted by Kinetic Gal in Shows/ Parties.Tags: Birthday party, Children, juggling, Kids, Magic, Puppets, Singapore
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On Saturday, I did some walkaround juggling as a warm-up for a birthday party! Besides me, there was also a face painter and a bouncy castle for the kids to play!
The face painter did a great job and the kids were just clamouring to get their face painted and be transformed to Batman, Spiderman, and so many more! (Superman, was, unfortunately, not among the superhero face painted, as the character did not wear any mask.)
The kids also liked the walkaround juggling! Quite some of them gathered around me to see my ball and ring juggling. In fact, this was one of the few sessions I brought along my plate spinning stuff as well, and the kids loved it. I got them to hold on to the plate spinning sticks and it made for an impressive photo! We just had to be careful with some of the smaller toddlers, making sure that they didn’t drop the plates on themselves accidentally.
The kids enjoyed themselves with the before-the-show activities and these are just some of which Mighty Magic Factory offers. Just like what was written before, mixing and matching the party can allow the party to have great before the show fun and allow the kids to enjoy the party even more. so why not consider having a face-painter, walkaround juggler or magician at your next party too! 
~K Gal
Further Juggling Tips from Kinetic Gal May 18, 2008
Posted by Kinetic Gal in How-To Tips.Tags: female juggler, juggling, Kinetic Gal, Singapore
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A while ago (which is really quite a few months back), I wrote an article about juggling, and how to start juggling. Now, I will write about some tips about getting a consistent cascade for your juggling. Many a times, I see people who can juggle the normal 3 balls cascade, but, are unable to maintain a good cascade.
Here are some little tips for the problems most people face when learning juggling. 
Problem 1: My (Juggling) Balls are running away from me!!
This is one of the most frequent and easily rectified errors. Most times, when juggling, the ball tends to move in front. For beginners, this mean that you will be running all over the room. The way to iron this out is really simple – juggle in front of a wall! A few bruised knuckles and practice sessions later, you will find that your juggling balls will have much less tendency to ‘run away’.
Problem 2: I get a stiff and sore neck after juggling!!!
This really shouldn’t be a case, because personally, I have found that juggling improves posture. It is really not possible to juggle with a hunchback, so juggling actually improves posture for people who tend to hunch like me. But, there might be a possibility that you are actually putting yourself in a very tense position when juggling. Try to relax your shoulders and juggle standing naturally.
Another possibility is that you are throwing your juggling balls too high. Throwing them too high means that you are continuously looking upwards and this can result in a stiff neck. When juggling, try to practise consistent throws where the balls do not ‘fly’ past your eye level. This can help you achieve a better consistent cascade.
Problem 3: My throws are wild and my cascade doesn’t last for long!!
This usually means one thing. You need to get back to basic to learn to throw consistently AND you need a more thing: PRACTICE, PRACTICE, and more PRACTICE!!!
Well, that’s it for the little tips to get to a good consistent 3 ball cascade! Now, it’s time for practice!!
K Gal
Kinetic Gal Hosts a Great Party for Six Year Old Birthday Girl in a Private Estate in Singapore! May 11, 2008
Posted by Kinetic Gal in Shows/ Parties.Tags: Balloons, Birthday Magic, Birthday party, Children, Games, Juggler, Kids, Kinetic Gal, Professional Female Magician, Shows
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Kinetic Gal hosted an action packed adventure for a spunky gal who turned six today in a private house function room. Lauren, our birthday gal today was really excited for her party and everyone had great fun. Her mum took into considerations the party environment and had two function rooms booked rather than one. This was great, because the children were able to enjoy the party in one room, while the food was served in a separate one.
Lauren’s parents had some basic decorations for her party done in the function room which made the function room great.
Balloons are really a great addition to any party and as you can see, they add a lot to the party atmosphere. If you are organizing a party you can do some basic party decorations of your own too (see an article on budget decorations here) or get the party experts in for decorations.
I did a little briefing for the parents about the party and how it would flow before we started the shows and games proper.
Birthday girl Lauren having her white Mighty Magic Factory birthday cap before we begin the adventure!
The Juggling Show!!
The highlight of the Juggling Show: One and Only – Blindfold Club Juggling!!
Games and Prizes : The Kids’ Favourite!
Kids having fun shouting and screaming: “The rabbit is there!!!!!!!!!!!”
Mighty Magic Factory “Super-Duper-Mighty-Crazy” Power ID Card!
Birthday Cake Cutting and giving out of Party Bags before our Mighty Magic Factory’s Signature Balloon Bomb Ending!!
I was really glad the children had fun throughout the party and Lauren’s parents thanked me after for a job well done. Well, all in a day’s work!
Kinetic Gal
Tips on Making Your Child a Magician May 4, 2008
Posted by Kinetic Gal in How-To Tips.Tags: Birthday Party Magician, Learning Magic in Singapore, Singapore Birthday Party Entertainer, singapore kids parties
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The school holidays are almost here and kid’s nowadays have a myriad of ways to keep themselves occupied during their school holidays. They can watch a DVD movie, play a video game, surf the net or have some good ol’fashioned outdoor fun.
Well magic is definitely a fun for hobby for kids to have. Who knows? One of these kids may grow up to be the next big star in magic! Magic has its benefits too, it is not just about fooling friends, it also improves creative thinking and logical problem solving skills.
So if you would like to encourage your child to take up magic as a hobby, then here are a few tips to get him/her started in the world of conjuring arts:
Show Your Child a Trick
Every magician fell in love with the art when they saw a trick being performed to them “live” for the first time. Show your kid a simple trick like making a coin vanish and reappear to see how interested they are in magic. If your kid wants to see more or is really interested in trying to find out how you did the trick so that he/she can do it too, then you know your kid really likes magic.
Buy Your Child Some Magic Props
A quick way to start out your kid with magic is to get him/her their first magic set. These can be bought at most good toy stores or from magic shops. Kids usually prefer a hands on approach to learning, so while there are numerous books on learning magic, I recommend that you allow your kid’s first experiences to be with props in hand, learning to make things appear and disappear.
Alternatively, you can buy them one trick at a time. This will allow them to practice and perfect each individual trick before moving on to something new. You can also guide your child along by rewarding their perfection of each trick by getting them a new trick. This also prevents their interest from waning too quickly as they will always look forward to learning something new.
Give Your Kid a Chance to Perform
Every budding magician needs a chance to perform their magic. If your kid is constantly hounding you to watch his/her latest trick, do give them the time to show you. It is after all, something hat they’ve worked hard on.
You can also set a date for your child’s first performance so that he/she has something to look forward to. It could be at the next family gathering or Christmas party and you can tell your kid to prepare a short ten minute performance. However, do not give your child too much stress. He/she may be shy or lack confidence in his/her performance skill. You should give your child encouragement and help them prepare for their big performance. Once in awhile, you should even act as an audience for your child to practice performing for.
Hopefully these tips will prove helpful to those of you who are looking to keep your kids occupied with a healthy and alternative hobby this coming June holidays.
Kinetic Gal’s Guide to Planning the Right Timing for Your Party Entertainment May 3, 2008
Posted by Kinetic Gal in How-To Tips.Tags: birhtday party, guide, how to plan a party, Kinetic Gal, party entertainment, Plan Party, planning a party, timing, tips
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May 1st – Labour Day, saw Kinetic Gal (me!!) hosting a party for Regan who had just turned 6. Regan is really a cute boy who loves dinosaurs and it was really great hosting the party for him! He and his friends had great fun (they thanked me!! ) and his mother was very pleased with the party too. After the party, Angela (Regan’s Mom) thanked me for doing a great job and asked me whether the timing for the party was one of the latest that i had hosted. She reflected to me that she wasn’t sure what kind of timing was appropriate for the party.
Well, in actual fact, not just Angela, many parents face the difficulty of choosing the time for the entertainer/ party host to come in to do a show. Here are some guidelines as to how to plan the timing for the pary!
The timing for the entertainment depends on various stuff. You would have to consider the guests (age of the kids), the food to be provided (if you’re providing any), whether it is a school day the next day, the length of time of the entertainment and so on and so forth.
First and foremost, it is a no brainer that you should first decide whether you will be providing lunch or tea or dinner for the party. Deciding on this aspect gives you general timeframe to work within and plan accordingly. Assuming you have decided on providing a buffet dinner, the next thing you would want to ask yourself if you wish for your guest to have entertainment and cake-cutting before dinner or after dinner.
If you wish for the entertainment to be before your dinner, do remember to indicate on your invitation card that you have hired entertainment for the party before the dinner. This ensures that your guests will come in on time, and not miss the entertainment planned for them. It would be prudent to check the rough amount of time that the entertainment will be provided for so that your guests will not be starving before the entertainment is over.
If you were to wish for the entertainment to be provided after dinner, remember to indicate that on your invitation card as well. One particular point to note is that, if the average age of the children is younger, this may not be appropriate as they tend to need to sleep early. Also, if it happens to be a school day the next day, parents may not want to allow their kids to stay so late. In that case, it may be wiser to have the entertainment before dinner instead.
This would be more or less the same for lunch with the consideration that young kids tend to need an afternoon napp at around 3 in the afternoon and so, entertainment after lunch should try not to extend beyond that. For parties providing tea (ie. light refreshments only), you would have a higher flexibility of when to have the entertainment since the children (and guests) would most probably be good with both eating before and after the entertainment.
In fact, it is due to this reason that Mighty Magic Factory provides a fixed timing for our party adventures to be hosted at. We have the time slots of 9am/ 11am/ 1pm/ 3pm/ 5pm/ 7pm/ 9pm. These time slots have been given due considerations so you can have your food before/after the party adventure as according to your plan. Indeed having a good planning of the party ensures that you (plus your kid) and the guests would be able to enjoy yourselves to the fullest without starving or having to go off halfway during the show.
If you’re still not sure when you are planning your party, you could always call the party entertainment company and ask about the timings too. This would be of a help in planning the right time to ensure that you have a great party!
