My 2nd Bubble Party went MUCH better!

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Papa Deuce

Mac Daddy DJ
Aug 8, 2006
19,843
594
64
Valley Forge Area
And no, I'm not going to bore you with them all the time! :sqbiggrin:

Everything went off without a hitch except on song on my computer wouldn't play. I have no idea why. It played last show... But it wasn't a problem. It was the Limbo and I have about 5 versions. Just pulled out another version and on we went.

There were some things that bothered me though. Here they are:

I was told that the teachers would be VERY ACTIVE participants. There were 6 of them present and only 2 of them were really active.

I asked the daycare manager to limit it to 30 kids maximum... She agreed... and then proceeded to have 46 kids at the party! Not cool. The additional kids were 3 year olds and really they kind of mucked everything up by not being able to keep up with the 4 and 5 year olds. So many kids actually made my show go SHORTER because the 3 year olds had things going so slowly that I had to move on before I wanted to. Having 46 kids do the limbo is not enjoyable if they don't keep moving.

Also, because of the 3 year olds, I dropped the YMCA. At my previous party I could see that the younger kids didn't really like / get it. So, I just moved past it.

Another thing you have is that the kids get too close to the bubble machines. I had colored traffic cones around that were supposed to show the kids the boundaries. I asked the teachers to keep the kids away from the bubble machines and they did most of the time, but not perfectly.

Another disappointment was how few parents showed up, and most of the ones that did were the dads. I really wanted more moms to be there.

Ok, so on to the good stuff!

The kids had a BLAST!

The manager told me that she will now be recommending me to her whole chain of schools in the area. She said I was worth my price - $195.

The absolute best stuff was hearing the kids talk about the party after it was over. They were really pyched up!

The best singular moment was at the very end of the day. I was all packed up and I was going inside to talk to the manager. A young boy who was probably 4 years old saw me in the hallway. He looked over at me and gave me a Thumbs Up and said "Awesome Dude". :sqlaugh:

Yeah, it was a good time.... I'm satisfied and I think I will see some bookings from this for sure.

And, if my wife took some good pictures, I'll post them here.
 
Sounds Like a Good Time over All,
Have you thought about hanging the Bubble Machine from a T Bar?
 
eklondon said:
Sounds Like a Good Time over All,
Have you thought about hanging the Bubble Machine from a T Bar?
Click to expand...

Nope, not with kids, I think. Safety issues.
 
Congrats Papa!!!
Sounds like a good party.
 
Papa Deuce said:
I was told that the teachers would be VERY ACTIVE participants. There were 6 of them present and only 2 of them were really active.
Click to expand...
Get used to that. The teachers sound like they had a "alright mr. bubbles, entertain me" approach and lost sight of their role in the event. It also doesn't hurt to wander over to the non-active ones and ask for "some help on this next bit" and involve them in some small, almost useless way. It gets them off their symbolic rump and into the show.

Papa Deuce said:
I asked the daycare manager to limit it to 30 kids maximum... She agreed... and then proceeded to have 46 kids at the party! Not cool. The additional kids were 3 year olds and really they kind of mucked everything up by not being able to keep up with the 4 and 5 year olds. So many kids actually made my show go SHORTER because the 3 year olds had things going so slowly that I had to move on before I wanted to. Having 46 kids do the limbo is not enjoyable if they don't keep moving.
Click to expand...
Again, get used to that. Make a note for next time and insist on 2 separate shows with the different age groups.

Papa Deuce said:
Also, because of the 3 year olds, I dropped the YMCA. At my previous party I could see that the younger kids didn't really like / get it. So, I just moved past it.
Click to expand...
This won't be the last time you recognize that something isn't working and you alter your program. You'll develop an eye for spotting these in advance and won't have to change the program on the fly.

Papa Deuce said:
Another thing you have is that the kids get too close to the bubble machines. I had colored traffic cones around that were supposed to show the kids the boundaries. I asked the teachers to keep the kids away from the bubble machines and they did most of the time, but not perfectly.
Click to expand...
Do not be afraid to come on the mic and keep on reminding the kids to keep their hands away from the machines. Also, this is the type of thing you can have a teacher be responsible for, even a dead weight teacher, for she won't have to move much and will definitely impact the show in a positive way.

Papa Deuce said:
Another disappointment was how few parents showed up, and most of the ones that did were the dads. I really wanted more moms to be there.
Click to expand...
You'll get the parents at graduation time and bring extra cards for gigs during that time.

Papa Deuce said:
The manager told me that she will now be recommending me to her whole chain of schools in the area. She said I was worth my price - $195.
Click to expand...
And who told you that this would happen once you did the first gig for them? And just think, this was on only your second ever Bubble Party. Once your name gets out there, you'll be like the person I turned over the original Bubble Music Man business to...he's totally booked out for August, every day, with a smattering of double bookings thrown in. In the middle of the week. And the naysayers sneered at the income potential of these gigs.

Nicely done, Chuck! Take a bow, it's much deserved!

View attachment applause.gif
 
John,

I always knew the potential was there when I heard about it. I'm NOT a guy who really loves all kids. In fact I have a certain level where they get under my skin. At the same time, I do enjoy well behaved kids. And I can make this work, for sure.

I also know that I will get much better the more of these I do. I felt way better today than the first one.

Thanks for the encouragement.

BTW, that $195 is my "daycare" pricing. I intend to charge more than that for private parties. Also, my intent is longer parties that involve more than bubbles. However, due to young kid's attention spans, the party needs to be broken up by food or gift giving. I think 60 minutes in one session is all they can handle.
 
Papa-here's an idea for the machines....enclose them. I'm presuming they sit side by side...
Buy a 4x2 life time table and cut the legs down to that the top clears the machine by a few inches...paint the op of the table. this prevents the youngster from getting near the hotter parts of the machine.

get a 4 x 3 piece of corroplast (signboard and have a wicked sign with your logo done up. Mount that to the two inch edge of the table...then stack you empty cases on the table behind the sign...

just a thought
 
A 10 lb table with folding legs; a 4x 3 piece of signboard... that weighs about a pound...not lightweight? not portable...?

Ease of mind....(no kids near the machine) and advertising to boot, plus a place to hide your cases and covers.....

Here another....

Set up your gear on that table....the sign will act as a facade. you've got your bubble machines in front...within arms reach. Drill two holes in each end of the table... two straight poles for your Fender speakers
 
I strongly advise against putting speakers on stands for these gigs.

And realistically, you only need one speaker.
 
Papa Deuce said:
Nope, not with kids, I think. Safety issues.
Click to expand...

Papa...not sure I agree with this...well, I've never done a bubble party but I use a Ultimate Light stand and the base is quite sturdy. I set up the light tree behind me at gigs so couldn't you set up the t bar behind you? Not sure how the bubbles work so maybe that wouldn't work but even if it was more up front, those kids would have to work very hard to try and tip an Ultimate stand over.....
 
djdawg said:
Papa...not sure I agree with this...well, I've never done a bubble party but I use a Ultimate Light stand and the base is quite sturdy. I set up the light tree behind me at gigs so couldn't you set up the t bar behind you? Not sure how the bubbles work so maybe that wouldn't work but even if it was more up front, those kids would have to work very hard to try and tip an Ultimate stand over.....
Click to expand...



Kev, trust me, you don't want these machines anywhere near you.... expecially behind you if you use a laptop.... but once again.... I am a dumbass... I was using a laptop yesterday... it then occcured to be that I should just be using a 4 year old iPod.... set a playlist, yet still have access to a music library.... if EVER there was a time to be an iPod DJ, this is it.

Nope, really, having done 2 of them now, I really think any kind of elevation is a hazard. I do, however, think it might make the bubbles spread out better.
 
Papa Deuce said:
Kev, trust me, you don't want these machines anywhere near you.... expecially behind you if you use a laptop.... but once again.... I am a dumbass... I was using a laptop yesterday... it then occcured to be that I should just be using a 4 year old iPod.... set a playlist, yet still have access to a music library.... if EVER there was a time to be an iPod DJ, this is it.

Nope, really, having done 2 of them now, I really think any kind of elevation is a hazard. I do, however, think it might make the bubbles spread out better.
Click to expand...

What part of elevating them is a hazard? I've never even seen the bubble machines before so is it an open resevoir? Are you afraid that kids will tip the tripod over? Talk to me baby....
 
Kevin:

The primary customer for these gigs and these machines are only a couple of feet tall and a large part of their fun with the bubbles is being able to have them shoot out all over them. If the machines are raised too high, many of the bubbles will sail over their heads and lose a lot of their ability to wow the crowd.

See picture below, taken from my website, from one of my gigs:

bubbleparty.jpg


See how the bubble machines, being about a foot or so off the ground, forces the bubbles right into the kids? They like to swat the bubbles and just be swallowed up in the sheer volume of bubbles. It's a large part of their fun. You put those machines up another foot or so and much of their effectiveness is lost.

You also want the machines far enough from your gear so as to minimize the amount of splash on your various equipment.

Trust me on this. I've done a few of these parties. :sqwink:
 
John Allo said:
Kevin:

The primary customer for these gigs and these machines are only a couple of feet tall and a large part of their fun with the bubbles is being able to have them shoot out all over them. If the machines are raised too high, many of the bubbles will sail over their heads and lose a lot of their ability to wow the crowd.

See picture below, taken from my website, from one of my gigs:

bubbleparty.jpg


See how the bubble machines, being about a foot or so off the ground, forces the bubbles right into the kids? They like to swat the bubbles and just be swallowed up in the sheer volume of bubbles. It's a large part of their fun. You put those machines up another foot or so and much of their effectiveness is lost.

You also want the machines far enough from your gear so as to minimize the amount of splash on your various equipment.

Trust me on this. I've done a few of these parties. :sqwink:
Click to expand...


Of THAT, there can be no debate. It is like they want to be consumed by bubbles. :sqlaugh:
 
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