During the following months Tower Productions will be sending out some blogs posts that will center around Party Planning for weddings, galas, fundraisers, corporate events, private functions, anniversaries, showers, holiday parties, sweet sixteens, quinceañeras, bar/bat mitzvahs, etc. In this particular post we’re going to address the last few type of events listed: The Coming of Age Event.
Although each event is unique in style, there are some common tips among the Coming of Age parties that we’d like to share.
1. Plan Ahead. Of course one should always plan ahead when having any sort of event that entails party planning, yet we’d like to reiterate that again. The reason planning far in advance works in your favor for a Coming of Age event is that you can make it work in your monthly budget and not get overwhelmed at once. This will enable you to give your child all the important things they’d like to have at their party, whether it’s a LED dance floor, gobo, video montage, that special dress, party favors, centerpieces or something particular in furniture rentals. By approaching each item one month at a time with plenty of time to plan, you will be able to create exactly the type of event you and your child envision and not have to worry about breaking your budget.
2. RSVPs & No-Shows. One of the last things you may be thinking about is the age of your guests and the fact that many of them are not used to RSVP’ing on time or just not showing up at the last minute. While you can’t help the second scenario you can work follow-up phone calls into your party planning. Coming of Age parties means lots of guest that are young and the nuances of party planning will escape them. Set up a day, at least 10 days in advance of the absolute time you must get your count into your venue, to make phone calls to the ones that have not RSVP’d yet. If you can’t reach them, make a list and keep on it. If you know ahead of time that this is “part of the package” then the amount of stress on you will be considerably less. It will also give you a moment to connect on a personal basis with some of your guests before the party.
3. Music Selection. The teens are going to want one thing and after all, it’s a Coming of Age party. Yet at the same time, you’re going to have some adults at the party, whether they are parents of some of teens, extended family or some of your friends there celebrating this special day, you don’t want to leave them out. Luckily there’s enough dance music that has been out for decades that even the teens will enjoy bopping around when it’s playing. Also keep in mind that some recent music may be a bit risque for everyone to hear and you may wish to review all the lyrics before making your final choice. Make plans with your DJ to select a varied list of music and don’t forget to include the old folks!
4. Seating Arrangements. A spin off of 3. Music Selection (pun intended), we’d like to address the issue of seating arrangements. There are a few things to remember here:
a) Put the adults far away from the sound system
b) Conversely, put the kids tables close to the sound system
c) Adults of all sizes, shapes and abilities will need seating that is comfortable to get on and off and to sit on for longer periods of time.
d) Kids are fine with any kind of seating as long as it looks good
Again, each party has its own unique flavor, but those few tips above should help your teen’s Coming of Age party be most enjoyable for everyone involved.
