THE FOLLOWING ARE SOME IDEAS FOR YOUR BAR OR BAT MITZVAH CELEBRATION.
INTRODUCTIONS
We like to start the event off with a high-energy feel. Our guest of honor will be announced into the room accompanied by upbeat music (we can announce the entire family as well). Often times we will have all the guests stand on both sides of the entrance forming a gauntlet allowing the guest of honor to shake hands and high-five as he/she walks through. We can also provide some other great ideas based upon any special themes you may have.
MITZVAH MILESTONES
Some very momentous ceremonies take place at your Bar or Bat Mitzvah. The Candle lighting, the Motzi and the Kiddush are all important traditions that you'll likely want to observe. We'll make these events carefree for you by carefully planning beforehand. Rest assured that these formalities will flow smoothly, letting you relax and feel like a guest yourself.
CANDLE LIGHTING
Since the Candle Lighting Ceremony seems to take more planning than the other traditions, we are happy to offer some guidance: The usual order is grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, older relatives, younger relatives, friends, Bar/Bat Mitzvah's friends, siblings, and parents. The usual amount of candles is 13 or 14 (14th for Bar/Bat Mitzvah). A memory candle may also be lit to honor a deceased loved one.
You will need to choose music selections for each candle dedication. You may choose Jewish music, pop music, theme music, or any combination. Try to choose upbeat music whenever possible. Here are a few ideas to get you started:
Family Members: We Are Family, As Long As We've Got Each Other (from growing pains), Little Sister and I Love My Sister
Friends: Friends, That's What Friends Are For, Thank You For Being A Friend
General Ideas: Celebration, Mazel Tov (from Fiddler On The Roof soundtrack),
Places: New York, New York, Chicago, etc., Sports Themes
Use Your Imagination, or give us a call and use ours.
MUSIC
Our computer & cd library of over 450,000 songs includes music for all ages. We have Show Tunes, Classical, Easy Listening, Big Band, Jazz, Country, 50's, 60's, 70's, Motown, Disco, 80's, and the 90's, 2000. Of course, we have all of the latest music for the kids such as Top 40, Alternative, Rap, House, Hip Hop, Techno, and Club. (Don't worry Mom, we think responsibly and use radio edits).
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GAMES, GAMES, GAMES
We have dozens of innovative games and activities available to increase the fun of any event. Many of our interactive games involve not only the kids but the adults as well. Following are a few of our favorites:
Reception Games:
ImageThese are bigger games that will involve all the kids at once.
Mitzvah child's favorites: a trivia game specially designed for the child.
Coke and Pepsi: Kids grab partners. The partners line up on opposing sides of the dance floor, one side being the Coke side, one side, the Pepsi side. The caller will call either "Coke" or "Pepsi" or numerous other soft drinks or words. The kids all run (or freeze, or switch places, or whatever) accordingly. The last partners to get to the designated spot are "out".
Dance contest: kids make 3-5 strait lines, each line becoming a team. The leader of each line makes up a dance step that everyone in the line has to follow. After a minute or so the leader goes to the back of the line and there is a new leader. Which ever team that dances together the best as a team wins.
Hula-hoop contest: fun with hula hoops
Limbo: How low can you go?
Jump rope contest: How long can you jump?
Hot Potato: using a hula-hoop everyone holds hands in a circle and has to pass the hula-hoop around their bodies without letting go. When the music stops the person with the hula-hoop around their body is out.
Guessatures: a Charades game with a timer. Two teams, each team picks an actor. The actors mime four different words within a minute’s time. Each word is a point. When everyone has had a chance to be the "actor", the team with the most points wins.
Human bridge: Game of physical skill. Everyone sits on a chair in a tight circle, all-facing clockwise. Everyone slowly lies down on the knees of the person behind him or her. One by one we take away the chairs until we have no chairs left.
Musical chairs: All dance around the chairs, but we take away one at a time. When the music stops, all must find a seat. The last one with a seat wins.
Survivor: A scavenger hunt played with chairs. Everyone gets a chair at first. The caller tells them to go off and find something and takes a few chairs at the same time. The kids have to get the item and find a seat. Who ever is the last one with a seat wins.
We also have simpler games we can play if there are a lot of younger children in the crowd, such as
"Freeze Dance"
"Huggy Bear"
"Simon says"
"Red light, green light"
Photo-Booth
This fun and exciting trend has become very popular with people of all ages. Some of the Photo-Booth packages can include a photo book with duplicate pictures printed out to be pasted in that book. Props, like wigs, glasses, hats, etc. Unlimted photos, your choice of B/W or color photo strips.
SNOWBALL DANCE
This popular dance is an icebreaker that works year-round whatever the weather. We'll kick off the dancing with 2 people, for example the Bar or Bat Mitzvah, and Mom or Dad dancing to a slow song. Part ways through the song we announce "snowball" and invite them to leave the dance floor and return with a new partner. We'll repeat this often and finish things off with a packed dance floor.
MITZVAH TRIVIA
This works great during the meal as an entertaining icebreaker.
Using information supplied by you, we will quiz your guests on trivia involving our guest of honor. Questions could include the guest of honor's favorite food, band, teacher, color, etc. We will supply prizes to winners! Another idea to involve all ages is to play Name That Tune. Many of the selections we will choose will be for the 60's and 70's. We will not allow the adults to answer so there is a lot of interaction between the kids and adults. This also works well with a movie-themed event involving music from the movies.
RABBI SAYS
This age-old game takes on an entirely new twist when the contestants are trying to follow the instructions as the rest of the guest’s watch and laugh. Although it looks easy, it's virtually impossible to beat us! This game takes just a few minutes, and it's one of our most popular.
GUEST DJ
Kids compete throughout the event to be our guest DJ. The winner will pick out a song, we'll dress them in the part and we'll even let them do some mic work. You can't beat this!
KARAOKE
The original sing-along activity! We provide over 1,300 songs on disc, with the lyrics appearing on a monitor for the singer. You can sing individually or in groups, with any talent level. This works best with small parties, as it can keep a party going if there isn't much dancing. Cost is $295 booked with a DJ and is limited to first-come, first-served.
BIG SCREEN VIDEO
We have the latest music videos, as well as classic music videos all on DVD. The videos are projected on a 6' x 9' screen as the audio is played through our sound system for dancing. Included in our Ultimate Package, this option can be added to any of our Bar/Bat Mitzvah packages for $650.
LIGHTING and OTHER EFFECTS
We have several different lighting packages to match the size and mood of your party. Effects to add to the "Wow" factor include:
*Concert Style Lighting * Club Lights * Black Lights
Other special effects include:
* Bubble Machines
* Mylar Streamers
* Haze Machines
* Torch Lights
Check out our packages to see which effects are included with each package. These additional effects can be added to any package.
CHACHKES
Party Props and Give-Aways are a great addition to any party. We include many of them in our basic services. The most popular Give-Aways are:
* Inflatable Shoes
* Funky Hats
* Sunglasses
* Leis
* Maracas
* Blow-up guitars
* Glow Necklaces
* LED lights
ADDITIONAL STAFF
One of the best investments you can make to increase the participation and success of your event is to add more of us! All of our Bar/Bat Mitzvah packages include an Emcee and a DJ. We also offer Dancers/Party Motivators. D & D Dancers are the life of the party. They're fun and full of energy. You will never find them inappropriate or over-bearing. Their energy is contagious. They're great at talking with the kids, showing them some dance moves and producing costume skit routines. Have your cameras ready when the kids appear on center stage to perform. D & D Dancer/Party Motivators are in demand. Please contact us right away for availability.
GROUP DANCES
Follow-along dances are fun, and we can show you how to do over 70! Crowd favorites include the Cha Cha Slide and Coco Jambo, Cupid Shuffle, The Freeze Dance, and many more! It's a great way to get kids and adults together on the dance floor.
TRADITIONAL JEWISH DANCES
Dancing to a Hora is a must! We usually get everyone involved in a Hora right after the introductions. Hoisting the guest of honor, siblings and sometimes the entire family is a time-honored tradition. We can also involve your guests by introducing them to Israeli dances such as Mayim Mayim and Yesh.
FINAL THOUGHTS
You'll find us to be responsive, courteous, warm, patient, attentive, organized and professional. We encourage you to call us early in the planning stages, as we have a great network of other vendors to make things easier for you.