All the time we get asked questions like "Do you do this full time?" "Is this your business?" "Do I know you from somewhere?" "Are you a teacher?" "Are you from around here?" Etc. Only for you to be frustrated when we answer: "I'm always a princess!" "I don't know what you mean" "I'm a princess" "I'm from the Kingdom of Arendelle in Norway". This blog is to help you avoid your frustration.
One of our ultimate goals in "princessing" and character entertainment, is to make your little one believe that they have truly met the character. That is why we put in a lot of time and energy ensuring every aspect is perfect before the party through perfectly styled, expensive wigs, hours of research, hand made and repaired costumes, programs worked out to a t, about 35 pages of training document, another 16 pages of character guide, the perfect makeup, and about and hour of getting ready before the party. Now, imagine putting in all that effort for someone to say: "That's not the real princess, she's just a face painter." There is nothing as disappointing as putting in all that effort for a parent to ruin it for the kids.
This passed weekend, we had the most WONDERFUL party for Princess Layla at the Fairytale Cottage with the Frozen Queen! What made it so perfect was the older kids and parents' interaction with the character! A teen girl (17), was making such a big deal of the character, her authenticity and wonder, that the entire interaction was more magical than we could even imagine. She asked the character for hugs, got a face paint and nearly cried when she got her fairy-dust wish! When people spoke to the character, they addressed her as the Queen, used polite language and even curtsied! It was wonderful, because to the performer, she could immerse herself in the character completely.
Another special moment was with a little girl who had lost her father and grandmother during COVID. Our Tinker Fairy was in charge of entertaining them during the first party after the loss of these two people. The mom told us beforehand that the tinker fairy wrote letters and sent gifts to the little girl to carry her through her difficult times. This helped us to convince her of our authenticity by referring to the letters and gifts.
So how does one act around a character?
Always refer to him/her as the character!
Never ask questions about the performer, their personal life or the business.
If you have marketing- or booking-related queries, ask the attendant on duty.
Act excited to meet the character and convince yourself that the character is real.
If you have met the performer as a different character, at a different party, do not tell them that "you met them as ____ at _____'s party"
Don't ask questions about our costumes or wigs.
Do not ask characters about technology, unless it is part of their time line.
Do not try to "catch out" the characters by asking them difficult questions.
If there is a kid yelling that the character is not real, pull them to the side and ask them not to ruin the magic.
Do not flirt with the characters or make inappropriate comments - the characters are all either under age, married or not interested in romantic love and will react to you in this way. We have a harassment policy in place which means that if our characters feel uncomfortable with your advances, either you leave or we do.
Have fun and don't be scared of interacting with the character as if they are the real character. Had a question that you have always wanted to ask that character? Ask away! They will probably have a witty and fun answer!
Get face paints, play games, dance - this is your opportunity to be a kid again!
We appreciate your help when it comes to making these amazing parties and interactions a reality! It is what makes a performance worthwhile!
Warm Hugs
Princess Maggie
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