Epic School Dances Start Here
We've helped schools plan successful dances for more than 30 years. In fact, we've been the energy behind more than 4,000 school dances in DC, MD, VA, PA & DE.
So let's not wait... Your EPIC dance starts NOW!
Before we get into the planning help, please note that NO school dance will be a success without great effort, volunteers and consistent advertising! Get your student volunteers to start talking about the dance. A great idea is to distribute fliers or posters, get prizes (we'd be happy to host contests) and spread the word! Now, what else goes into a successful school dance?
1. Chaperones & Volunteers - Every school dance will need chaperones. So recruit early and be sure to recruit more chaperones than you need. Adult chaperones & volunteers are needed. You'll want chaperones to assist with any number of duties... prior to, during & after the dance. From ticket sales to decorations... collecting tickets at the door to post-dance clean up and everything in between. Your chaperones & volunteers are most critical in hosting a successful school dance.
2. Games & Prizes - Turn up the fun with games and prizes. Of course, our dynamic DJ entertainers can provide ideas for great games to involve your students in on the fun. Our GIANT Games suite is always a hit at school dances. Click Here to find out more!
3. Music Requests - It's generally a great idea to have your students involved with music requests. Please keep in mind that our dynamic DJ entertainment team will review all requests in advance, for content and suitability of play, as we will only play "radio friendly" music. Our RequestNow! system is an interactive request system that allows your students to text in their requests during your event. Those requests go straight to our system, allowing the DJ to prioritize requests by popularity, genre and more. As an alternative to our RequestNow! system, students can submit requests in person, at your event. Click Here to find out more about RequestNow!
4. Student Volunteers - Most schools have an SGA, SCA or student dance committee. Those students will help with dance ideas, ticket sales, decorations and set-up/clean-up. Those students should get permission from parents, in advance, to stay after the dance, for clean-up. As an incentive, often these students will receive free admission to the dance along with free snacks.
5. Ticket Cost - A successful dance begins with having great ticket sales. Pricing your tickets appropriately will make for heavy ticket sales. When more students purchase tickets, this will inspire others to do so. Everyone wants to get to the event that everyone else is going to!
6. Promotions - Speaking of ticket sales, strong promotions will encourage ticket sales. Spread the word! Your student volunteers should lead the charge. Get them talking about the dance. In addition, Click Here to complete your request for our promo kit. This promo kit includes a digital promo flier (feel free to print more copies) and an audio ad that you are able to use. A strong promotional campaign is hugely important in planning a successful school dance.
7. Choose The Right Date & Time - You want to choose a date & time whereby it's easy for your students to attend and easy for parents to pick up students.
Dates To Avoid...
•Avoid dates where there is no activity bus
•Avoid dates where another big event is planned (school play, instrumental/choral concert, athletic activity)
•Avoid dates just before or just after a holiday break
Things To Consider...
•Having a dance directly after school makes it easy for students and chaperones to attend
•An ideal middle school dance length is 90 minutes to two hours
•An ideal high school dance length is three to four hours
•Create a theme for the dance that will generate a "buzz" around the school
8. Who's In Charge? - Make sure you designate someone so that chaperones, volunteers and students know who to turn to, for direction. This is also helpful so that our dynamic DJ entertainers know who to check in with!
9. Refreshments - From snacks to heavier refreshments, you can offer simple concessions either at no charge or for a small fee. Offering refreshments at no charge will likely boost ticket sales while refreshments for a fee will likely help fundraising efforts. You may want to consider your ticket price if offering free refreshments. If doing so, issue each student one ticket to cover (for example) one slice of pizza and one bottled water. If you charge for refreshments, one person should be responsible for handling cash while a few volunteers can staff the concessions.
10. Dismissal Procedure - Depending on the number of students in attendance, you may consider dismissing your students by grade level so that there isn't a mad dash for the door, once the dance ends. Another option is to dismiss students in groups... bus riders, walkers, students being picked up. If accommodating a large group or coordinating with an activity bus, dismissal should begin, shortly before the end of the dance, so that all students can arrive to their designated pick up location, on time.
Other Tips...
•Have all students leave their backpacks and belongings in their lockers, to be retrieved after the dance
•Choose a fun theme and encourage students to participate
•Offer a door prize through a contest that all students can be eligible for
•Get local businesses (coffee shop, doughnut shop, fast food chain) to sponsor your dance with free food
and/or giveaways (gift cards)
•Have students call/text parents 15 minutes before the dance ends so rides arrive once the dance ends
•Plan in advance... promotional efforts need time to develop for best ticket sales
•Reward your student volunteers with free refreshments during or after the dance
Be sure to contact us for further assistance, because... The Party Begins NOW!